Associating ambient exposure to fine particles and human fertility rates in China
2018
Xue, Tao | Zhang, Qiang
Adverse effects of ambient fine particles (PM₂.₅) on sperm quality and oocyte fertilization have been identified by previous research. However, insufficient human studies tested associations between PM₂.₅ and decreased fertility rates.We associated long-term exposure to PM₂.₅ and county-level fertility rates reported by 2010 census across China. Exposure assessments were based on PM₂.₅ maps (2009–2010) with a spatial resolution of 0.1° derived from satellite remote sensing data from another published study. We used a Poisson regression to examine the relationship between PM₂.₅ and fertility rates with adjustment of potential confounders including county-level socioeconomic factors (e.g. sex ratio) and a spatially smoothed trend.We found that fertility rates were significantly decreased by 2.0% (95% confidence interval: 1.8%, 2.1%) per 10 μg/m³ increment of PM₂.₅. We also found a geographical variation of the associations.The study add to epidemiological evidences on adverse effects of PM₂.₅ on fertility rates.
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