A new study suggests that fathers who take the common diabetes drug metformin during conception may be more likely to have babies born with defects.
But, experts say if men are on this medication, they should speak with their doctor before trying to conceive a child.
Diabetes is becoming increasingly common in people of reproductive age and can compromise sperm quality.
So, it’s important to understand how different drugs used to treat diabetes may affect male fertility and lead to birth defects in children.
According to a recent cohort study, babies born to men who took metformin while sperm was developing had an increased risk for birth defects.
The findings suggest that men with diabetes who are taking metformin should talk to their doctors about switching treatments when trying to conceive a child.
However, discontinuing metformin treatment could also affect birth outcomes because it can be necessary for controlling diabetes.
AWM also reported:
Another expert who was not involved in the study but has interpreted its results is Professor Sheena Lewis, an expert in reproductive medicine at Queen’s University Belfast. She pointed out that the study did not differentiate between men with diabetes who are managing their condition well versus those who are managing it poorly.
“As couples wait until older before starting families, their chances of being on medication for other chronic illnesses increases. The take-home message is that men who are trying to have children should discuss all other medications with their family doctors to ensure these have no known adverse effects on male fertility,” She said.
The study was conducted by researchers at the University of Copenhagen and published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine. The study looked at all the babies born in Denmark between 1996 and 2013.
So far, the findings have only been released to Danish media, so it is unclear whether or not these results will have any impact on how doctors prescribe the medication to their patients.
Doctors urge men to talk to their doctor before trying to produce a baby, as the medication could have an adverse effect on male fertility.
