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According to the latest research, men should abstain from drinking for at least three months before trying to have a baby.
Scientists have already shown that parental drinking habits can have a negative effect on the development of the fetus and even affect the results of IVF. Now researchers have discovered that the effects of alcohol consumption take longer than previously thought to leave the father’s sperm.
Dr. Michael Golding, a professor at Texas A&M University’s College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, said, “When someone consumes alcohol regularly and then stops, their body goes into withdrawal.”
“What we discovered is that the father’s sperm are still affected by alcohol consumption during abstinence, meaning that it takes much longer for the sperm to return to normal than we previously thought.”
There are currently no set time limits for men to stop drinking before trying to have a baby, and the NHS website only warns that drinking alcohol “excessively” can affect sperm quality.
A group of men drinking pints of beer in a pub. Men should abstain from drinking for at least three months before trying to have a baby after discovering that the effects of alcohol consumption take longer than previously thought to leave the father’s sperm (file image)
One of the main risks related to alcohol consumption before and during pregnancy is fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), which causes abnormal facial features, low birth weight, attention problems and hyperactivity and poor coordination. Typically, the main concern is whether the mother has consumed alcohol and not the father.
“For years, men’s alcohol consumption hasn’t really been taken into account,” Dr. Golding said. ‘We have begun to notice that there are certain conditions where there is a very strong paternal influence when it comes to alcohol exposure and fetal development. We wanted to see how long it would take for the effects of alcohol on sperm to wear off. The withdrawal process lasted more than a month.’
A pint of beer. There are currently no set time limits for men to stop drinking before trying to have a baby, with the NHS website only warning that drinking alcohol “excessively” can affect sperm quality (file image)
When drinking alcohol, a person’s liver experiences oxidative stress, leading the body to overproduce chemicals that then disrupt normal cellular activity. Dr. Golding discovered that withdrawal causes the same type of stress: it lengthens the duration of alcohol’s effects beyond what was previously thought. “During withdrawal, the liver experiences oxidative stress and sends a signal throughout the male body,” Dr. Golding said.
‘The reproductive system interprets that signal and says, ‘We live in an environment that has a strong oxidative stress factor.’ I need to program the offspring so that they can adapt.’
He believes these adaptations could lead to problems like FAS. He also cautioned that excessive alcohol consumption is not necessary for a person to experience withdrawal.
“Even drinking three or four beers after work several days a week can lead to withdrawal when the behavior stops,” he said. ‘You may not feel drunk, but your body is going through chemical changes.
«We know that sperm are produced over the course of 60 days and the withdrawal process lasts at least a month. So my estimate would be to wait at least three months.’
Dr. Golding’s research was published in the journal Andrology.