In Vitro Fertility Goddess
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Thursday 29 January 2009
Source: Human Reproduction
Common chemicals found in non-stick Teflon frying pans, food packaging, pesticides and clothing may substantially reduce a woman's fertility.
Scientists from the University of California in Los Angeles discovered that exposure to perfluorinated chemicals or PFCs could be linked to how long it takes a woman to fall pregnant.
The findings came from the analysis of the blood of over 12-hundred Danish women of an average age of 31 who gave birth between 1996 and 2002. The researchers measured how much PFCs each woman had and how long it took them to conceive.
And the results spoke for themselves: women who needed infertility treatment (infertility being defined here as taking more than 12 months to conceive) had higher levels of common chemicals than those who conceived in under six months. The scientists then estimated that women with the highest exposure to some of these chemicals were 70 to 134% more likely to suffer infertility than women with the lowest exposure.
The researchers said no conclusions could be drawn from the study on how the chemicals may affect women who fail to get pregnant at all. But they said the effect of the chemicals on a man's sperm quality could impact on ability to conceive "since the couples may share similar aspects of lifestyle and around 99% of subjects in this cohort had a spouse or partner". However, they called for further studies to investigate the impact on sperm.
The damaging chemicals are widely used in manufacturing and industry, including the production of non-stick cookware, heat-resistant materials, those used in waterproof clothing, to treat surfaces and upholstery, some insecticides and fire extinguisher foam.
Tony Rutherford, chair of the British Fertility Society, believes the results show "a tenuous link in the delay to conception in women with the highest levels of two commonly used perfluorinated chemicals. This is an important finding and certainly warrants further detailed research, particularly in those trying for a family. This study emphasises the importance of remaining vigilant to potential environmental factors that may impact on fertility."
Sarah Williams
