November 15, 2005
Family Planning
Question from Raleigh, North Carolina, USA:
You frequently hear of warnings about certain medications that women should avoid if they are pregnant or are planning to be pregnant. What about diabetic men who are getting ready to try and conceive a child with their wife? I have read many drug precaution inserts, warnings, etc., but have never seen this mentioned. Do they study this aspect? For instance, could taking the oral diabetic drug Actos cause damage to sperm or cause potential problem or defects for a fetus? Are there any legal drugs or supplements that men with diabetes should avoid prior to conception of a child?
Answer:
A lot of the reason that you do not hear much about this kind of thing is that there are more things that can affect the woman because she harbors all the eggs you will ever have at the time of birth. Men have to replenish their supply of sperm. I would suggest you and your partner speak with her physician about things you should avoid. It is true that the woman is probably more susceptible to a variety of chemical and environmental conditions. I do not believe that for men, the use of oral medications is associated with birth defects in their offspring.
JTL
