California study finds vegetarians live longer.
By The American Bazaar Staff
WASHINGTON, DC: Vegetarians and vegans have a much lower sperm count than meat eaters, according to a new study.
Researchers at Loma Linda University Medical School, in southern California, embarked on a four-year project to find out how diets affect sperm, and concluded that although a diet that is rich in fruit and vegetables can protect against many illnesses and can prolong life, it appears that it may also harm fertility, reported The Telegraph.
The study took into account that the region has a high population of Seventh-Day Adventist Christians who believe that meat is impure and so are strict vegetarians. The population of the area live an average of 10 years longer than the American life expectancy of about 79 years.
The study found that although life expectancy was higher for them, sperm count when compared to meat eaters, was 50 million sperm per ml to 70 million per ml. They also had lower average sperm motility – the number of sperm which are active. Only one third of sperm were active for vegetarians and vegans compared with nearly 60 per cent for meat eaters.
The team believes that vitamin deficiencies may be to blame but also believe that replacing meat with soy could be responsible, the report said.
“We found that diet does significantly affect sperm quality. Vegetarian and vegan diets were associated with much lower sperm counts than omnivorous diets,” said Dr Eliza Orzylowska an obstetrician at Loma Linda University Medical Centre in California. “Although these people are not infertile, in is likely to play a factor in conception, particularly for couples who are trying to conceive naturally. the old fashioned way.”
One factor could be diets rich in soy, the researchers hypothesis. Soy contains phyto-oestrogens which have similar properties to the female hormone oestrogen.
“The theory that we have come up with is that vegetarians are replacing meat with soy, which contains phytooestrogens and could be affecting fertility,” added Dr Orzylowska. “For children who have grown up with those kind of diets, it may have impacted on sperm quality from puberty.
The report added: “It’s hard to tell people not to be vegetarians if they are trying to conceive, but I would caution against using soy, at least for 74 days beforehand, which is the time it takes for sperm to be replaced.”
The researchers also think that vegetarians and vegans may be deficient in vitamin b12. The study compared 443 meat eaters with 26 vegetarians and five vegans.
The study will be presented at the American Society of Reproductive Medicine’s annual meeting in Hawaii.