PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — A new study indicates the potential health impacts of wildfires don’t end when wildfire season does.
Researchers at the University of Washington found that wildfire smoke exposure could reduce key aspects of sperm quality in men.
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The team found consistent declines in sperm concentration, total sperm count, and other key fertility aspects during wildfire smoke exposure among the 84 men tested. The semen samples came from men who provided sperm for intrauterine insemination procedures between 2018 and 2022.
Researchers said their findings aligned with smaller studies from Oregon Health & Science University that linked air pollution and wildfire smoke to impaired reproductive health.
“These results reinforce growing evidence that environmental exposures — specifically wildfire smoke — can affect reproductive health,” said senior author Dr. Tristan Nicholson, a reproductive urologist at the UW Medicine’s Men’s Health Center in Seattle.
More information about the study can be found on the UW website.
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Exposure to wildfire smoke has previously been linked to respiratory problems, heart attacks, strokes, cancer and cognitive impairment.
