Did you know that exposure to many products we consume and come into contact with daily cause fertility and health issues? As our lives become more convenient and fast paced, the increased exposure to many chemicals and toxins in our environment has a huge impact on our health.   It’s impossible to determine precisely how much or which one chemical or toxin will cause you to reach your fertility tipping point and cause a negative reaction, but by removing the most common ones will help.

Chemicals and Your Fertility

Chemicals come in many forms in your environment, here are the top 7;

  • Common household cleaning products
  • Air fresheners
  • Laundry detergent
  • Plastic containers and water bottles all of these containing bisphenol (BPA).
  • Foods we ingest covered in sprays
  • Beauty products that contain parabens
  • Tap water we ingest containing many chemical and hormones.

 

BPA (bisphenol)

BPA can be measured in urine, amniotic fluid, follicular fluid, placental tissue, umbilical cord blood, and semen. BPA is an organic synthetic product that is added to many commercial products at manufacture. A study by Al-Hiyasat et al (2002), found men that had ingested BPA showed a significant reduction in sperm count and production.

A study by Cobellis et al (2009) showed BPA had an affect of increased incidence of endometriosis in women. In another study by Hunt and Hassold (2008), they revealed BPA has an affect on the development and maturation of a healthy egg.

Household products

Many cleaning products we use in the home, plastic take away containers, cling wrap, aluminum foil, food we ingest and the air we breath contain endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDC). These endocrine disrupting chemicals affect your hormone balance, sperm and egg quality and production.

Personal care and cosmetics

Did you know? That many shampoos, conditioner, hair colours, cosmetics and body washes contain what are known as parabens. Parabens are another form of EDC’s, these are easily passed into the body via the skin and affects fertility and hormone balance.

Tap water

Did you know that around 1% of estrogens is found in your drinking tap water? This figure comes from men, children and women that excrete estrogens in their urine from food and hormonal contraceptives. Estrogens in water are classed as EDC’s which has adverse affects on male and female fertility.

 

What can I do to reduce my exposure?

  • Always wash your fruit and vegetables
  • Drink filtered water rather than tap
  • Try to avoid processed or packaged foods as the containers are coated with EDC’s
  • When purchasing oily fish know where the fish has been caught, and if chemicals have been used for storage
  • Avoid plastic water bottles opt for glass
  • Don’t put hot food into plastic containers or heat food in plastic or cover food with cling wrap while heating, opt for glass or china
  • Try not to come into contact with sale receipts, discard them asap
  • Keep the house well ventilated with fresh air, if you can smell an odour then its being ingested
  • Choose ‘green’ options for household detergents, and household cleaners
  • When working in the garden avoid pesticides and if possible opt for ‘greener’ gardening products
  • With personal care, choose products that are pareben free

If you need more personalised help with your fertility, make an appointment to see one of our highly qualified practitioners today

 

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References:

Al‐Hiyasat, A., S, Darmani, H., Elbetieha, A., M (2002). Effects of bisphenol A on adult male mouse fertility ‘European Journal of Oral Sciences’ 110, 2, 163-167.

Cobellis, L., Colacurci, N., Trabucco, E., Carpentiero, C (2009). Measuement of bisphenol A and bisphenol B levels in human blood sera from healthy and endometriotic women ‘Biochemical Chromatography,’ 23, 11, 1186-1190.

Hunt, P, A., Hassold, T, J (2008). Human feale meiosis: what makes a good egg go bad? ‘Trends in Genetics.’ 24, 2, 85-93.

The household chemicals affecting your fertility. Sited 27th May 2018. https://pursuit.unimelb.edu.au/articles/the-household-chemicals-affecting-your-fertility