If you are a man over 40 years old, who is thinking of having a child, you may be facing some problems in doing so...according to French researchers.

It is known that a woman’s age is a key factor in the ability for a couple to conceive, but most had never thought that a man’s age could also be a factor as well. The findings presented at the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology conference are suggesting that the paternal factor is making a stronger impact than originally thought.

Dr. Belloc and her team from the Eylau Centre for Assisted Reproduction in France are reporting that there may be a much stronger paternal effect on the outcome of a pregnancy - not just with the rates of pregnancy, but also with miscarriage rates. Other researchers are also looking into this type of research, finding that there is an overall decline in sperm counts and quality after a certain age. There has been speculation of this in the past but now there is clinical proof that age can have a bigger effect on fertility.

The research conducted by the French team investigated more than 21,000 intrauterine inseminations where the sperm were washed or spun in a centrifuge, which separated them from the rest of the seminal fluid, and were then inserted into the Uterus. Afterwards, the doctors examined the quality of the sperm and tracked the pregnancy with the miscarriage and delivery rates being looked at closely. ot only was the rate of conception affected by the age of the man, but also the miscarriage rates.

Men over the age of 40 had a stronger impact on the instance of miscarriages.

The older women were found to have less of a chance to get pregnant as well as a higher rate of miscarriages, as expected. The rate of miscarriage was much higher in those couples with men over the age of 40 with about 35% of the couples suffering miscarriages. The risk for couples with men younger than 30 years old dropped significantly to around 10 to 15%.

The researchers are still unsure of what changes in the sperm in men over 40 but there is significant evidence of defects in the samples studied that indicated a higher chance of miscarriages.
 
The best advice for those who are looking to get pregnant is to start at a younger age. If you are over 40 you can still get pregnant, but know there is a higher risk of miscarriages and Infertility for both the man and the woman. While doctors have been telling this to women for years, men must also now pay attention as well.