Study: Hormones in Birth Control Pills Disrupt Fish Gender

(MENAFN) A new study reveals that hormones found in birth control pills and estrogen supplements are causing significant gender confusion in fish, media reported Monday.

Published in the Journal of the Norwegian Medical Association, the research highlights how these hormone residues interfere with natural fish development, leading to the emergence of opposite-sex sexual traits or accelerated puberty. These disruptions throw reproductive cycles off balance, with potentially severe consequences for entire aquatic ecosystems.

"For aquatic life, residues of antibiotics and hormones are the most harmful," said Ida Beathe Overjordet, a researcher with extensive experience in the Arctic Ocean and other marine environments.

Beyond hormonal effects, Overjordet raised alarms about antibiotic residues in ocean waters fostering antibiotic-resistant bacteria — a threat extending beyond marine species to human health.

“If you get a wound while swimming and resistant bacteria enter the wound, the treatment may not work,” Overjordet told media.

Highlighting the widespread nature of pharmaceutical pollution, Overjordet emphasized that drug residues have been detected even in remote ocean areas far from human activity.

“Small concentrations of drugs can have a big impact,” she warned, explaining that some aquatic organisms have very low tolerance to these pollutants, while others can endure more.

She also stressed the persistence variability of medications in the environment, noting that while some break down quickly, others remain in ecosystems for extended periods, exacerbating their harmful effects.

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