Scientists say fathers who smoke and drink should be aware they are potentially not just damaging themselves, but also their heirs. The US study was presented to the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).
It suggests that a father's health plays a greater role in the health of future generations than has been thought.
Professor Cynthia Daniels, from Rutgers University in New Jersey, has written books on male and female reproduction.
She said men who drank a lot of alcohol had been shown to have increased rates of sperm defects; and nicotine from tobacco found its way into seminal fluid as well as blood.
Professor Daniels said: "We need to open up our eyes and look at the evidence. BBC
"My advice to young couples would be moderation. Substances that have an impact on reproduction are often also carcinogenic.
"If I was a young man I would not drink very heavily and not smoke two packets of cigarettes a day while I was trying to conceive a child."
Professor Neil McClure, a fertility expert at Queen's University Belfast, UK, said the DNA in sperm cells was more tightly packed than in other cells, and so, to some extent, was protected from damage.
However, once sperm cell DNA was damaged, it had no mechanism by which to effect repairs.
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