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Washington:
Antioxidants have shown promise in treating infertility both in
men and women, including erectile dysfunction (ED), say
researchers.
Fertility problems are often an early indicator of other
degenerative disease issues such as atherosclerosis, high blood
pressure and congestive heart failure, and the same approaches
that may help treat infertility could also be of value to head off
those problems, they said, reports the journal Pharmacological
Research.
The findings were made by Tory Hagen at the Linus Pauling
Institute at Oregon State University (US), and Francesco Visioli,
who led the study at the Madrid Institute for Advanced Studies in
Spain.
"If oxidative stress is an underlying factor causing infertility,
which we think the evidence points to, we should be able to do
something about it," said Hagen, professor of healthspan research
at the Madrid institute
Some commonly used antioxidants, such as vitamins C and E, could
help, Hagen said. But others, such as lipoic acid, are a little
more cutting-edge and set up a biological chain reaction that has
a more sustained impact on health.
Lab and in-vitro studies have been very promising, especially with
some newer antioxidants such as lipoic acid that have received
much less attention.
Researchers point to inadequate production of nitric oxide, an
agent that relaxes and dilates blood vessels. This is often
caused, in turn, by free radicals that destroy nitric oxide and
reduce its function.
Antioxidants can help control free radicals. Some existing medical
treatments for erectile dysfunction work, in part, by increasing
production of nitric oxide.
Aging, which is often associated with erectile dysfunction
problems, is also a time when nitric oxide synthesis begins to
falter. And infertility problems in general are increasing,
scientists say, as more people delay having children until older
ages.
"Infertility is multifactorial and we still don't know the precise
nature of this phenomenon," Visioli said.
As many as 50 percent of conceptions fail and about 20 percent of
clinical pregnancies end in miscarriage, the researchers noted in
their report.
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