Abstract
Personal care products (PCPs) may contain multiple chemicals capable of harming male reproductive function. The aim of this study was, therefore, to assess aggregated PCP exposure and potential associations with measures of semen quality in young men. Participants (n = 1058, age 18–21) were sampled among young men from the Danish National Birth Cohort (DNBC). Upon recruitment in 2017–2019, each man answered an online questionnaire and provided a semen sample. Exposure to 12 common types of PCPs was derived from the questionnaire, and the extent of use and co-use was analyzed. We applied a negative binomial regression model to estimate percentage differences in semen parameters between low, medium and high PCP exposure groups. All participants were exposed to at least one PCP more than once a week, resulting in a mean number (SD) of 5.3 (2.0) PCPs currently used. Most participants (92%) were also exposed to fragranced products on a weekly basis. Little association was observed between aggregated exposure to PCPs and sperm concentration, total sperm count, semen volume, sperm motility and morphology. Despite prevalent use of multiple PCPs, we found little indication of adverse effects of aggregated overall or fragranced PCP exposure on semen quality.
Highlights
Men burdened by infertility is a global health concern [1]
The Fetal Programming of Semen Quality (FEPOS) cohort was established with the purpose of identifying potential causes for male infertility throughout the life course to provide options for the improvement of male reproductive health [18]
Men with missing data for body mass index, sampling site, time from ejaculation to analysis or abstinence time were excluded from adjusted analyses. In this first study on self-reported aggregated Personal care products (PCPs) exposure and male reproductive health, we assessed the extent of product use and the potential associations with measures of semen quality in a large cohort of young men
Summary
Men burdened by infertility is a global health concern [1]. While considerable differences in male reproductive health exist within and between developed countries, a negative trend of low semen quality and high incidence of cryptorchidism, hypospadias and testicular cancer has been observed in many areas [2,3]. 35% of young men in Denmark have low semen quality [4]. Both genetic and environmental factors may Toxics 2020, 8, 62; doi:10.3390/toxics8030062 www.mdpi.com/journal/toxics. Toxics 2020, 8, 62 contribute to this deficit in reproductive health [3]. Several common consumer products invented to ease our everyday lives are suspected of impairing key reproductive functions [5]
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