How new study about fertility risk for men over 35 woke me up to my own biological timebomb

How new study about fertility risk for men over 35 woke me up to my own biological timebomb
By Nic Fleming
Last updated at 9:58 PM on 13th December 2008
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While I have always said I want children, I have rarely felt in a rush to do anything about it.
The joys of nappy changing, parents’ evenings and Center Parc holidays have yet to entice me, at the age of 37, to join the ranks of new fathers among my friends who are increasingly absent from trips to the football and nights in playing Grand Theft Auto on the Xbox.
But my state of responsibility-free bliss has been undermined by a study published in July by French researcher Dr Stephanie Belloc.
Decision time: Author Nic Fleming with his fiancee Linda Geddes


Analysing the records of 12,000 couples who attended her fertility clinic in Paris, she found that women whose husbands or boyfriends were aged 35 and above were more likely to have miscarriages than those with younger partners.
Her findings back up a study by Bristol University that found women with partners aged 35 and over were half as likely as those with men aged 24 and younger to conceive within a year.

Sir Paul McCartney, who became a father at 61, and John Humphrys, who did so at 56, are the exceptions, not the rule.
In another study, published two years ago, it was also found that the offspring of men aged 40 and over were nearly six times more likely to suffer from autism than those with fathers under 30.

Other research has found that men aged 50 and over are more likely to have children with Down’s syndrome, or who may develop schizophrenia.
‘I think a man who wants children who has reached 35 should get a move on,’ says Christopher Barratt, professor of reproductive medicine at the University of Dundee.

‘People say I’m not in the right relationship, I haven’t got enough money, or the car isn’t big enough.
‘In reality, you have never quite got what you want. It’s hard to beat biology, and increasingly we are seeing that applies to men as well.’
My fiancee Linda recently turned 30. She enjoys her job as a science journalist, and we have no immediate plans to start a family.

However, I’m starting to wonder whether it is my biological clock rather than hers we should keep track of, which explains how I came to make an appointment to have my semen analysed at Andrology Solutions private fertility clinic in London.
‘In the past it was only women who had maybe focused on their careers - and did not have a partner - who worried about leaving it too late to start a family,’ says Dr Sheryl Homa, the clinic’s scientific director, when I returned two weeks later for my results.
‘But now we’re seeing more men who want to have children but who are not in a relationship and are concerned that time is slipping by.’
Semen analysis involves measuring sperm count, motility - or how lively it is - and its morphology or shape.

Some research suggests older men have semen that contains less sperm, and that their sperm is more likely to be sluggish and abnormally shaped.

However, other studies have failed to detect these effects.
‘Even if semen quality declines with age, it would have to do so a lot before there’s an impact on the ability of a man to conceive,’ says Allan Pacey, a senior lecturer in andrology at Sheffield University.
Dr Homa said my count was high and motility was good. In most men, about 80 per cent of sperm cells have abnormalities that mean they have less chance of fertilising an egg.

I have a slightly higher number of such abnormalities.

No one knows why - it could be genetic or it could be down to diet. I am lucky as the effects are balanced out by my high count.
On average, 84 per cent of couples conceive naturally within a year if they have sex regularly without contraception.

National guidelines state that GPs should refer couples for tests, including semen analysis, after a year of unsuccessfully trying to conceive.

A man who is simply curious, such as me, has to pay about £75 for a test at a private clinic.
Some scientists believe higher levels of damage in sperm DNA could play an important role in undermining fertility in older men.

In the constant production of sperm cells, a single cell called a gametocyte divides into two, each ‘half’ becoming a new sperm.
During this process - meiosis --genetic material is divided and abnormalities can occur, rendering the new cells unviable.

The older men become, the more likely this is to occur.

Exposure to heat, chemotherapy treatment, radiation, genital tract inflammation, and smoking can also cause DNA damage-Some private clinics offer DNA damage tests, but scientists disagree on which tests are the more accurate and what level of damage triggers infertility.

At £300, such tests are thought to be helpful only in certain specific circumstances.
Men trying for a baby are advised to minimise alcohol intake. The evidence on caffeine is mixed but experts recommend those having more than three drinks of coffee, tea or cola a day should cut back.
There are also links between poor sperm quality and smoking, tight underwear, recreational drugs, anabolic steroids and hot baths.
Folate, one of the B vitamins, is important to women before and during pregnancy.

It is found in foods such as broccoli, sprouts, asparagus, peas and brown rice. It is also believed to be good for sperm quality.
Zinc, contained in meat, shellfish, dairy foods, bread and cereal products, is found in high concentrations in sperm and is needed to make the outer layer and tail of sperm.
I’m in a pensive mood as I leave the clinic clutching my results. I watch a group of young children playing in a park.
Discovering, from the results, that I am able to reproduce is a relief.

Maybe it’s time to eat more greens, throw out the games console and think about putting my fertility to use while I still can.