Around one in six couples may have difficulty conceiving* but could the world around us be responsible for some of those fertility problems?
Arguments for and against the idea that the modern world is so damaging to human fertility it could potentially wipe us off the planet, will be debated at the next Caf茅 Med talk taking place on Monday (February 18) at 6pm.
The Suttie Centre Caf茅 on Aberdeen鈥檚 Foresterhill health campus is the venue for the Infertility 鈥� the new epidemic? talk organised by the 黑料网鈥檚 Public Engagement with Research Team.
Professor Paul Fowler, Chair in Translational Medical Sciences at the University, will speak about man-made chemicals called environmental endocrine disruptors which are found in everyday items and can impact on animal and human health and fertility. Exposure to some of these compounds during fetal life are thought to contribute to the halving of average sperm numbers seen in many countries over the last 60 years.
Professor Siladitya Bhattacharya, Chair in Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the University, will discuss data which does not appear to suggest that infertility per se is on the rise. At the same time, many couples in the Western world are getting increasingly anxious about their ability to conceive naturally and are turning to assisted reproduction techniques.
Monday鈥檚 talk is free, and open to all. Caf茅 Med is part of the Caf茅 Scientifique series which is organised by the University鈥檚 Public Engagement with Research Team and supported by a science engagement grant
Full details of events in the cafe series are available at
* Figures taken from .