A fertility expert, Dr. Nda Yunus, has warned that high intake of toxins could lead to infertility both in men and women.
Toxins are poisonous substances produced within living cells or organisms that damage the body and can be in form of food, water, air and clothing.
Yunus, of Garki General Hospital, Abuja made the disclosure in the media chat, where he noted that humans were faced with various toxins in what they eat and drink.
He said modern day living had led to increased exposure of toxins to the body, which could lead to infertility.
He listed sources through which toxins could get into human body as alcohol intake, cigarette smoking, medical drugs, cosmetics, household cleaning products, as well as pollution and environmental poisons.
He advised both men and women who were interested in having children to be cautious over what they consume, and ensure that they ate balanced and healthy diet.
According to him, modern day living and various lifestyles contribute to accumulation of toxic materials in the human body.
He explained that such could affect several natural body functions and the ability to reproduce, thereby contributing to various degrees of sperm disorders in men and implantation failures in women.
He said “the older generation were not exposed to toxic threats that invade us today and that made it easier for them to live longer without some of the life threatening diseases of today.”
He noted that fertilisation of baby was a product of both the father and mother, adding that optimising the quality of the woman’s egg and the man’s sperm before conception was of paramount importance.
[penci_blockquote style=”style-1″ align=”none” author=””]Beyond detoxifying, it is also imperative for women to consume lots of essential nutrients necessary for the growth and development of the baby[/penci_blockquote]
He said “getting pregnant and growing a new human being with your own reserves requires a surplus of nutrients and energy, hence the need to detoxify.
“Detoxification is a key body function which involves the elimination of metabolic waste and other toxins through eliminatory organs such as the skin, kidneys and liver.
“About 80 per cent of all chemical processes that go on in our bodies require detoxification activities.
“Beyond detoxifying, it is also imperative for women to consume lots of essential nutrients necessary for the growth and development of the baby.”
Yunus advised couples experiencing infertility to undergo detox programmes, follow fertility diet and take preconception supplements to boost themselves.
He also urged spouses to avoid activities that could lead to generation of several reproductive toxins within the body.
How women can transfer stress to their newborn through vagina – Study
Exposing newborn mice to vaginal microbes from stressed female mice may transfer the effects of stress to the newborns, according to a new study by researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.
The changes resemble those seen specifically in the male offspring of mothers that were stressed during pregnancy.
The study published in the journal Nature Neuroscience may lead to a better understanding of the way in which maternal insults such as stress affects the brain development of offspring.
Pregnant-mother Microbes present in vaginal fluid colonise the gut during the birth process of passing through the birth canal, and the composition of this gut microbiome influences the brain’s development and how it its responds to stress later in life, according to the study.
In mice, prenatal stress is known to alter the vaginal microbiota and affect male offspring’s brain function after birth, but it has not been clear how these brain changes are caused by the altered microbiota.
Tracy Bale and her colleagues at the University of Maryland School of Medicine transplanted microbes from the vaginal fluid of either stressed or unstressed pregnant mice into both prenatally stressed and unstressed male offspring immediately after these babies were born by C-section, so were not exposed to the mother’s vaginal microbes.
Bale found that the pups exposed to both stress in the womb and microbiota from stressed mothers had decreased body weights and growth and increased stress hormone levels as adults.
They found that these effects could be partially reproduced in unstressed, newborn male offspring by transferring vaginal microbes from stressed mothers.
Microbes from unstressed mothers, however, did not rescue the effects of stress in the womb, according to the researchers.
These findings indicated that stress during pregnancy affected mice both directly during their gestation and indirectly by altering the vaginal microbiota of the mother.
In humans, maternal stress during pregnancy is a risk factor for psychiatric disorders in offspring, but it remains unclear whether this risk is also influenced by the vaginal microbiota.
“These results are very intriguing,” Bale said. “It is definitely worth investigating whether the effects we found in mice also hold true in humans.”