WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Women who breathed in secondhand smoke as children or young adults were later more likely to have trouble getting pregnant and suffer more miscarriages than women not exposed to smoke, U.S. researchers reported Thursday.
They said toxins in the smoke could have permanently damaged the women's bodies, causing the later problems, and said their finding support restrictions on smoking.
Overall, 11 percent of the women reported difficulty becoming pregnant, and about a third lost one or more babies, the researchers wrote in the journal Tobacco Control.
Full story: http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSTRE4B405120081205
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mje362Men who smoke, drink heavily or are exposed to pesticides while trying for a baby could harm not only their baby but future generations of offspring too, scientists say.
Researchers said animal studies showed abnormalities caused by environmental toxins were caused by genetic changes that were passed on through generations.
They said traditional assumptions that the health of fathers was less important than that of mothers in determining how healthy their babies would be should be revised.
Dr Cynthia Daniels of Rutgers University, said: "If I were a young man I would not drink heavily and I would not be smoking two packs of cigarettes per day while trying to conceive a child.
"Studies have shown significant associations between male toxic exposures and increased rates of infertility, miscarriage, stillbirth and childhood health problems.
"We need to open our eyes and look at the evidence. Sixty per cent of all birth defects have unknown sources. Why are we not examining such an obvious source of harm?"
"When you harm the male reproductive system you can see multi-generational harm transmitted through the male gamete [sperm]. This [new] research has human implications because it suggests an avenue of harm and a model of trans-generational effects."
Dr Daniels said smoking, drinking alcohol and cocaine use caused chemical changes to semen.
Dr Matthew Anway, of the University of Idaho, gave pregnant female rats daily injections of the pesticide vinclozolin during the period when the sex of embryos is determined.
Male offspring had abnormalities including prostate and sperm development problems, and genetic changes that the researchers found were passed on through four generations when the males were mated with healthy females.
Dr Anway identified specific genes involved in the production of sperm that were permanently altered by exposure to the pesticide.
Presenting his findings at the American Association for the Advancement of Science (ASSS) conference in Boston, he said: "In addition to the spermatogenic and prostate abnormalities, trans-generational effects on numerous disease states were observed including tumour development and kidney disease."
Dr Anway said the doses used in the experiments far exceeded the levels that humans could expect to be exposed to in the environment, but that the study was designed to demonstrate how toxins could lead to inheritable abnormalities.
Dr Gladys Friedler, of the Boston University School of Medicine, said: "Both animal and epidemiological studies demonstrate that paternal exposure to a variety of potential toxins can adversely impact fetal development, produce a wide spectrum of deficits in offspring and be expressed in subsequent generations."
Source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/main.jhtml?xml=/earth/2008/02/18/scisperm118.xml Recent Keyword Searches: miscarriage rate ivf, miscarriage when occurs ivf, miscarriage, chance of miscarriage at 45, miscarriage natural exercise, women having babies over 45, too much exercise can result to miscarriage, miscarriage triggers allergies, what vitamin can i use to increase progesterone, herbal remedies miscarriage prevention
The most common cause of pregnancy loss is a random chromosome abnormality that occurs during fertilization. For fertilization to occur, the chromosomes in the nucleus of both the egg and the sperm need to join into 23 pairs (46 total chromosomes). Sometimes this pairing does not happen correctly and that can impede the development of the fetus.
Other factors that could contribute to a miscarriage include:
• fertilization late after ovulation
• low or high levels of the thyroid hormone
• uncontrolled diabetes
• exposure to environmental and workplace hazards, such as radiation or toxic agents
• uterine abnormalities
• incompetent cervix, or when the cervix begins to open (dilate) and thin (efface) before the pregnancy has reached term
• certain medications (mostly prescription), such as the acne drug Accutane
Certain behaviors also increase the risk of a miscarriage. Smoking, for example, puts nicotine and other chemicals into the bloodstream that cause the blood vessels in the placenta to spasm, which decreases the blood flow to the uterus. Smokers also have a lower level of oxygen in their blood, which means the fetus gets less oxygen. Alcohol and illegal drugs have been proved to lead to miscarriages. There is no evidence that stress or sexual activity contributes to miscarriage.
Some of the common causes of a stillbirth include:
• pre-eclampsia and eclampsia, disorders of late pregnancy that involve high blood pressure, fluid retention, and protein in the urine
• uncontrolled diabetes
• abnormalities in the fetus caused by infectious diseases - such as syphilis, toxoplasmosis, German measles, rubella, and • influenza - or by bacterial infections like listeriosis
• severe birth defects (responsible for about 20% of stillbirths), including spina bifida
• postmaturity - a condition in which the pregnancy has lasted 41 weeks or longer
• chronic high blood pressure, lupus, heart or thyroid disease
Full article: http://www.kidshealth.org/parent/medical/sexual/miscarriage.html
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Women who were exposed to their parents' smoking as children may have a higher likelihood of suffering a miscarriage, new research suggests.
In a study of nearly 2,200 non-smoking pregnant women, researchers found that those exposed to their parents' secondhand smoke during childhood were 80 percent more likely to have a miscarriage compared with women whose parents didn't smoke.
The findings appear in the American Journal of Epidemiology.
It's known that parents' smoking can harm developing fetuses and children, contributing to early-life problems like low birth weights and asthma. But this is the first study to show a link between childhood exposure to parents' smoking and reproductive ability in adulthood, according to lead author Dr. John Meeker, University of Michigan School of Public Health, and associates.
More research is needed to confirm the finding, Meeker, an assistant professor of environmental health sciences, told Reuters Health. However, he added, the results fit in with the body of research showing that early-life exposure to environmental stressors -- including tobacco smoke -- may have health effects that manifest in adulthood.
The findings are based on pregnancy outcomes of 2,162 women who underwent assisted reproduction treatments at one of three Boston fertility clinics.
The researchers found that a woman's risk of miscarriage tended to go up in relation to parents' smoking, being highest among those exposed to secondhand smoke from both parents.
It's not fully clear why childhood exposure to tobacco smoke would affect a woman's miscarriage risk. However, Meeker and his colleagues point out that tobacco smoke contains thousands of chemicals, including some that are known or thought to harm reproductive health -- such as lead, benzene and cadmium.
The developing reproductive system in children may be particularly vulnerable to such exposures.
"It is known that childhood is a developmentally sensitive period during which the body is susceptible to adverse effects from hazardous exposures," Meeker explained.
"Children of smokers can experience very high levels of secondhand smoke exposure at home, in the family car, and in other locations."
There is "more than enough" evidence from medical studies to tell us that children need to be shielded from secondhand smoke, according to Meeker.
"Our results," he said, "suggest that we should prevent these exposures not only for the health of our children, but perhaps our grandchildren as well."
SOURCE: American Journal of Epidemiology, September 1, 2007.
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?alias=miscarriage-risk-increase&chanId=sa003&modsrc=reuters
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Women who were exposed to their parents' smoking as children may have a higher likelihood of suffering a miscarriage, new research suggests.
In a study of nearly 2,200 non-smoking pregnant women, researchers found that those exposed to their parents' secondhand smoke during childhood were 80 percent more likely to have a miscarriage compared with women whose parents didn't smoke.
The findings appear in the American Journal of Epidemiology.
It's known that parents' smoking can harm developing fetuses and children, contributing to early-life problems like low birth weights and asthma. But this is the first study to show a link between childhood exposure to parents' smoking and reproductive ability in adulthood, according to lead author Dr. John Meeker, University of Michigan School of Public Health, and associates.
More research is needed to confirm the finding, Meeker, an assistant professor of environmental health sciences, told Reuters Health. However, he added, the results fit in with the body of research showing that early-life exposure to environmental stressors -- including tobacco smoke -- may have health effects that manifest in adulthood.
The findings are based on pregnancy outcomes of 2,162 women who underwent assisted reproduction treatments at one of three Boston fertility clinics.
The researchers found that a woman's risk of miscarriage tended to go up in relation to parents' smoking, being highest among those exposed to secondhand smoke from both parents.
It's not fully clear why childhood exposure to tobacco smoke would affect a woman's miscarriage risk. However, Meeker and his colleagues point out that tobacco smoke contains thousands of chemicals, including some that are known or thought to harm reproductive health -- such as lead, benzene and cadmium.
The developing reproductive system in children may be particularly vulnerable to such exposures.
"It is known that childhood is a developmentally sensitive period during which the body is susceptible to adverse effects from hazardous exposures," Meeker explained.
"Children of smokers can experience very high levels of secondhand smoke exposure at home, in the family car, and in other locations."
There is "more than enough" evidence from medical studies to tell us that children need to be shielded from secondhand smoke, according to Meeker.
"Our results," he said, "suggest that we should prevent these exposures not only for the health of our children, but perhaps our grandchildren as well."
SOURCE: American Journal of Epidemiology, September 1, 2007
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?alias=miscarriage-risk-increase&chanId=sa003&modsrc=reuters
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Women who breathed in secondhand smoke as children or young adults were later more likely to have trouble getting pregnant and suffer more miscarriages than women not exposed to smoke, U.S. researchers reported Thursday.
