Male fertility Can Be Boosted With Antioxidants

by Dr. Steven Brody, M.D., Ph.D

On January 21, 2011 Reuters news agency reported another definitive evaluation reinforcing the role of antioxidants in sperm function. Couples who are struggling to conceive could find baby-making help from antioxidants such as vitamin E and zinc, According to a meta-analysis which reviewed more than 30 research studies.

Those who took antioxidants were more than four times as likely to get their partners pregnant than other subfertile men who did not take the supplements. The study did not look at men with azoospermia or absent sperm. Continue reading

Acid-Reducing Drugs May Not Be Risky in Pregnancy

Study Shows Proton-Pump Inhibitors Do Not Cause Birth Defects When Used in First Trimester

By Denise Mann
WebMD Health News

Reviewed by Laura J. Martin, MD

Nov. 24, 2010 — The popular over-the-counter and prescription acid-blocking drugs proton-pump inhibitors (PPIs) do not appear to increase risk of birth defects when taken during the first trimester of pregnancy, a study shows. Continue reading

Painkillers in Pregnancy Linked to Male Infertility

Study Suggests Even Tylenol During Pregnancy May Affect Male Testes

By Daniel J. DeNoon
WebMD Health News

Reviewed by Laura J. Martin, MD

Nov. 12, 2010 — Common over-the-counter painkillers taken during pregnancy may be to blame for a global rise in male infertility.

Even acetaminophen (Tylenol) may put a developing boy’s future reproductive health at risk, suggest findings from a study of some 2,300 Danish and Finnish women by Henrik Leffers, MD, PhD, of Rigshospitalet, Copenhagen, Denmark, and colleagues. Continue reading