Rare son because of dirty gas

In areas with heavy air pollution, the number of boys born is lower than that of girls and more cases of miscarriage. The cause may be due to genetic defect.


A research team from the University of Sao Paulo, Brazil, investigated the gender imbalance in different habitats. They sum up the birth registration number and number of babies born from January 2001 to December 2003. Statistics show that in the fresh air areas, 51.7% of babies are born male. This rate drops to 50.7% in heavily polluted areas.

Next, the team compared the male percentage of offspring of some male mice exposed to clean or dirty air for the first 4 months. The number of male rats was "tied up" to females who were not exposed to polluted air. The results showed that males live in a healthy environment giving birth to babies: 134 males / 100 females, while in the male group contaminated with dirty gas this ratio is 86/100. The study also found that the sniffers of poison gas have abnormal signs in sperm production.

According to lead researcher Jorge Hallack, the possible cause of the pollutant gas stimulates the formation of genetic defects, making it impossible for the fetus to survive. Another theory is "pollution affects the function of the placenta", causing the fetus to starve to death.

My Linh ( according to BBC )