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Men should abstain from drinking at least three months prior to conceiving

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Re: Men should abstain from drinking at least three months prior to conceiving

#181

Color me skeptical... people have been drinking for thousands of years. I would be terribly surprised if moderate drinking had a statistically significant effect. Either way, this is an irresponsible recommendation at a time when birthrates among native populations are falling precipitously. Adding yet another mental/physical hurdle to having kids is the wrong thing to do. Shit, next generation in South Korea will be…

Color me skeptical... people have lived without antibiotics for thousands of years. I would be terribly surprised if their use had a statistical effect.

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Re: Men should abstain from drinking at least three months prior to conceiving

#182

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Normal" is a function of one's social environment, so for many people, having 2 to 6 beers after work every day actually is normal.

right, I guess I was meaning normal as in people do it because there's no harm in it at all

That's interesting; is it your perspective that people generally believe "that which is commonly done" to be equivalent with "that which is probably harmless"?

I don't see it that way at all, but my attitude about risk doesn't fit well with what I see in the culture where I live; perhaps the people I'm observing experience the world more in the fashion you describe.

Re: Men should abstain from drinking at least three months prior to conceiving

#183
post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As pointed out by the parent comment, one strong 16 Oz can is already 2 drinks. Having 2 of those in a night or even slightly weaker ones puts you in the 3-4 drink range. I'm sure I'm not the only one with a habit of having 2 of those a few nights a week to tie a long day off.

That would likely classify you as a "heavy drinker" by CDC definitions. > For men, heavy drinking is typically defined as consuming 15 drinks or more per week. You're definitely not the only one. https://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/faqs.htm

I mean assuming you're hitting about 3.5 drinks like that, you'd need to be doing it 5 nights a week to hit 15 and qualify as heavy drinking.

Re: Men should abstain from drinking at least three months prior to conceiving

#184

Earlier quoted context omitted.

right, I guess I was meaning normal as in people do it because there's no harm in it at all

That's interesting; is it your perspective that people generally believe "that which is commonly done" to be equivalent with "that which is probably harmless"? I don't see it that way at all, but my attitude about risk doesn't fit well with what I see in the culture where I live; perhaps the people I'm observing experience the world more in the fashion you describe.

it's a pretty normal and established occurrence I'd Say. I don't know if most people do that, but yes one way to rationalize or reassure yourself that what you are doing is safe is to look around at the wider group and see if people are doing it without worry.

Re: Men should abstain from drinking at least three months prior to conceiving

#185
post #28

Am I missing something - what negative effects are there? > "I need to program the offspring to be able to adapt to that kind of environment" What does this mean?

> Am I missing something - what negative effects are there? Paragraph 1: > Researchers at Texas A&M University have already shown that paternal drinking habits prior to conception can have a negative effect on fetal development — with semen from men who regularly consume alcohol impacting placenta development, fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS)-associated brain and facial defects, and even IVF outcomes.

Yup, I managed to miss it. Thanks!
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