Seven Dangerous Foods That Can Cause Infertility
1. Alcohol Can Easily Cause Infertility
Scientific research has proven that the main component of alcohol is ethanol. Ethanol can increase the concentration of catecholamines in the body, cause vascular spasms, lead to underdeveloped testicles, and even cause testicular atrophy. This results in structural changes in sperm production function, insufficient secretion of male hormones like testosterone, and symptoms of feminization such as a thinner voice and enlarged breasts. Such individuals are prone to male infertility, and even if they conceive, there is a higher possibility of deformities in the next generation. In women, it can lead to irregular menstruation, amenorrhea, abnormal egg production, loss of libido, or cessation of ovulation.
2. Carrots Inhibit Ovulation
Carrots are rich in carotene, various vitamins, and other beneficial nutrients for the human body. Gynecology experts at Rutgers Medical College in New Jersey, USA, found that after women eat too many carrots, the large amount of carotene ingested can cause amenorrhea and inhibit the normal ovulation function of the ovaries. Therefore, women who wish to conceive should not eat too many carrots.
3. Crude Cottonseed Oil Can Cause Ovarian Atrophy
Long-term consumption of crude cottonseed oil can cause a condition called "sun sickness," with symptoms that appear after sun exposure, including general weakness, reduced sweating, scorching skin, flushing, palpitations and shortness of breath, dizziness, numbness in the limbs, and loss of appetite. More serious effects are the damage to the reproductive system. Experimental studies have shown that after rats were fed feed containing crude cottonseed oil for about 4 months, their testicles significantly shrank, sperm cells were significantly reduced or even disappeared, the uterus shrank, and the endometrium and glands atrophied. The ovaries showed mild atrophy, and there was mild edema in the renal parenchymal cells. Adult men who took gossypol, an extract from cottonseed oil, at 60-70 mg per day for 40 days had all their sperm killed in a short period, which gradually disappeared from the semen; women could experience amenorrhea or uterine atrophy. Therefore, young people of childbearing age should not consume it long-term.
4. Coffee Has a Direct Impact on Conception
Researchers at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences in the USA studied 104 women who wished to become pregnant and concluded that coffee has a direct impact on conception. Among these women, those who drank more than one cup of coffee a day had only half the chance of becoming pregnant as those who did not drink this beverage. Therefore, they suggest that women who plan to become pregnant should drink less coffee.
5. Roasted Beef and Lamb
Eating roasted beef and lamb is a habit for residents in Inner Mongolia, Xinjiang, and other regions. Some people have found that a small number of women who love to eat roasted mutton give birth to children with intellectual disability, paralysis, or deformities. After investigation and modern medical research, it was found that these women and their deformed children were victims of Toxoplasma gondii infection. People can often become infected when they come into contact with livestock and poultry infected with toxoplasmosis and eat undercooked meat from these animals.
6. Garlic Can Kill Sperm
Excessive consumption of garlic can deplete a person's vital energy and has a significant sperm-killing effect. If young people of childbearing age consume too much, it has an adverse effect on fertility, so it should not be eaten in large quantities.
7. Sunflower Seeds
The protein portion of sunflower seeds contains components that inhibit the testicles, which can cause testicular atrophy and affect normal reproductive function. Therefore, young people of childbearing age should not eat too many.
It should be noted that the nutrients in foods such as coffee, carrots, and sunflower seeds are essential for the human body. This article only limits the amount to be consumed, while roasted beef and mutton and crude cottonseed oil should be listed as prohibited foods.