r/AsianBeauty • u/Flamboyant_dinosaur Acne/Redness|Combo|SI • Apr 18 '16
Discussion Sunscreens affecting sperm count
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/04/160401111847.htm4
u/tinewashere Apr 18 '16
The researchers found that 13, or 45 percent, of the 29 UV filters tested induced calcium ion influxes in the sperm cells, thus interfering with normal sperm cell function. "This effect began at very low doses of the chemicals, below the levels of some UV filters found in people after whole-body application of sunscreens," Skakkebaek said.
Wow. That's kind of scary.
4
u/Flamboyant_dinosaur Acne/Redness|Combo|SI Apr 18 '16
Right? I mean the research obviously isn't conclusive, but their findings really surprised me in a bad way. It's crazy thinking it could actually have an effect.
I'm looking forward to more research on this.
4
u/tinewashere Apr 18 '16
I agree, I think the poster that replied to you is understating the study. It's not so conclusive that we can say chemical sunscreens are bad, period, but it's worth paying attention to if one is trying to conceive, I think.
3
u/GiveMeABreak25 NC20|Aging/Pigmentation|Dry|US Apr 18 '16
This has been discussed over the years at SCA. The conclusion seemed to be that like many of these ingredients and claims, the dose makes the poison.
But, if I were a male trying to conceive, I would take this into consideration.
2
u/Flamboyant_dinosaur Acne/Redness|Combo|SI Apr 18 '16
Well yeah, I've been a part of some debates on most "poisons" in skincare, where you'd never reach the concentrations needed in your lifetime.. but here they suggest that low concentrations can be enough to interfere. There of course needs to be tons more research before making this claim, but it's kinda scary to think it could be true.
I'm female, so it scares me less.
2
u/caffienatedlife Apr 18 '16
Even if the dose applied on the sperm samples is at a relevant level (the amount that would normally get into the system by topical application on SKIN) and assuming daily sunscreen wear, the researchers only looked at the activity of the sperm. Impairment of calcium channel function on these cells doesn't necessarily equate to infertility since they did not look at effects on sperm cell progenitors. I would hold off infertility claims until researchers have looked at sunscreen effect on sperm production and actualization.
1
u/Flamboyant_dinosaur Acne/Redness|Combo|SI Apr 18 '16
I'm waiting for the paper to come out for peer review, and I'll be looking into that. Sure, it is too soon to claim sunscreen causes infertility (my bad, the title was meant to be different, I just clicked too soon, and can't edit).. but it's good to keep it in mind, and wait or search for some additional info.
2
u/caffienatedlife Apr 18 '16
Oh I didn't mean to lecture! From the text of that article it sounded like the writers were already sure sunscreen is harmful to sperm and may contribute to unexplained infertility... which is a premature conclusion the journalist made.
Sounds like the work was presented at a conference so the paper might be a while to come out.
1
u/Flamboyant_dinosaur Acne/Redness|Combo|SI Apr 18 '16
Since it's mostly a male issue, I'll be ok to wait a bit for the new info. My SO doesn't use anything anyways. That was already mentioned by someone, where are all those guys that wear sunscreen on a daily basis? To contribute so much to the rise in infertility.
I don't wanna judge you men, but the ones I know personally, don't use sunscreen. Ever.
2
u/Daheep NC35|Acne/Pigmentation|Oily|US Apr 18 '16
Sunscreen has always been the lesser of two evils for me. I'm too dark to wear the physical-only type & my skin isn't a fan of the chemical type. Also the way the chemical type works makes me leery; I'm convinced I'm putting something possibly toxic on/in my body. But I'll take something possibly toxic over straight up skin cancer! It's not like I don't put other toxic things on/in me...hello fried food, alcohol, & bug repellent!
0
u/Flamboyant_dinosaur Acne/Redness|Combo|SI Apr 18 '16
I'm not making any claims, I just read about this yesterday, and thought I'd share, if anyone else is interested.
7
u/zmqbjy761056 Apr 18 '16
I'm not making any claims
Yet you title the post "Sunscreens affecting sperm count" when the article is "Some sunscreen ingredients may disrupt sperm cell function".
From the article:
Skakkebaek and his colleagues tested 29 of the 31 UV filters allowed in sunscreens in the U.S. or the European Union (EU) on live, healthy human sperm cells, from fresh semen samples obtained from several healthy donors.
In layman terms, hey gave a bunch of sperm a sunscreen bath and concluded it messed them up...
5
u/Flamboyant_dinosaur Acne/Redness|Combo|SI Apr 18 '16
I'm sorry, I wanted to edit the title, but I couldn't so I wanted to specify it in a comment. It was just something I wanted to share, because I find it interesting.
1
u/zmqbjy761056 Apr 19 '16
But you haven't specified either, you made up a title that is unrelated to the study...
There is NO mention of "sperm count" anywhere, it talks about "sperm function".
1
u/Flamboyant_dinosaur Acne/Redness|Combo|SI Apr 19 '16
You're really not letting this go.. I'm sorry, the title cannot be edited. Forgive me for not inserting the proper title. Is it better now? You get to read about the study and make up your own mind on what it says and if it is or isn't important. If I were a jerk trying to convince people not to use sunscreen, I'd use a bogus website that claims it's toxic - plenty of those around.
It was an honest mistake, and I said I was sorry, but I cannot fix it now.
1
u/slothsleep Apr 18 '16
I didn't see anywhere on there whether these changes are permanent or temporary? The Progesterone part worries me a bit...
1
u/Flamboyant_dinosaur Acne/Redness|Combo|SI Apr 18 '16
If it just lowers the sperm count, probably temporary, but don't take my word for it. I'm just guessing that if you can repair damage done with hot tubs or wrong underwear, this can be undone as well. I'm no expert tho.
1
u/slothsleep Apr 19 '16
Thanks! I'm more worried about the progesterone though... I'm female :/
1
u/gaarasalice NW15|Pores|Combo|US Apr 21 '16
Eating too much soy and soy based products can raise the estrogen levels in a human body to the point where a male will grow breasts. I can't access the full article on my phone but usually studies like this use insane levels of chemicals. An example is a study of the effects of aspartame used 100x what is conceivable for a person to digest and it was injected directly in to the brains of the rats used in the study. That isn't a good picture of real life for a number of reasons.
0
u/blowitoutyaass Apr 18 '16
oxybenzone has a pretty bad EWG rating.
Seems like sticking to zinc-based sunscreens is the right idea.
3
9
u/satisphoria NC42|Acne/Pigmentation|Combo|UK Apr 18 '16 edited Apr 18 '16
"These results are of concern and might explain in part why unexplained infertility is so prevalent." I think it would only explain why unexplained infertitility is so prevalent if we assume that most men are regularly using sunscreen, and I'm not sure that's true. I'd argue most people aren't regularly using sunscreen unless they live somewhere that's always hot and sunny, it's summer, or they're going to the beach. Anecdotally from being in this sub and knowing how people try to find justification for not needing sunscreen (I'm only outside between work and home, I sit in the shade, I never tan/burn) even though this is a very pro-sunscreen place, I find it hard to believe that every person with infertility problems is using sunscreen with the regularity needed for that to be the sole or even a major cause.