Likely Link Between Pollution and Human Reproductive Issues
The Claim
Along with other reproductive issues, human penises are shrinking due to pollution.
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Emerging story
The claim went viral in spring 2021, after the publication of environmental scientist Shanna Swan’s book Count Down: How Our Modern World Is Threatening Sperm Counts, Altering Male and Female Reproductive Development, and Imperiling the Future of the Human Race, in which she says that pollution is causing an “existential crisis” for human fertility rates and that male infants are being born with smaller genitals.
Misbar’s Analysis
Misbar’s investigation found that Swan blames phthalate, a chemical used to make plastics flexible, for the disruption in human reproduction. Phthalate is an EDC, or an endocrine-disrupting chemical, that can affect hormone levels in humans. Swan alleges that "When a pregnant woman has higher body concentrations of chemicals like phthalates, which lower testosterone levels, the development of her baby boy's genitals is disturbed. This results in what has been named the 'phthalate syndrome,' which includes smaller penis size.”
Other indications of phthalate syndrome include declining sperm rate, decreasing testosterone levels, and a drop in the total fertility rate worldwide.
To avoid EDCs, experts recommend that you buy organic produce, choose fresh foods, avoid some plastic wraps and plastic containers, and filter your drinking water.
Swan’s work is supported by some studies and contested by others. As of yet, while Swan's metadata analysis implies a causal link between EDCs and reproductive health issues, there is no long-term human data on phthalate syndrome. We rate this claim as selective.
