Allergy medicine ‘harms fertility’

EVERYDAY allergy drugs can cause fertility problems in men, a study reveals.

Antihistamines – medicine used to treat hay fever, hives, conjunctivitis and insect bites or stings – carry a side-effect that can lower a man’s sperm count, it is claimed.

With a rise in allergies in the modern world leading to an increased use of antihistamines, researchers have now warned against overusing them.

Study author Dr Carolina Mondillo, from the Instituto de Biologia in Buenos Aires, Argentina, said: “The data indicates the crucial involvement of histamine in the orchestration of testicular functions.”

Hormones

Commenting on the research, Dr Channa Jayasena, of Imperial College London, added: “The average sperm quality in the population has been reducing over the past few decades.

“Therefore, it is always important to consider that common and increasingly-used medications may be partly responsible.”

The report, in the journal Reproduction, said antihistamines were likely to affect the production of male sexual hormones, which could lead to decreased mobility of sperm and a lower sperm count.

Histamine is produced by the body in response to an allergy. It makes the sufferer react, either by sneezing or itching.

However, Dr Jayasena added: “It is far too soon to raise alarm bells about taking these medications. Many agents have been linked to male infertility.”