{"id":183913,"date":"2025-11-16T16:45:13","date_gmt":"2025-11-16T16:45:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/183913\/"},"modified":"2025-11-16T16:45:13","modified_gmt":"2025-11-16T16:45:13","slug":"nhs-surgeon-says-certain-pregnancy-complications-can-be-failures-of-paternal-biology-so-men-need-preconception-too","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/183913\/","title":{"rendered":"NHS surgeon says certain pregnancy complications can be \u2018failures of paternal biology\u2019, so men need preconception too"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Pregnancy <\/a>is often framed as a woman\u2019s sole responsibility, with society quick to blame her body when complications arise. But growing evidence shows that men\u2019s biology and genetics <\/a>play an equally crucial role – influencing everything from placental development to pregnancy risks. Far from being a one-sided process, pregnancy is shaped by both parents\u2019 contributions, and paternal factors can be just as decisive in determining outcomes.<\/p>\n

\"Pregnancy Pregnancy is a two person job!(Unsplash) <\/p>\n

Also Read |<\/strong> NHS surgeon warns chronic bloating in women can be a sign of endometriosis: \u2018Often misdiagnosed as SIBO, IBS\u2026\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n

Dr Karan Rajan, a UK-based NHS surgeon and popular health content creator, has highlighted how paternal biology and genetics shape pregnancy – from significantly influencing placental growth to contributing to certain pregnancy-related complications. In an Instagram video posted on August 28, the surgeon stresses, \u201cDespite the biological reality, society still continues to act as though pregnancy is solely the woman’s responsibility and burden. But building a human Tamagotchi is not a solo project.\u201d<\/p>\n

How does the placenta form?<\/p>\n

Dr Rajan emphasises that one of the most crucial aspects of pregnancy – placental formation – is largely driven by the father\u2019s contribution, as it is primarily influenced by paternal genes. He humorously compares pregnancy to an aggressive land grab situation, explaining, \u201cIn fact, pregnancy is basically a massive internal land grab. The maternal immune system<\/a> essentially fighting off the foreign placenta and the paternal genes pushing for more foetal growth.\u201d<\/p>\n

The placenta isn\u2019t a gentle or passive organ; it actively embeds itself into the mother\u2019s uterine lining to secure the nutrients the foetus needs. The surgeon elaborates, \u201cThe placenta isn’t a gentle, cooperative organ. It’s an almost parasitic entity that hijacks the mother’s bodies to get the foetus what it wants. The father’s gene determines how aggressive and how deep the placenta invades into the uterus and the demands on the mother. It’s like an alien species terraforming the uterus to maximize resource extraction from the mother to optimise foetal growth.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some pregnancy complications can be due to male genetics<\/p>\n

Dr Rajan emphasises that since placental formation is heavily influenced by the father\u2019s genes, some pregnancy complications like preeclampsia <\/a>– which happens when the placenta doesn\u2019t implant deeply enough in the uterus, leading to poor blood flow in the foetus – can be considered \u201cfailures of paternal biology.” He adds, \u201cPaternal genes can also influence gestational diabetes, miscarriages, and even foetal growth restriction.\u201d<\/p>\n

Preconception for men<\/p>\n

Dr Rajan highlights that sperm take roughly three months – around 64 to 74 days – to fully develop, meaning the lifestyle choices made during this window can directly influence fertility and the health of the placenta, which carries half of the father\u2019s DNA. This makes a healthy preconception period essential for men.<\/p>\n

He elaborates, \u201cThat means the diet, sleep, stress, alcohol<\/a>, smoking, and environmental exposures in the three months before conception can directly influence sperm quality (DNA integrity, motility, morphology). Most fertility guidelines recommend men start optimising at least three months before trying for a baby – treating it almost like a \u2018male preconception period\u2019 – just as women are advised to optimise their health.\u201d<\/p>\n

Note to readers: This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. It is based on user-generated content from social media. HT.com has not independently verified the claims and does not endorse them.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Pregnancy is often framed as a woman\u2019s sole responsibility, with society quick to blame her body when complications…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":183914,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[78],"tags":[18,135,19,17,103636,103637,103639,2645,103638,103635],"class_list":{"0":"post-183913","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-health","8":"tag-eire","9":"tag-health","10":"tag-ie","11":"tag-ireland","12":"tag-placenta-formation","13":"tag-placenta-growth-influenced-by-male-genes","14":"tag-preeclampsia-paternal-genes","15":"tag-pregnancy","16":"tag-pregnancy-complications-male-genetics","17":"tag-pregnancy-male-genes"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/115560390904322494","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/183913","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=183913"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/183913\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/183914"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=183913"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=183913"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=183913"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}