By Destiny Obinna
Environmental toxins in the air, water, food and everyday products may be silently undermining fertility and reducing the chances of successful in-vitro fertilisation, IVF, a leading Nigerian fertility specialist, Prof. Oladapo Ashiru, has warned.
Ashiru, Secretary-General of the International Federation of Fertility Societies, IFFS, called for greater attention to environmental exposures in infertility care, urging couples undergoing fertility treatment to be assessed and supported before conception.
He spoke yesterday in Abuja while presenting an update on preconception cleansing at the 2nd African Federation of Fertility Societies, AFFS, and 16th Association for Fertility and Reproductive Health, AFRH, meetings.
The fertility specialist, who is also President of the Academy of Medical Specialties of Nigeria, President of the Africa Reproductive Care Society and Chairman of MART Group of Health Services, Lagos, said endocrine-disrupting chemicals, EDCs, found in the environment could affect sperm, eggs and the developing baby.
Ashiru said environmental and dietary exposures were increasingly being recognised as factors affecting reproductive health, particularly through oxidative stress, sperm DNA damage and epigenetic changes.
According to him, routine semen analysis does not explain an estimated 30 to 40 percent of male-factor infertility, making it necessary to look beyond conventional fertility assessments.
He said: “Every couple deserves to begin their journey to parenthood in the healthiest possible environment.
“Toxins in our air, food and everyday products can affect sperm and egg quality long before conception, yet they are rarely discussed in the fertility clinic.
“Assessing exposure and supporting the body before treatment gives couples a better chance of a healthy pregnancy.”
Ashiru cited evidence linking exposure to pesticides, bisphenol A, BPA, phthalates, lead, cadmium, mercury and air pollution with impaired reproductive outcomes.
He said sperm DNA fragmentation above 30 percent had been associated with reduced blastocyst formation during IVF, while agricultural workers exposed to organophosphate pesticides had been reported to have about 50 percent higher sperm aneuploidy.
He also noted that occupational exposure to BPA had been linked to a higher risk of low sperm concentration, while phthalates had been associated with poorer semen quality.
On heavy metals, Ashiru said lead, cadmium and mercury could accumulate in reproductive tissues, citing evidence that sperm DNA fragmentation rose by about eight percent for each doubling of seminal cadmium.
He added that exposure to air pollutants, including PM2.5 and nitrogen dioxide, in the 90 days preceding semen collection had been linked to reduced sperm motility.
The specialist said a 2022 prospective study in China also found that couples living within 500 metres of a major road had a 15 percent lower live birth rate per IVF cycle.
shiru said the problem was particularly relevant to Nigeria, given environmental pollution in parts of the country, including oil-producing communities in the Niger Delta.
He identified oil spills, air and water pollution, mining, deforestation, pesticides, industrial chemicals and climate change among environmental factors requiring greater attention in reproductive health.
He said international bodies, including the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics, FIGO, had also highlighted the reproductive health implications of toxic environmental chemicals and the role of obstetricians and gynaecologists in addressing the problem.
MART findings
Presenting findings from the MART/MARTLIFE Detox Clinic, Ashiru said the clinic’s preconception detoxification approach was based on Modern Mayr Therapy and included interventions such as lymphatic drainage enhancement, infrared cabin sessions, hydrotherapy, oxygen-based therapies, antioxidant therapy and orthomolecular supplementation.
He said patients were referred based on their medical history, occupational exposure or unexplained IVF failure and assessed before detoxification and fertility treatment.
According to findings presented, a comparison of 131 patients who underwent detoxification with 87 who did not show higher pregnancy and live birth rates among those who underwent the intervention.
The pregnancy rate was reported at 41.2 percent among patients who underwent detoxification, compared with 31 percent among those who did not.
Clinical pregnancy rates were 27.5 percent and 21.8 percent respectively, while live birth rates were 23.7 percent among the detoxification group compared with 15 percent in the comparison group.
Ashiru and colleagues also reported on management of environmental exposure in clinical practice in Global Reproductive Health, while a separate case report from the clinic documented removal of heavy metals in a patient before fertility treatment.
He said the approach may help address nutritional toxins and heavy metals, support mitochondrial quality and minimise the effects of endocrine-disrupting chemicals on assisted reproductive technology outcomes.
However, he called for further research, alongside stronger public and clinician education, before environmental exposure becomes a routine consideration in fertility care.
Ashiru urged couples planning pregnancy to discuss occupational and environmental exposures, lifestyle and diet with qualified fertility specialists.
He said a broader focus on environmental factors could strengthen efforts to improve reproductive health and outcomes from assisted reproductive technologies.
