Have you noticed how many couples are struggling to have children? Has your doctor ever mentioned that there appear to be more cases of male impotence in younger men?

Considerable research has been conducted in recent years and it has found that the decline in fertility for couples included those of all ages, not just those who were trying to have children later in life.

The causes of fertility and impotence issues are many and include lifestyle choices such as diet and exercise. Another significant contributor, however, is believed to be exposure to chemicals in the environment and in the food we eat. Studies have indicated a potential association between these exposures and adverse reproductive outcomes in both men and women.

The fertility decline has become so bad that sperm counts among men in Western countries have plummeted by 50 per cent over the past 40 years. More recent research suggests the situation is getting worse, with sperm counts worldwide declining by 2.64 per cent each year. If nothing changes, we could be on course for an infertile world by 2045.

A group of chemicals of particular concern are called endocrine disrupting chemicals or EDCs. These chemicals can negatively impact your hormones, which affect everything from blood sugar, blood pressure, growth, sexual development, fertility, sex drive, metabolism and even sleep. We can be exposed to EDCs through the air we breathe, skin exposures, and also in the food we eat and liquids we drink.

The good news is that we can easily reduce our exposure to EDCs. Among other sources, EDCs are found in plastics. This is why Beyond Plastic Bermuda has launched a campaign to raise awareness about the dangers of single-use plastic, especially to the health of men and boys.

The changes can be easy to make. For starters, stop buying cooked food or drink packaged in single-use plastic. For food, use a reusable food container. For drinks, use a reusable water bottle or reusable coffee cup. These can be left in your office, truck, other place of work or taken around with you in a reusable bag. Our children do this every day when they go to school. We can do this every day when we go to work.

Why would reducing our use of single-use plastic make such a difference?

It is because chemicals used in the manufacture of plastic, such as bisphenols and phthalates, are EDCs. These are chemicals that can interfere with the normal function of your body’s endocrine system, which is what controls and adjusts your hormones, affecting not just your fertility, but also your growth, healing, metabolism, bones and moods.

When hot food is placed in a plastic container or heated in plastic, plastic particles and the chemicals in the plastic may be released into the food. Every time you pour hot coffee into a disposable coffee cup, chemicals from the plastic liner can leach into your drink. “Cardboard” coffee cups are lined with plastic to stop them disintegrating.

Every time you eat warm, takeout food with plastic cutlery or that which was purchased in a plastic container, you could be consuming these chemicals.

Every time you drink from a single-use plastic bottle, especially if it has been in the sun or mishandled in its lifetime, you could be drinking these chemicals and are likely consuming plastic particles.

Every time you squeeze ketchup, mayonnaise or mustard out of a plastic sachet and on to your food, you could be eating these chemicals.

What’s worse is that when a pregnant woman ingests these chemicals, the effects can be passed on to her unborn children, potentially affecting the development of that child’s sexual organs and future fertility.

While it has become easier to refill reusable water bottles and use your own coffee cup for a hot takeaway drink in a café, using reusable food containers for takeout meals is less the norm. But it has to start somewhere, and a large number of restaurants and cafés in Bermuda have got behind Beyond Plastic’s campaign. This means that many will be happy for you to use your own container instead of a plastic one. You only have to ask.

But you need to ask now, as the situation has become critical. If you want children or grandchildren in your future, stop using single-use plastic now!

• Erich Hetzel is a local environmentalist and member of Bermuda Environmental Sustainability Taskforce

• Katie Berry is the past executive director of Keep Bermuda Beautiful and Beyond Plastic champion

• Beyond Plastic Bermuda is a joint campaign by Bermuda Environmental Sustainability Taskforce, Keep Bermuda Beautiful and environmental advocates to educate and help our island move away from plastic. For more information, please contact us at info@beyondplastic.bm