Man! Beware of using beer, coffee and nuts!

LONDON: Beer, wine, coffee and nuts all contain high levels of chemicals linked to male infertility, a study has found.

The bar-room drinks and snacks are loaded with phytoestrogens - naturally-occurring plant compounds implicated in falling sperm counts.

Instant coffee powder, Brazil nuts, peanuts, brown ale and red wine scored particularly highly for the chemicals, the analysis, carried out at by the Medical Research Council in Cambridge, found.

Researcher Dr Gunter Kuhnle said the study showed the compounds are found in more foods and drinks than previously thought.

“The data we have collected has enabled us to put together an accurate table of which foods contain the highest levels of phytoestrogens,” he added.

Phytoestrogens, which also occur in high amounts in soya, have been linked to fertility problems in livestock.

And a study published earlier this summer linked soya to dwindling sperm counts in men.