Overweight mums could jeopardise their sons fertility, doctors have warned.
Research has shown that the sperm quality of men with obese mothers is poorer than those whose mothers are of an average weight. This is the first time such a link has been shown, although many previous studies have shown that obesity can affect a woman's fertility. 300 women and their sons were looked at and although the majority of the women were of normal weight when they became pregnant, 25 had body mass indexes classed as overweight or obese.
Tests showed their sons tended to have slightly lower concentrations of sperm, as well as fewer mobile sperm. Nonetheless, the differences were so small that the researchers could not be sure they were not down to chance. The team, from Aarhus University in Denmark, said further studies should be carried out.
They added that it was possible that higher levels of the hormone oestrogen, associated with being overweight, might harm the development of male foetus reproductive organs.
August 2007
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