Does the elder male childbearing increase the risk of congenital diseases?
With the social progress and the development of science and technology, it is more and more common for men to give birth at an advanced age. However, compared with women, it has always been controversial whether the birth of older men will increase the risk of children's congenital diseases. This article will elaborate on the risk of congenital diseases that may exist in male elderly childbearing from the perspectives of biology, genetics, environmental factors and medical research.
Biological perspective
From the biological point of view, the male reproductive system will be degraded in the process of aging. With the growth of age, the male sperm production and quality will gradually decline. Research shows that there may be chromosomal abnormalities in the sperm of elderly fathers, such as chromosomal rearrangement, which increases the risk of chromosomal diseases in children.
In addition, the elderly male fertility is also related to the increase in the incidence of certain diseases. For example, some studies have found that father's elderly childbearing is associated with the increased risk of children suffering from autism, although the specific mechanism is not clear. Therefore, from a biological point of view, the birth of older men may increase the risk of children's congenital diseases.
Genetic perspective
Genetics is the study of the effects of genes and genetic variations on individual traits and diseases. From the genetic point of view, the father's elderly fertility is associated with an increased risk of transmission of certain gene mutations. The study found that older men are associated with an increased risk of children suffering from some single gene genetic diseases (such as congenital heart disease and bone dysplasia).
In addition, the father's elderly childbearing may also lead to the accumulation of new gene mutations. With the increase of age, the DNA repair ability of male germ cells decreases, which may lead to more mutations gathering in the child's genome, thus increasing the risk of genetic diseases.
environmental factor
In addition to biological and genetic factors, environmental factors also have an impact on children's risk of congenital diseases. The father's elderly childbearing is often accompanied by the increase of occupational economic stability, social support and other factors. However, there are also some environmental factors related to the father's age, such as the father's lifestyle, eating habits and environmental exposure during pregnancy, which may increase the child's risk of congenital diseases.
Especially in the elderly, fathers may have more unhealthy lifestyles (such as smoking, drinking, unhealthy diet, etc.), which may affect the quality of sperm and the development of children. Therefore, environmental factors play an important role in the influence of male elderly childbearing on children's risk of congenital diseases.
Medical research
Many medical studies have also supported the view that the birth of older men increases the risk of children's congenital diseases. For example, a Swedish study found that the risk of autism for children whose fathers are over 45 years old is about 20% lower than that for fathers of the same age, while the risk for fathers over 55 years old is about 80% higher. This study shows that the risk of congenital diseases does increase with the father's age.
In addition, a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that children whose fathers were over 40 years old were three times more likely to suffer from early-onset psychosis (such as schizophrenia) than their fathers of the same age. This research result also supports the conclusion that the birth of older men increases the risk of congenital diseases.
Summary
To sum up, the birth of older men may increase the risk of children's congenital diseases. From the perspective of biology and genetics, the elderly male fertility is related to chromosome abnormalities, the transmission risk of gene mutations and the accumulation of new gene mutations. At the same time, the father's elderly childbearing may also be accompanied by adverse environmental factors and lifestyle, further increasing the risk of children's congenital diseases. Medical research has also provided evidence supporting the increased risk of congenital diseases in older men. Therefore, for the elderly male couples, they should pay more attention to the health of their children and actively take measures to reduce potential risks.
