The following information was published nearly three years ago and relates to the risk of men taking metformin, a type 2 diabetes drug, on the health outcomes of their children.
This is yet another example of how a parent’s health and what they consume or are exposed to impact the health of their children. An issue very dear to my heart, having witnessed some of these effects in clinic and seeing a baby or young child suffer through no fault of their own is heart wrenching – for all concerned.
The word ‘fault’ also needs to be replaced with ‘awareness’ in relation to the parent’s actions, habits, and lifestyle choices and how these impact their children.
If men take metformin, a common type 2 diabetes drug, during a critical period of sperm development, their offspring may be more likely to develop birth defects, a large study suggests.
In particular, the study found that male babies born to fathers who took metformin during this critical period had a higher risk of genital birth defects than babies whose fathers took metformin outside of that key time window or had never taken the drug. The new research was published Monday (March 28) in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine.
Both type 1 diabetes, where the body doesn’t produce enough insulin, and type 2 diabetes, where cells show insulin resistance, can impair male fertility. For example, diabetes and the associated high blood sugar can disrupt both testosterone and sperm production, contributing to low sperm counts and erectile dysfunction, and the disease has also been linked to DNA damage in sperm cells, studies suggest.
Preparing your body well before you intend to conceive [whether male or female] is a key consideration to improving fertility and giving your baby the very best chance at being born healthy.
The aspects of preparation are explained in more detail in my book – get your copy today on Amazon.
