New York: Problem drinking may dampen both a man's sex life and his chances of having children, according to a new study.
The study, led by Dr K R Muthusami of Kovai Medical Center and Hospital in Coimbatore, India have found that men being treated for alcoholism had lower testosterone levels and more sperm abnormalities than non-drinkers.
They also had a far higher rate of erectile dysfunction (ED) - 71 per cent for alcoholics versus 7 per cent of abstainers.
The study included 66 non-smoking men who had sought treatment for alcoholism, along with 30 non-smokers who had never consumed alcohol.
On an average, alcoholic men had a significantly lower sperm count and more abnormal sperm, as well as lower testosterone levels and changes in other reproductive hormones including shrunken testicles and enlarged breasts.
"Alcohol," says Muthusami, "enters the testicles directly and can both cut testosterone production and harm the quality of semen."
The study says that couples have a higher miscarriage risk if the man has consumed 10 or more drinks a week around the time of conception.
"Men are advised to refrain from chronic alcohol consumption if they want to procreate and lead a normal sex life," the researchers concluded in the medical journal Fertility & Sterility.
On the other hand, it's unlikely that light drinking would have any significant effect on men's fertility, Muthusami said.
But the potential harm is not limited to men. Other studies, the researcher noted, have found heavy drinking to impair women's reproductive health as well.
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