Effects of drugs on man’s reproductive system

Drugs are substances that are used in disease prevention, treatment and diagnosis. It is therefore necessary to note that drugs cause physiological changes in the human body (Anderson, Riffle, Wilson, Travlos, Lubomirski et.al., 2006). However, drugs can be abused and this leads to numerous harmful effects on human beings. Drugs may cause addiction, depression, stimulation amongst other effects with undesirable long term consequences (Anderson et. al., 2006). Most people believe that drugs only affect women’s reproduction and more specifically during pregnancy. Nevertheless, according to Laubenthal et al. (2012) research shows that drugs have a lot of negative implication on the male reproductive system.

Molecular studies have shown that males who smoke can transmit DNA damage to the babies. Drugs contain teratogens that cause alteration on the embryo or fetus or lead to birth defects such as low birth weight or serious sickness to the baby after birth. Laubenthal, Zlobinskaya, Poterlowicz, Baumgartner, Gdula et. al. (2012) discovered that cigarette-smoking by a father lead to male-mediated alterations to the future generations in the fetal lymphocytes. As such, repetitive DNA alterations may be as a result of unhealthy paternal preconception lifestyle.

Research has demonstrated that marijuana and tobacco smoking by the father just before conception lower the male’s sperm count or damage the sperm (Devra, 2012). Paternal use of alcohol heavily is also associated with infertility and long term illness of the child or total damage before birth and also alters the male reproductive chemistry (Devra, 2012). Therefore, all males should not take lightly the effects of teratogens and use of any drug on their reproductive system as well as the health and development of the fetus. This shows that there is need for much for healthy paternal preconception lifestyle.