BPA, birth control/estrogen in water, and increased obesity rates would be my guess.
Not to mention estrogen from plastics:
Sperm Count in Western Men Has Dropped Over 50 Percent Since 1973, Paper Finds
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Re: Sperm Count in Western Men Has Dropped Over 50 Percent Since 1973, Paper Finds
#32BPA, birth control/estrogen in water, and increased obesity rates would be my guess.
>birth control/estrogen in water
Is that actually a thing? I didn't find any sources definitively showing it was enough to warrant a concern.
Re: Sperm Count in Western Men Has Dropped Over 50 Percent Since 1973, Paper Finds
#33I've noticed over the last 20 or so years that men in the West, in general, appear increasingly effeminate. I've also noticed that a lot of male pop stars have really high voices. I've long suspected these observations are more than cultural. Recent studies seem to back this intuition.
In the 1700s castratis were quite popular throughout Europe. Does that mean they had low sperm count then, or was it just something people liked? I really don't believe you can explain cultural phenomenon through medical science.
Well, castrati certainly did have low sperm counts...
Re: Sperm Count in Western Men Has Dropped Over 50 Percent Since 1973, Paper Finds
#34Anxiously awaiting the first comment on the feminizing effects of soy...
Here you go: http://www.menshealth.com/nutrition/soys-negative-effects
And the counter argument:
http://ussec.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/SOY13_7_Soy-and-...
Re: Sperm Count in Western Men Has Dropped Over 50 Percent Since 1973, Paper Finds
#35could we be simply better at doing these tests? eg more accuracy today vs ~44yrs ago?
Re: Sperm Count in Western Men Has Dropped Over 50 Percent Since 1973, Paper Finds
#36I've noticed over the last 20 or so years that men in the West, in general, appear increasingly effeminate. I've also noticed that a lot of male pop stars have really high voices. I've long suspected these observations are more than cultural. Recent studies seem to back this intuition.
Is this sort of pseudoscientific anecdata what passes for discourse on HN now? Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence - where's yours?
Wow, I'm just as dumbfounded as you.
Re: Sperm Count in Western Men Has Dropped Over 50 Percent Since 1973, Paper Finds
#37Previously: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14855796 As I said in that thread, this is another statistic that had a rapid and precipitous change starting in the early 1970s. I've stated this elsewhere, but it's like something(s) happened the late 60s/early 70s that totally transformed our world and I have no clue what they were nor can I find anyone who has written about it. Wealth inequality [1], Real Wage stag…
1965 is when birth control pills became legal.
It's also about the time that High Fructose Corn Syrup started to be shipped in bulk. HFCS-55 in particular became the dominant sweetener in soda sometime during the late 1970s.
The late 70s was also the introduction of video games and home computers. A general explosion of electronic devices has permeated almost everywhere.
Unleaded gas was introduced in 1974. What replaced lead as the antiknock agent?
The space race? Here's a 1966 video by NASA on toxic propellants. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ND2TeNfcmKA
Re: Sperm Count in Western Men Has Dropped Over 50 Percent Since 1973, Paper Finds
#38Previously: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14855796 As I said in that thread, this is another statistic that had a rapid and precipitous change starting in the early 1970s. I've stated this elsewhere, but it's like something(s) happened the late 60s/early 70s that totally transformed our world and I have no clue what they were nor can I find anyone who has written about it. Wealth inequality [1], Real Wage stag…
As to (3) obesity, one of the most obvious contributing factors is the increased refined sugar consumption. People are poisoning their mind and bodies.
And I know it's controversial and since everyone consumes sugar, everyone gets sensitive and defensive. However, in the 60's/70's nonalcoholic fatty liver disease did not exist in children nor did childhood type 2 diabeties, as to the former the first case in children wasn't diagnosed until 1983 and now 10% of US children have the disease.
And to preempt anyone from attacking my comment, as I said above sugar is an obvious contributing factor.
Re: Sperm Count in Western Men Has Dropped Over 50 Percent Since 1973, Paper Finds
#39I find this fascinating. It's an important biological phenomenon and we don't know if it's due to culture or to chemistry.
Re: Sperm Count in Western Men Has Dropped Over 50 Percent Since 1973, Paper Finds
#40Something in the water or the milk? Something basic enough that a significant majority is in contact, but culturally distinct enough that a significant minority elsewhere are not in contact.