Organic diets increase fertility

Human fertility has been decreasing since the birth of intensive agriculture over 50 years ago. [1] Average sperm counts among healthy American men dropped 58 percent between 1938 and 1988. In Europe, sperm counts dropped by 3.1 percent each year between 1971 and 1990. [2] Studies from Belgium, France and Scotland have also shown losses in sperm quality, motility, development and the number of normally shaped sperm. [3, 4, 5, 6]

The reason for falling sperm quality and quantity is thought to be a cocktail of dietary hormones [7, 8, 9, 10] and pesticides [11, 12, 13, 14, 15], some of which can disturb the body's own hormones. Some pesticides have been linked to masculinisation of female animals, feminization of male animals, eggs found in the testes of roach in UK rivers, low egg viability, enlarged ovaries and reduced penis size in Florida alligators and female-female paring in birds.

Several widely used pesticides are known or suspected to disrupt human hormones, including atrazine, benomyl, carbendazim, carbufuran, chlorpyrifos, dimethoate, DDT, lindane, vinclozolin and synthetic pyrethroids such as deltamethrin. The evidence against the pesticides vinclozolin and carbendazim is very strong. Residues of both of these have been regularly found on fruit and vegetables since 1995. Vinclozolin causes male rats to develop female sex organs and delays puberty. Carbendazim disrupts the production of sperm and damages testicular development in adult rats. In addition, carbendazim is a teratogen - damaging development of mammals in the womb. [16] Five out of the 12 most commonly found pesticide residues in the EU are suspected to disrupt hormones. [17]

Organic farming prohibits the use of hormones and a very limited number of pesticides are used as a last resort only. Animals fed an organic diet are healthier than those fed on conventional feedstuffs, and the effects are most pronounced in fertility. [18] Conversely, the fertility of animals fed fodder grown with chemical fertilizers and pesticides declines over several generations.

Bulls

When bulls are transferred from organic to non-organic fodder, the mobility of their sperm is reduced. Motility returns to normal when they are given organic fodder again. [19]

Rabbits

Organically fed rabbits produce a greater number of eggs (nine versus three and six), have a higher pregnancy rate (100 percent versus 29 and 26 percent), more embryos, larger litters and are healthier than rabbits fed non-organic feed. [19, 20, 21] Offspring have greater birth weight and approximately 50 percent fewer deaths prior to weaning.
In contrast, the fertility rate of rabbits fed non-organically grown feed declines over three generations.

Chickens

Organic hens produce more eggs (192 versus 150) [18] and have significantly higher egg weight, yolk weight and body weight compared with birds fed non-organic feed. [22] Chickens fed organic food are of significantly greater weight after 32 weeks and gain more weight after illness.

In another study, chickens fed organic grain laid twice as many fertile eggs, began laying earlier and at faster rates. The eggs also kept better. [23]

Rodents

There are fewer stillbirths and perinatal deaths in first litters, better weight maintenance in lactating female rats [24] and greater weight gain in young rats [18] fed organically grown feed.

A study comparing rat fertility over a period of three generations discovered that, although pregnancy rate and average litter weight were not significantly different, there were significantly fewer stillborn offspring, and the survival rate at four weeks was significantly higher in rats fed organically grown food. The organic rats also had a greater capacity to compensate weight loss during and after lactation and gained more weight. [22]

Deaths among 80 mice fed organic grains was about half of that among 80 mice fed mineral-fertilized grain (9 percent vs. 17 percent). [23]

Humans

It is difficult to perform controlled studies such as these in humans, but clinical experience and recorded observations have suggested similar benefits in human reproductive health [25], recovery from illness [26], and general health [27] from consumption of organic food.

A study published in The Lancet in 1994 found that organic farmers had much higher sperm counts than other blue-collar workers. [13] Sperm counts were more than twice as high in organic farmers (363 million sperm per milliliter of semen) as in a control group of welders and printers (164 million per milliliter).

Men who consume mostly organic produce have higher sperm counts and greater sperm quality than men eating regular, pesticide-treated produce. And conventional farmers who do not eat organic food have a significantly lower proportion of normally-shaped sperm. [12, 14]

Although these findings are not definitive, they do strongly suggest that consuming organically grown foods may enhance fertility.

Alternative therapies

Mental health

Research by the Food and Mood Project, which is backed by the mental health charity Mind, suggests that eating organic foods can improve mental health. [1] In a survey of 200 people, 88 percent reported that changing their diet improved their mental health significantly and 36 percent said that eating organic foods had a beneficial effect on their mood. The survey was purely subjective, but a third of respondents were "very confident" the dietary changes had affected their mental health. Improvements included a decrease in mood swings (26 percent), panic attacks and anxiety (26 percent) and depression (24 percent).

Gerson Therapy

Gerson Therapy is a natural treatment that claims to boost the body's own immune system to heal cancer, arthritis, heart disease, tuberculosis, allergies, and many other degenerative diseases. [2] Patients consume nutrients from thirteen fresh, organic fruit and vegetable juices every day, which break down diseased tissue in the body. Gerson Therapy's most famous patient was Dr. Albert Schweitzer the missionary surgeon, whom the treatment cured of advanced diabetes when Schweitzer was 75. Schweitzer returned to Africa, won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1952, and worked past the age of 90.

In a presentation before a Congressional subcommittee in 1946, Dr. Gerson estimated that about 30 percent of cancer patients treated with his therapy had a favorable response. In 1947, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) reviewed 10 cases submitted by Dr. Gerson. However, because the patients were also receiving other anticancer treatments, the NCI could not determine whether the patients' condition was due to the Gerson therapy or another treatment. The NCI has not conducted any further evaluation of Dr. Gerson's therapy.