LONDON (Reuter) - A new Finnish study has shown that middle-aged and older men have become significantly less fertile and their declining sperm production cannot be explained by drugs, smoking or drinking alcohol.
In a report in the British Medical Journal, Finnish scientists said the new study confirmed previous reports of a drop in sperm quality over the last 50 years.
But the study -- based on two sets of tests in 1981 and 1991 on the corpses of Finnish men aged between 35 and 69 -- showed the problem was not just due to the poor quality of sperm.
The researchers from the universities of Helsinki and Tampere found the decline in fertility was also due to an increasing number of problems with male reproductive organs.
``During this period, the size of seminiferous tubules decreased, the amount of fibrotic tissue increased and the weight of testicles decreased significantly,'' they wrote.
``Alterations in testicular characteristics could not be explained by changes in body mass index, smoking, alcohol drinking, or exposure to drugs.''
The researchers said the fall in sperm quality and a rise in disorders like testicular cancer could have the same cause, which other scientists have speculated could range from climate change to environmental toxins like pesticides and poor diet.
``More research is clearly needed to evaluate the role of different factors for declining sperm counts and deteriorating spermatogenesis,'' they wrote.
Article from Mercury Online service, 08:16 AM ET 01/02/97
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