The paper chosen for the analysis is called Prenatal Caffeine Exposure Impairs Pregnancy in Rats. The authors of the research delve into the investigation of the human reproductive disorders. The given issue is one of the major concerns of the modern science as it poses a threat to the further evolution of society and result in the appearance of numerous demographical problems.
Moreover, the changes in the reproductive system might promote the development of various problems related to the state of posterity. The authors tend to evaluate the effects of caffeine on implantation sites, numbers of live births, weight, crown-rump length and abnormality (Maryam et al., 2016). To support their research with the credible information, researchers conduct the experimental study using rats as the main probationers. Furthermore, they try to create the environment that would support the development of various disorders to admit the changes in the state of rats and their posterity.
Besides, the authors suggest the hypothesis which states that the excessive usage of substances containing caffeine might result in the appearance of significant changes in rats organisms (Maryam et al., 2016). These changes could trigger the process of the development of various complications and promote the deterioration of the health of posterity.
The authors of the study state that the biological effects of caffeine on the central nervous system still provide a set of questions. For this reason, Maryam et al. (2016) suppose that the increased usage of caffeine during the last few weeks of pregnancy could impact the level of estrogen and have the pernicious effect on the state of a fetus. In this regard, the investigators tend to prove the idea that the usage of coffee, tea, chocolate and some medicines could be dangerous for the reproductive system of a living being and deteriorate the state of a fetus.
To prove the hypothesis, the authors conduct the experimental study that delves into the investigation of the major concerns of the issue. There are 40 female albino rats divided into two control groups. They are created to guarantee the credibility of the experiment and monitor the changes of the state of probationers. All rodents received caffeine on days 1-5 of pregnancy (Maryam et al., 2016). The first group was euthanized on day 7 to discover the number of implantation sites and other problematic aspects. The second group was investigated to monitor the state of their posterity and possible complications. The obtained data was analyzed by various independent tests to guarantee the detailed analysis of the case and create the basis for the further discussion.
The results of the study provided by the authors show that the number of implantation sites between two experimental groups differs significantly (Maryam et al., 2016). The number of live birth births between the 2nd and control group was also statistically significant. The given results were obtained in the course of the precise investigation and monitoring of the state of rats belonging to both groups. Moreover, the credibility of the data is evidenced by the character of the experimental study and attempts to exclude various external factors from the experiment. In this regard, the authors underline the great importance of the results as they could be used to support their hypothesis and introduce discussions related to the impact caffeine has on the state of a living being and its reproductive system. Moreover, the results include the authors’ observations noted during the experiment.
The study also provides the discussion related to the questions. Maryam et al. (2016) admit that the administration of caffeine causes a significant decrease in implantation sites and the number of live birth. It follows from this assumption that caffeine could cause the anti-fertility effect and deteriorate the state of a person. Especially dangerous the substance becomes for pregnant individuals as the study proves the negative impact on the condition of a fetus. However, it is rather difficult to prove this statement as the usage of rats in the study could not guarantee the same reactions among human beings. The data shows that the caffeine consumption could decrease the birth weight, but the difference between two experimental groups is not statistically significant. Moreover, the problem is that the impact on human fetus may be severe. These facts condition the necessity of the further investigation of the question.
In conclusion, it is possible to state that the article is quite comprehensive, and the authors were able to prove their hypothesis regarding harmful effects of caffeine on pregnancy in rats. The findings are fascinating because this is an area that is relatively unexplored, and the results are statistically significant. It may be reasonable to increase the sample size, and other aspects of birth also should be measured in future studies. The authors suggest that injections of caffeine to pregnant rats result in the decrease of implantation sites and live birth. It is not reasonable to exclude caffeine from the diet of pregnant individuals yet based on available data, and this subject matter needs to be researched.
Moreover, it would be appropriate to get a better understanding of what dosage is safe, and would not lead to complications. Also, it is entirely possible that the authors could have overlooked several crucial factors that could have affected the results, and they should have paid more attention towards the elimination of bias. It is quite recent, and it would be reasonable to review other articles on this subject matter to identify particular patterns and similarities between the arguments. Overall, the experiment supports the idea that caffeine has numerous harmful effects, and it may be especially dangerous during the pregnancy. Therefore, it would be reasonable to reduce the intake of the stimulant to avoid risks and complications.
Reference
Maryam, Y., Mozafar, K., Morteza, A., & Mohadeseh, E. (2016). Prenatal caffeine exposure impairs pregnancy in rats. International Journal of Fertility & Sterility, 9(4), 558-562. Web.