Traffic Noise and Air Pollution Could Be Hurting Your Fertility: New Study Uncovers Surprising Risks for Men and Women. Study: Long term exposure to road traffic noise and air pollution and risk of infertility in men and women: nationwide Danish cohort study . Image Credit: Dennis MacDonald / Shutterstock.
com A recent BMJ study explores the associations between long-term exposure to road traffic noise, air pollution, and infertility in men and women. Risk factors for infertility Infertility is a major global health problem that is defined as a lack of conception after unprotected and regular sexual intercourse for one year. Infertility has also been associated with long-term adverse health effects, including an increased risk of stress, anxiety, and depression.
Several risk factors for infertility are similar between both men and women, of which include advanced age, tobacco and alcohol use, chronic conditions and diseases, and obesity. Exposure to air pollution, pesticides, and ionizing radiation may also increase the risk of infertility. Previous research has shown that particulate air pollution is negatively correlated with sperm count, motility, and morphology.
Exposure to air pollution can also reduce the success rate of fertility treatment in women. Like air pollution, road traffic noise has been associated with various chronic diseases. Noise activates the autonomic nervous system and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, thereby inducing a stress response.
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