14 DAY TRIAL // According to the conclusions of a new scientific study, it would appear that cell phone use has been directly linked to a decrease in fertility in men. Excessive exposure to this technology leads to low sperm quality, and also the inability to conceive children.
As such, the research team behind this research suggests males trying to father children should steer as clear as possible from using cell phones. Another conclusion experts came to was that exposure to cell phones causes increased levels of testosterone in males.
The work was conducted at the Queen's University, in Canada, by a team of researchers led by Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology postdoctoral fellow Rany Shamloul.
“Our findings were a little bit puzzling. We were expecting to find different results, but the results we did find suggest that there could be some intriguing mechanisms at work,” the expert concludes.
What the research team found was that increased levels of the testosterone hormone in the men's bodies led to a decrease in the amounts of the luteinizing hormone (LH), which is a very important chemical.
It plays a substantial role in human reproduction, and is secreted by the pituitary gland. According to the research team, electromagnetic waves (EMW) released from cell phones reduce LH output.
The pituitary gland produces less of the stuff, while the amount of testosterone-producing cells in the male testes increases noticeably. This dual action was thus far observed only on male hormone levels.
What's important to note here is that, while testosterone is indeed a chemical associated with fertility and virility, it can only cause these effects when it exists under a very specific form. Exposure to EMW prevents this from happening.
Sperm production and fertility therefore decreases considerably, investigators say. However, the team has yet to determine precisely what mechanism underlies this correlation, Science Blog reports.
In advanced societies today, even children have cell phones, and so any harm that these devices might cause need to be quantified and analyzed in the long term. Hormonal imbalances, in general, are difficult to treat, and require extensive attention from healthcare professionals.