Acidity Leads To Infertility

Couples trying to have a baby when the man is over
40 will have more difficulty conceiving than if he
is younger, French researchers said on Sunday.

Doctors know a woman's age plays a key role but
the findings presented at the European Society of
Human Reproduction and Embryology conference suggest
the paternal impact is stronger than earlier thought,
Stephanie Belloc and colleagues said.

"Our data give evidence for the first time, for a
strong paternal effect on IUI (intrauterine insemination)
outcome either on pregnancy rates but also on
miscarriage rates," Belloc and her team from the
Eylau Centre for Assisted Reproduction in France said.

Other researchers have indicated that an overall decline
in sperm counts and quality as a man ages is a factor
but until now there has been little clinical proof that
simply being an older man has such a big effect on
fertility, the researchers said.

"Sperm counts are effected by lifestyle and diet. Men
over 40 are generally more acidic then when they
were in their 20's and thus have weaker and lower sperm
counts," states Dr. Robert O. Young of the pH Miracle
Living Center.

The French team analyzed samples taken from more
than 21,000 so-called intrauterine inseminations in
which the sperm are washed or spun in a centrifuge to
separate them from the seminal fluid and then inserted
directly into the uterus.

The team examined the quality of the sperm and then
tracked pregnancy, miscarriage and delivery rates.
They found the paternal impact on miscarriage was
much stronger when men passed age 40, said
Yves Menezo, who worked on the study.

As expected, older women were less likely to get
pregnant and had more miscarriages than younger
ones, but surprisingly the risk of miscarriage
was also far higher for couples in which the man
was past 40, about 35 percent. The risk from a
man younger than 30 is about 10 to 15 percent,
Menezo added.

"We have known there was a paternal effect for a
while but we didn't expect to find these kind of
miscarriage rates," Menezo said.

The researchers do not know exactly why but said
a link between a man's age and DNA decay in sperm
that causes it to fragment could be a likely
explanation.

The sperm they studied showed that many samples
taken from men over 40 had defects that could
cause miscarriage, the researchers added.

According to Dr. Young, "the DNA decay in the sperm
is the result of and acidic lifestyle and diet.
In order to have healthy sperm a man must have
a healthy alkaline diet and be conscious of the
importance of maintaining the alkaline design
of his body."

"Until now, gynecologists only focused on maternal age,
and the message was to get pregnant before the age
of 35 or 38 because afterwards it would be difficult,"
Belloc added.

"But now the gynecologists must also focus on paternal
age and give this information to the couple."

"The best advise at any age for getting pregnant and
then having a healthy pregnancy without miscarriage is
for the couple to alkalize before, during and after
pregnancy. Conception can only take place in
an alkaline environment and the long term health
of the fetus is directly related to the Father and
Mother's lifestyle and diet. It must be alkaline.
If not the risk for miscarriage and birth defects
goes up significantly - especially after 40,"
states Dr. Young.Aci