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Health: Soya-based Foods May Harm Male Fertility, Say Scientists

from the Guardian

Men who eat soya-based foods may be harming their fertility, doctors said yesterday, after a study found a link between soya-rich diets and lower sperm counts.

The study showed men who consumed more than two portions of soya-based foods a week had, on average, 41m fewer sperm per millilitre of semen than men who had never eaten soya products.

The apparent fall in sperm count is unlikely to make healthy men infertile, but some experts said it could have a significant impact on those already with lower than average sperm counts. A sperm count of between 80m and 120m per ml is regarded as normal, while men who produce fewer than 20m sperm per ml are regarded as clinically subfertile.