Pollution Affects Fertility in Small Gulf Area
How much can pollution really affect fertility? More and more people are asking that question on the small island village of Bahraini, located in the Persian Gulf.
In the past two decades their environment has been subjected to major upheavals caused, in large part, by the Gulf War in the early 1990′s.
Directly due to the Gulf War, the sea and land surrounding the area were badly contaminated. First, the military forces of Iraq, stationed in Kuwait opened the valves at the Sea Island oil terminal near Kuwait City. They discharged huge amounts of crude oil into the Gulf, thus polluting the waters. In addition, the many uranium-enriched bombs dropped by U.S. contaminated both the surrounding waters and land.
Today, almost 20 years later, it appears that Bahraini men in their early twenties and thirties are experiencing conception problems with their wives.
According to Dr. Isa Amin, a Bahraini urologist, the incidences of infertility in men has risen dramatically. From the average of two cases per month a decade ago, he is now seeing an average of 11 per month.
Infertility can be caused by a number of things. Heredity, disease, accidents, bodily defects, and more. But with such a major change in the environment, it’s not a huge leap to suspect it of being the main culprit.
The doctor’s suspicions were first aroused when he observed an unusually large percentage of his male patients with zero semen. It’s now recognized in the scientific community that exposure to certain chemicals that are present in the home, diet, and general environment can affect the fertility of a person.
Unfortunately, the people in this small area don’t have many real options. It’s extremely difficult to purify Uranium contaminated water on this scale. And even though, based on his patient’s results, Dr. Amin is calling for more research into the effects of environmental pollution on fertility rates in his community, it’s unlikely that enough could be done to affect the welfare of the patients currently under his care.
R. Corcoran is web master for his fertility website. Please visit Richard’s site which discusses acupuncture and male infertility, issues regarding cost of ivf, and finding ivf message boards.
The medically related information published on this web page is not to been taken as a substitute for informed medical advice. Before taking any action, you should consult with your health care professional.