The Off-Button For Your Brain

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The Off-Button For Your Brain

We evolved our emotions for our own benefit as a species. Even the “negative” ones:

  • Stress keeps us safe by making sure we take important situations seriously
  • Anger keeps us safe by protecting us from threats
  • Disgust keeps us safe by helping us to avoid things that might cause disease
  • Anxiety keeps us safe by ensuring we don’t get complacent
  • Guilt keeps us safe by ensuring we can function as a community
  • Sadness keeps us safe by ensuring we value things that are important to us, and learn to become averse to losing them
  • …and so on

But that’s not always useful. What was once a very good response to a common source of fear (for example, a sabre-toothed tiger) is no longer a helpful response to a modern source of fear (for example, an important interview).

Sometimes it’s good to take the time and energy to process our feelings and the event(s) that prompted those feelings. Sometimes, we don’t have that luxury.

For example, if you are stressed about your workload? Then staying awake half the night thinking about it is only going to make your problems worse the next day.

So, how to switch that off, or at least put a pause on it?

The human mind tends to have a “negative bias”, evolved for our own protection. If something is “good enough”, we don’t need to worry about it, so we move on to the next thing, until we find something that is a problem, then we dwell on that. That’s not always helpful, and the good news is, there’s a way to flip the switch on this process:

Identifying the positive, and releasing the rest

This exercise can be done when you’re trying to sleep, or at any time you need a calmer, quieter mind.

Take a moment to notice whatever you’re experiencing.

If it’s something that feels good, or neutral, identify it with a single word. For example:

  • Warmth
  • Soft
  • Security
  • Smile
  • Peace

If it’s something that feels bad, then instead of identifying it, simply say (or think) to yourself “release”.

You can’t fight bad feelings with force, and you can’t “just not think about them”, but you can dismiss them as soon as they arrive and move onto the next thing. So where your train of thought may previously have been:

It’s good to be in bed ➔ I have eight hours to sleep before my meeting ➔ Have I done everything I was supposed to? ➔ I hope that what I’ve done is good enough ➔ [Mentally rehearsing how the meeting might go] ➔ [various disaster preparations] ➔ What am I even going to wear? ➔ Ugh I forgot to do the laundry ➔ That reminds the electricity bill is due ➔ Etc

Now your train of thought may be more like:

Relief ➔ Rest ➔ But my meeti—release ➔ If I—release ➔ soft ➔ comfort ➔ release ➔ pillow ➔ smile ➔ release ➔ [and before you know it you’re asleep]

And if you do this in a situation where you’re not going to sleep? Same process, just a more wakeful result, for example, let’s move the scene to an office where your meeting will shortly take place:

Five minutes to go ➔ What a day ➔ Ok, I’d better clear my head a bit ➔ release ➔ release ➔ breath ➔ light ➔ chair ➔ what if—release ➔ prepared ➔ ready ➔ calm ➔ [and before you know it you’re impressing your work associate with your calm preparedness]

In summary:

If you need to stop a train of thought, this method may help. Especially if you’re in a situation where you can’t use some external distraction to keep you from thinking about the bad thing!

You’re probably still going to have to deal with the Bad Thing™ at some point—you’ve just recognized that now isn’t the time for that. Mentally postpone that so that you will be well-rested when you choose to deal with the Bad Thing™ later at your convenience.

So remember: identify the positive (with a single word), and anything else, just release.

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  • A Peek Behind The 10almonds Curtain

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    At 10almonds we give a lot of health information, so you may wonder: how much do we (the 10almonds team) put into practice? Is it even possible to do all these things? Do we have an 80:20 rule going on?

    So, here’s what someone who thinks, reads, and writes about health all day, does for her health—and how it ties in with what you read here at 10almonds.

    Hi, it’s me, a member of the 10almonds team and regular writer here, and I’m going to do the rest of this article in the first-person, since it’s using me as an example!

    (PS: yes, the thumbnail is a digital impression of my appearance, though I would correct it that my hair is much longer, and my eyes are more gray; I must admit though it captured my smile, not to mention my collarbones-that-you-could-sit-on)

    Dietary habits

    Before we get to foods, let’s talk intermittent fasting. I practise 16:8 intermittent fasting… Approximately. That is to say, I’m mostly not religious about it, but I will generally breakfast around 12 noon, and have finished eating dinner before 8pm, with no food outside of those hours.

    See also: Intermittent Fasting: What’s the truth?

    Importantly, while I feel free to be a little flexible around start and finish times, I do very consciously decide “I am now fasting” and “I will now break the fast”.

    Note my imperfection: it would be ideal to have the eating period earlier in the day, and have a bigger breakfast and small dinner. However, that doesn’t really work for me (leisurely evening meal is an important daily event in this household), so this is how I do it instead.

    Foods!

    It gets an exclamation mark because a thing about me is that I do love foods.

    Breakfast: a typical breakfast for me these past months is a couple of ounces of mixed nuts with about 1oz of goji berries.

    The mixed nuts are in equal proportions: almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts, cashews. Why those four? Simple, it’s because that’s what Aldi sells as “mixed nuts” and they are the cheapest nuts around, as well as containing absolute nutritional heavyweights almonds and walnuts in generous portions.

    Often, but not always, I’ll have some dates with it, or dried apricots, or prunes.

    I go through phases; sometimes I’ll enjoy overnight oats as my breakfast for a month or two at a time. I really just follow my gut in this regard.

    See for example: Spiced Pear & Pecan Polyphenol Porridge

    Lunch: I don’t really lunch per se, but between breakfast and dinner I’ll usually snack on a 3–5 organic carrots (I literally just cut the tops off and otherwise eat them like Bugs Bunny—peeling them would be extra work just to lose fiber). Note my imperfection: I don’t buy all of my vegetables organic, but I do for the ones where it makes the biggest difference.

    If I’m feeling like it, I may lunch on a selection of herbs sabzi khordan style (see: Invigorating Sabzi Khordan), though I’m vegan so for simplicity I just skip the cheeses that are also traditional with that dish. On the other hand, for protein and fat I’ll usually add a cup of beans (usually black beans or kidney beans), seasoned with garlic and black pepper in an olive oil and balsamic vinegar dressing (that I make myself, so it’s just those ingredients). See also: Kidney Beans vs Black Beans – Which Is Healthier?

    Dinner: this is my main sit-down meal of the day, and it’s enjoyed in a leisurely fashion (say, 40 minutes average with a normal distribution bell curve running between 20 and 60 minutes) with my son who lives with me. I mention all of this, because of the importance of relaxed mindful eating. In the instances of it being nearer the 20 minutes end, it’s not because of rushing, but rather because of a lighter meal some days.

    See also: How To Get More Nutrition From The Same Food

    Regular recurrences in the menu include:

    I’ll often snack on something probiotic (e.g. kimchi) while I’m cooking.

    See also: Make Friends With Your Gut! (You Can Thank Us Later)

    In terms of what’s not in my diet: as mentioned, I’m vegan, so animal products are out. I don’t drink alcohol or use other recreational drugs, and I mostly drink decaffeinated coffee, but I’ll have a caffeinated one if I’m out somewhere. I’m not a puritan when it comes to sugar, but also, I simply don’t like it and I know well its health effects, so it doesn’t really form part of my diet except insofar as it’s in some ready-made condiments I may sometimes use (e.g. sriracha, teriyaki sauce). I’m also not a puritan when it comes to wheat, but it’s not something I consume daily. Usually on a weekly basis I’ll have a wholegrain pasta dish, and a dish with some kind of wholegrain flatbread.

    See also:

    Exercise!

    First, some things that are lifestyle factors:

    • I do not own a car, and I dislike riding in cars, buses, etc. So, I walk everywhere, unless it’s far enough that I must take the train, and even then I usually stand between carriages rather than sitting down.
    • I have a standing desk setup, that hasn’t been lowered even once since I got it. I highly recommend it, as someone who spends a lot of time at my desk.
    • You may imagine that I spend a lot of time reading; if it’s books (as opposed to scientific papers etc, which I read at my desk), then I’ll most of the time read them while perched like a gargoyle in a sitting squat (Slav squat, Asian squat, resting squat, deep squat, etc) on a balance ball. Yes, it is comfortable once you’re used to it!

    About that latter, see also: The Most Anti Aging Exercise

    In terms of “actual” exercise, I get 150–300 minutes “moderate exercise” per week, which is mostly composed of: 

    • Most days I walk into town to get groceries; it’s a 40-minute round trip on foot
    • On days I don’t do that, even if I do walk to a more local shop, I spend at least 20 minutes on my treadmill.

    See also: The Doctor Who Wants Us To Exercise Less, & Move More

    Strength and mobility training, for me, comes mostly in what has been called “exercise snacking”, that is to say, I intersperse my working day with brief breaks to do Pilates exercises. I have theme days (lower body, core, upper body) and on average one rest day (from Pilates exercises) per week, though honestly, that’s usually more likely because of time constraints than anything else, because a deadline is looming.

    See also: Four Habits That Drastically Improve Mobility

    You may be wondering about HIIT: when I’m feeling extra-serious about it, I use my exercise bike for this, but I’ll be honest, I don’t love the bike, so on a daily basis, I’m much more likely to do HIIT by blasting out a hundred or so Hindu squats, resting, and repeating.

    See also: How To Do HIIT (Without Wrecking Your Body)

    Supplements

    First I’ll mention, I do have HRT, of which the hormones I have are bioidentical estradiol gel in the morning, and a progesterone pessary in the evening. They may not be for everybody, but they’ve made a world of difference to me.

    See also: HRT: A Tale Of Two Approaches

    In terms of what one usually means when one says supplements, many I use intermittently (which is good in some cases, as otherwise the body may stop using them so well, or other problems can arise), but regular features include:

    Why weekends only for Fisetin? See: The Drug & Supplement Combo That Reverses Aging ← the supplement is fisetin, which outperforms quercetin in this role, and/but it only needs be taken for two days every two weeks, as a sort of “clearing out” of senescent cells. There is no need to take it every day, because if you just cleared out your senescent cells, then guess what, they’re not there now. Also, while sensescent cells are a major cause of aging, on a lower level they do have some anti-tumor effects, so it can be good to let some live a least for a while now and again. In short, cellular sensescence can help prevent tumors on a daily level, but it doesn’t hurt that capacity to have a clearing-out every couple of weeks; so says the science (linked above). Note my imperfection: I take it at weekends instead of for two days every two weeks (as is standard in studies, like those linked above), because it is simpler than remembering to count the weeks.

    Cognitive exercise

    Lest we forget, exercising our mind is also important! In my case:

    • I’m blessed to have work that’s quite cognitively stimulating; our topics here at 10almonds are interesting. If it weren’t for that, I’d still be reading and writing a lot.
    • I play chess, though these days I don’t play competitively anymore, and play rather for the social aspect, but this too is important in avoiding cognitive decline.
    • I am one of those people who compulsively learns languages, and uses them a lot. This is very beneficial, as language ability is maintained in a few small areas of the brain, and it’s very much “use it or lose it”. Now, while I may not need my French or Russian or Arabic to keep the lights on in this part of the brain or that, the fact that I am pushing my limits every day is the important part. It’s not about how much I know—it’s about how much I engage those parts of my brain on a daily basis. Thus, even if you speak only one language right now, learning even just one more, and learning even only a little bit, you will gain the brain benefits—because you’re engaging it regularly in a new way, and that forces the brain to wire new synapses and also to maintain volume in those parts.

    See also: How To Reduce Your Alzheimer’s Risk

    And about language-learning specifically: An Underrated Tool Against Alzheimer’s ←this also shows how you don’t have to be extreme about language learning like I admittedly am.

    How’s all this working out for me?

    I can say: it works! My general health is better now than it was decades ago. I’ve personally focused a lot on reducing inflammation, and that really pays dividends when it comes to the rest of health. I didn’t talk about it above, but focusing on my sleep regularity and quality has helped a lot too.

    In terms of measurable results, I recently had a general wellness checkup done by means of a comprehensive panel of 14 blood tests, and various physical metrics (BMI, body fat %, blood pressure, etc), and per those, I could not be in better health; it was as though I had cheated and written in all the best answers. I say this not to brag (you don’t know me, after all), but rather to say: it can be done!

    Even without extreme resources, and without an abundance of free time, etc, it can be done!

    Caveat: if you have some currently incurable chronic disease, there may be some limits. For example, if you have Type 1 Diabetes, probably your HbA1c* is going to be a little off even if you do everything right.

    *HbA1c = glycated hemoglobin, a very accurate measure of what your blood glucose has been on average for the past 2–3 months—why 2–3 months? Because that’s the approximate lifespan of a red blood cell, and we’re measuring how much hemoglobin (in the red blood cells) has been glycated (because of blood glucose).

    In summary

    The stuff we write about at 10almonds can be implemented, on a modest budget and while juggling responsibilities (work, family, classes, etc).

    I’m not saying that my lifestyle should be everyone’s template, but it’s at least an example of one that can work.

    • Maybe you hate walking and love swimming.
    • Maybe you have no wish to give up fish and eggs, say (both of which are fine/good in moderation healthwise).
    • Maybe you have different priorities with supplements.
    • Maybe you find language-learning uninteresting but take singing lessons.
    • And so on.

    In the absolute fewest words, the real template is:

    1. Decide your health priorities (what matters most for you)
    2. Look them up on 10almonds
    3. Put the things into action in a way that works for you!

    Take care!

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  • Serotonin vs Dopamine (Know The Differences)

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    Of the various neurotransmitters that people confuse with each other, serotonin and dopamine are the two highest on the list (with oxytocin coming third as people often attribute its effects to serotonin). But, for all they are both “happiness molecules”, serotonin and dopamine are quite different, and are even opposites in some ways:

    More than just happiness

    Let’s break it down:

    Similarities:

    • Both are neurotransmitters, neuromodulators, and monoamines.
    • Both impact cognition, mood, energy, behavior, memory, and learning.
    • Both influence social behavior, though in different ways.

    Differences (settle in; there are many):

    • Chemical structure:
      • Dopamine: catecholamine (derived from phenylalanine and tyrosine)
      • Serotonin: indoleamine (derived from tryptophan)
    • Derivatives:
      • Dopamine → noradrenaline and adrenaline (stress and alertness)
      • Serotonin → melatonin (sleep and circadian rhythm)
    • Effects on mental state:
      • Dopamine: drives action, motivation, and impulsivity.
      • Serotonin: promotes calmness, behavioral inhibition, and cooperation.
    • Role in memory and learning:
      • Dopamine: key in attention and working memory
      • Serotonin: crucial for hippocampus activation and long-term memory

    Symptoms of imbalance:

    • Low dopamine:
      • Loss of motivation, focus, emotion, and activity
      • Linked to Parkinson’s disease and ADHD
    • Low serotonin:
      • Sadness, irritability, poor sleep, and digestive issues
      • Linked to PTSD, anxiety, and OCD
    • High dopamine:
      • Excessive drive, impulsivity, addictions, psychosis
    • High serotonin:
      • Nervousness, nausea, and in extreme cases, serotonin syndrome (which can be fatal)

    Brain networks:

    • Dopamine: four pathways controlling movement, attention, executive function, and hormones.
    • Serotonin: widely distributed across the cortex, partially overlapping with dopamine systems.

    Speed of production:

    • Dopamine: can spike and deplete quickly; fatigues faster with overuse.
    • Serotonin: more stable, releasing steadily over longer periods.

    Illustrative examples:

    • Coffee boosts dopamine but loses its effect with repeated use.
    • Sunlight helps maintain serotonin levels over time.

    If you remember nothing else, remember this:

    • Dopamine: action, motivation, and alertness.
    • Serotonin: contentment, happiness, and calmness.

    For more on all of the above, enjoy:

    Click Here If The Embedded Video Doesn’t Load Automatically!

    Want to learn more?

    You might also like to read:

    Neurotransmitter Cheatsheet

    Take care!

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  • Mung Beans vs Black Gram – Which is Healthier?

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    Our Verdict

    When comparing mung beans to black gram, we picked the black gram.

    Why?

    Both are great, and it was close!

    In terms of macros, the main difference is that mung beans have slightly more fiber, while black gram has slightly more protein. So, it comes down to which we prioritize out of those two, and we’re going to call it fiber and thus hand the win in this category to mung beans—but it’s very close in either case.

    In the category of vitamins, mung beans have more of vitamins B1, B6, and B9, while black gram has more of vitamins A, B2, B3, and B5. They’re equal on vitamins C, E, K, and choline. So, a marginal victory by the numbers for black gram here.

    When it comes to minerals, mung beans have more copper and potassium, while black gram has more calcium, iron, magnesium, manganese, and phosphorus. They’re equal on selenium and zinc. Another win for black gram.

    Adding up the sections makes for an overall win for black gram, but by all means enjoy either or both; diversity is good!

    Want to learn more?

    You might like to read:

    What’s Your Plant Diversity Score?

    Enjoy!

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Related Posts

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  • Pasteurization: What It Does And Doesn’t Do

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    Pasteurization’s Effect On Risks & Nutrients

    In Wednesday’s newsletter, we asked you for your health-related opinions of raw (cow’s) milk, and got the above-depicted, below-described, set of responses:

    • About 47% said “raw milk is dangerous to consume, whereas pasteurization makes it safer”
    • About 31% said “raw milk is a good source of vital nutrients which pasteurization would destroy”
    • About 14% said “both raw milk and pasteurized milk are equally unhealthy”
    • About 9% said “both raw milk and pasteurized milk are equally healthy”

    Quite polarizing! So, what does the science say?

    “Raw milk is dangerous to consume, whereas pasteurization makes it safer: True or False?”

    True! Coincidentally, the 47% who voted for this are mirrored by the 47% of the general US population in a similar poll, deciding between the options of whether raw milk is less safe to drink (47%), just as safe to drink (15%), safer to drink (9%), or not sure (30%):

    Public Fails to Appreciate Risk of Consuming Raw Milk, Survey Finds

    As for what those risks are, by the way, unpasteurized dairy products are estimated to cause 840x more illness and 45x more hospitalizations than pasteurized products.

    This is because unpasteurized milk can (and often does) contain E. coli, Listeria, Salmonella, Cryptosporidium, and other such unpleasantries, which pasteurization kills.

    Source for both of the above claims:

    Characteristics of U.S. Consumers Reporting Past Year Intake of Raw (Unpasteurized) Milk: Results from the 2016 Food Safety Survey and 2019 Food Safety and Nutrition Survey

    (we know the title sounds vague, but all this information is easily visible in the abstract, specifically, the first two paragraphs)

    Raw milk is a good source of vital nutrients which pasteurization would destroy: True or False?

    False! Whether it’s a “good” source can be debated depending on other factors (e.g., if we considered milk’s inflammatory qualities against its positive nutritional content), but it’s undeniably a rich source. However, pasteurization doesn’t destroy or damage those nutrients.

    Incidentally, in the same survey we linked up top, 16% of the general US public believed that pasteurization destroys nutrients, while 41% were not sure (and 43% knew that it doesn’t).

    Note: for our confidence here, we are skipping over studies published by, for example, dairy farming lobbies and so forth. Those do agree, by the way, but nevertheless we like sources to be as unbiased as possible. The FDA, which is not completely unbiased, has produced a good list of references for this, about half of which we would consider biased, and half unbiased; the clue is generally in the journal names. For example, Food Chemistry and the Journal of Food Science and Journal of Nutrition are probably less biased than the International Dairy Association and the Journal of Dairy Science:

    FDA | Raw Milk Misconceptions and the Danger of Raw Milk Consumption

    this page covers a lot of other myths too, more than we have room to “bust” here, but it’s very interesting reading and we recommend to check it out!

    Notably, we also weren’t able to find any refutation by counterexample on PubMed, with the very slight exception that some studies sometimes found that in the case of milks that were of low quality, pasteurization can reduce the vitamin E content while increasing the vitamin A content. For most milks however, no significant change was found, and in all cases we looked at, B-vitamins were comparable and vitamin D, popularly touted as a benefit of cow’s milk, is actually added later in any case. And, importantly, because this is a common argument, no change in lipid profiles appears to be findable either.

    In science, when something has been well-studied and there aren’t clear refutations by counterexample, and the weight of evidence is clearly very much tipped into one camp, that usually means that camp has it right.

    Milk generally is good/bad for the health: True or False?

    True or False, depending on what we want to look at. It’s definitely not good for inflammation, but the whole it seems to be cancer-neutral and only increases heart disease risk very slightly:

    • Keep Inflammation At Bay ← short version is milk is bad, fermented milk products are fine in moderation
    • Is Dairy Scary? ← short version is that milk is neither good nor terrible; fermented dairy products however are health-positive in numerous ways when consumed in moderation

    You may be wondering…

    …how this goes for the safety of dairy products when it comes to the bird flu currently affecting dairy cows, so:

    Cows’ Milk, Bird Flu, & You

    Take care!

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  • Apricots vs Plums – Which is Healthier?

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    Our Verdict

    When comparing apricots to plums, we picked the apricots.

    Why?

    Both are great, but it wasn’t close!

    In terms of macros, apricots have more fiber, protein, and carbs, with their fiber:carb ratio also giving them the lower glycemic index (although, as usual for any whole fruit, neither are going to give anyone metabolic disease). In any case, by the numbers, and especially for having more fiber, apricots win this category.

    In the category of vitamins, apricots have more of vitamins A, B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B7, B9, C, E, and choline, while plums have more vitamin K. A clear win for apricots.

    When it comes to minerals, apricots have more calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, selenium, and zinc, while plums are not higher in any mineral. Another hands-down win for apricots.

    Looking at polyphenols, both have an abundance of many, especially assorted flavanols, including quercetin. However, plums additionally have some anthocyanins (whence the color), so they get a marginal victory in this round.

    Still, adding up the sections, it’s a 3:1 win for apricots. Of course, do enjoy either or both, though; diversity is good!

    Want to learn more?

    You might like:

    Top 8 Fruits That Prevent & Kill Cancer

    Enjoy!

    Don’t Forget…

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    Learn to Age Gracefully

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  • Men have a biological clock too. Here’s what’s more likely when dads are over 50

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    We hear a lot about women’s biological clock and how age affects the chance of pregnancy.

    New research shows men’s fertility is also affected by age. When dads are over 50, the risk of pregnancy complications increases.

    Data from more than 46 million births in the United States between 2011 and 2022 compared fathers in their 30s with fathers in their 50s.

    While taking into account the age of the mother and other factors known to affect pregnancy outcomes, the researchers found every ten-year increase in paternal age was linked to more complications.

    The researchers found that compared to couples where the father was aged 30–39, for couples where the dad was in his 50s, there was a:

    • 16% increased risk of preterm birth
    • 14% increased risk of low birth weight
    • 13% increase in gestational diabetes.

    The older fathers were also twice as likely to have used assisted reproductive technology, including IVF, to conceive than their younger counterparts.

    Steven van Loy/Unsplash

    Dads are getting older

    In this US study, the mean age of all fathers increased from 30.8 years in 2011 to 32.1 years in 2022.

    In that same period, the proportion of men aged 50 years or older fathering a child increased from 1.1% to 1.3%.

    We don’t know the proportion of men over 50 years who father children in Australia, but data shows the average age of fathers has increased.

    In 1975 the median age of Australian dads was 28.6 years. This jumped to 33.7 years in 2022.

    How male age affects getting pregnant

    As we know from media reports of celebrity dads, men produce sperm from puberty throughout life and can father children well into old age.

    However, there is a noticeable decline in sperm quality from about age 40.

    Female partners of older men take longer to achieve pregnancy than those with younger partners.

    A study of the effect of male age on time to pregnancy showed women with male partners aged 45 or older were almost five times more likely to take more than a year to conceive compared to those with partners aged 25 or under. More than three quarters (76.8%) of men under the age of 25 years impregnated their female partners within six months, compared with just over half (52.9%) of men over the age of 45.

    Pooled data from ten studies showed that partners of older men are also more likely to experience miscarriage. Compared to couples where the male was aged 25 to 29 years, paternal age over 45 years increased the risk of miscarriage by 43%.

    Older men are more likely to need IVF

    Outcomes of assisted reproductive technology, such as IVF, are also influenced by the age of the male partner.

    A review of studies in couples using assisted reproductive technologies found paternal age under 40 years reduced the risk of miscarriage by about 25% compared to couples with men aged over 40.

    Having a male under 40 years also almost doubled the chance of a live birth per treatment cycle. With a man over 40, 17.6% of treatment rounds resulted in a live birth, compared to 28.4% when the male was under 40.

    How does male age affect the health outcomes of children?

    As a result of age-related changes in sperm DNA, the children of older fathers have increased risk of a number of conditions. Autism, schizophrenia, bipolar disorders and leukaemia have been linked to the father’s advanced years.

    A review of studies assessing the impact of advanced paternal age reported that children of older fathers have increased rates of psychiatric disease and behavioural impairments.

    But while the increased risk of adverse health outcomes linked to older paternal age is real, the magnitude of the effect is modest. It’s important to remember that an increase in a very small risk is still a small risk and most children of older fathers are born healthy and develop well.

    Improving your health can improve your fertility

    In addition to the effects of older age, some chronic conditions that affect fertility and reproductive outcomes become more common as men get older. They include obesity and diabetes which affect sperm quality by lowering testosterone levels.

    While we can’t change our age, some lifestyle factors that increase the risk of pregnancy complications and reduce fertility, can be tackled. They include:

    Get the facts about the male biological clock

    Research shows men want children as much as women do. And most men want at least two children.

    Yet most men lack knowledge about the limitations of female and male fertility and overestimate the chance of getting pregnant, with and without assisted reproductive technologies.

    We need better public education, starting at school, to improve awareness of the impact of male and female age on reproductive outcomes and help people have healthy babies.

    For men wanting to improve their chance of conceiving, the government-funded sites Healthy Male and Your Fertility are a good place to start. These offer evidence-based and accessible information about reproductive health, and tips to improve your reproductive health and give your children the best start in life.

    Karin Hammarberg, Senior Research Fellow, Global and Women’s Health, School of Public Health & Preventive Medicine, Monash University

    This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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