The wife of the Lagos State Governor, Dr Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu has charged expectant couples experiencing infertility to seek the right information and knowledge rather than dissipating energy on “blame game”.
Dr Sanwo-Olu gave the advice in Lagos during the 5th edition of Parah Fertility Conference, with the theme: “Navigating through Infertility in the 21st Century”, organised by Parah Family Foundation.
She said experts had affirmed that the appropriate way to go about handling the issue of infertility was for affected families, especially couples, to jointly investigate the cause, with open minds, with a view to working on solutions together.
“It is noteworthy that this conference has become a credible avenue to bring issues of delayed fertility in our society to the fore, especially in terms of eradicating ignorance, misguided myths, and social stigma associated with it.
“Without knowledge, destruction is imminent, so says the good book of the Lord. Information is key to the transformation of the human mind and this is why it is inspiring that the conference is focused on demystifying the myths about infertility and helping families affected to understand the best way to handle the issues and challenges presented by infertility, particularly in Nigeria.
“The truth remains that there are spiritual, medical, and family-life teachings and approaches that can help a great deal in overcoming infertility,” Mrs Sanwo-Olu said.
Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the Lagos State University, Adeniyi Adewunmi, who was the lead speaker at the conference, joined other fertility experts in raising alarm over what he called the growing rate of infertility in men.
Professor Adewunmi, who is also a consultant at the Institute of Fertility Medicine, Lagos State University Teaching (LASUTH) expressed worry over increasing cases of infertility in men, stressing that the apprehension stemmed from his “professional day-to-day experiences” and statistical reviews.
According to him, male infertility indicates a problem with a man’s reproductive system, which makes him unable to impregnate a female. It was a misconception for people to “always believe that the issue of infertility can only affect or be caused by a female”, he explained.
“Research findings show that more men are suffering from infertility than ever; and some of its causes were as a result of smoking, alcohol intake, drugs, obesity, past or present testicular infections, exposure to environmental toxins, exposure of the testicles to excessive heat, hormonal disorders, testicular trauma and ejaculatory/erectile disorders, among others,” he said.
Another fertility expert, Dr Olufemi Omololu, who is the Chief Medical Director (CMD), Lagos Island Maternity Hospital, also corroborated Professor Adewunmi’s position on the growing rate of infertility in men.
As for the CMD, Lifeline Fertility Clinic, Dr Kemi Ailoje, it was high time intending couples began living life “devoid of stress and anxiety” in the course of waiting “to be blessed with a child”. She advised them to be “closer to God and have faith in Him”, stressing the infallibility of divine intervention.
Earlier in her welcome address, the conference’s convener, Princess Dayo Odukoya, described the rate and causes of infertility as “alarming”, such that it required continued awareness to enable couples experiencing the problem to “speak out in time”, and “seek for solution early in marriage” rather than leaving it late.
