Potential fathers should fill up on green vegetables to improve the quality of their sperm, according to new research.
The study found folic acid, a form of vitamin B found in broccoli, Brussels sprouts, spinach, asparagus and peas, is key in the prevention of brain and spine defects.
Dr Kimmins, of McGill University in Montreal, compared the health of mice born to fathers deficient in folic acid to offspring of males with normal levels of the vitamin.
All of the mothers had normal levels of folic acid. Mice born to males low in folic acid were almost 30 per cent more likely to have birth defects, including some deformities of the spine and skull.
Kimmins said: “Lots of attention has been paid to a mother’s health pre-conception yet the health of the father has been pretty much ignored.
“Because men have their fertility through their life, they think they are good to go at any time and the focus has been on women because they are the incubators of the pregnancy.
“But both men and women need to think about what they are doing pre-conception.”
The study, published in the journal Nature Communications, suggests that lack of folic acid can affect the chemistry of sperm with long-lasting consequences for the unborn baby.
Scientists said that it is too early to advise prospective fathers to take supplements; instead they should eat their greens.
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