The older the father gets, the more genetic mutations in his children!

A recent scientific study published in the journal Nature revealed that the father’s age plays an essential role in increasing the likelihood of harmful genetic mutations appearing in sperm, which may directly affect pregnancy outcomes and children’s health.

The researchers explained that mutations do not accumulate only due to aging, but rather as a result of a precise form of natural selection within the testicles, as some mutations give sperm cells a competitive advantage over others during the production process.

The study, which included 81 healthy men, showed that about 2% of sperm in men in their early 30s carry disease-causing mutations, compared to between 3 and 5% in those aged 43 to 74 years, while the percentage rises to 4.5% in those aged 75 years.

The researchers pointed out that these mutations are often linked to cell growth and development, and some of them are linked to severe neurological disorders in children and types of hereditary cancer. Other mutations can also lead to impaired fertilization or pregnancy loss.

Professor Matt Hurls, from the Wellcome Sanger Institute in England, said: “Some changes in the DNA not only remain, but reproduce within the testicles, making parents who give birth at an advanced age unknowingly more likely to pass on harmful mutations to their children.”

In a complementary study of more than 54,000 families including 800,000 people, scientists identified more than 30 genetic factors through which mutations give sperm cells a competitive advantage, many of which are linked to developmental disorders and cancer.

The researchers believe that the results of the two studies reveal for the first time how the effects of natural selection can be observed directly within human DNA, highlighting a “hidden genetic risk” that increases as the father gets older.