Male infertility might not be after all a lifestyle ailment as a number of researches have pointed out. A University of Edinburgh study has suggested that male fertility problems are determined at the foetal stage or in other words, a male child is born with reproductive deficiencies. The difficulty of studying a human model has restricted the fertility study only to animal models to help unravel the details of the relation between the hormone exposure of the foetal in the womb and the future reproductive health.
According to the study the critical “window” that determines the future reproductive health may, in humans, be 8 to 12 weeks into the pregnancy. Male hormones such as testosterones work during the foetal stage to program the reproductive tract. The anogenital measurement or the distance between the base of the penis and the anus could act as an early warning system of future reproductive problems in boys. The shorter the anogenital measurement the greater is the possibility of developing reproductive problems in future.
This study would help in developing early treatments for male infertility, testicular cancer and other common genital disorders.
Image:advanced fertility
Source:bbc