Mobile phones could make men infertile

Men, who keep a mobile phone in their trouser pocket, could be affected with male fertility, according to a new study led by the University of Exeter.

A team led by Dr Fiona Mathews, of Biosciences at the University of Exeter, conducted a systematic review of the findings from ten studies, including 1,492 samples, with the aim of clarifying the potential role of this environmental exposure.

The researchers found that this proportion fell by an average of 8 percentage points when there was exposure to mobile phones and similar effects were seen for sperm viability.

The effects on sperm concentration were less clear.

Dr. Mathews said that given the massive scale of mobile phone use around the world, the potential role of this environmental exposure needs to be clarified.

Dr. Mathews asserted that this study strongly suggested that being exposed to radio-frequency electromagnetic radiation from carrying mobiles in trouser pockets negatively affects sperm quality.

The study is published in the journal Environment International.