Dietary exposure to methyl mercury and PCB and the associations with semen parameters among Swedish fishermen

Abstract

Dietary POP exposure have shown negative effects on sperm motility and sperm chromatin integrity, as well as an increased proportion of Y-chromosome bearing sperms. However, it has been suggested that in epidemiological studies investigating persistent organochlorine pollutant (POP)-toxicity, other pollutants occurring simultaneously may carry an increased risk of effects, which may obscure a clear interpretation of the role of POP toxicity. One such pollutant is methyl mercury (MeHg), which has been found in fatty fish from the Baltic Sea and as a consequence men with a high consumption of such fish has been found to have twice the MeHg levels compared to men with a low fish consumption.