As men age, they also experience numerous breaks in their DNA strands. This means that older men have a greater chance of producing children with genetic issues.
A man’s sperm cells contribute the majority of the genes responsible for neurological development, with a much smaller contribution coming from the woman’s egg. While a newborn child invariably exhibits approximately 15 genetic mutations on the maternal side independent of the mother’s age, it carries twice as many from a twenty-year-old father, and as many as 65 times as many from a forty-year old father – a number which continues to rise in relation to the father’s age.
Older men with a desire to have children must also contend with a gradual decrease in testosterone, the primary chemical messenger for healthy energy, sex drive and sexuality. Testosterone deficiency promotes the accumulation of fat cells, the loss of muscle mass, and the frequency of kidney problems.
