Research suggests that a person's previous sexual partners may have an impact on their offspring, with some studies indicating that genetic information from a woman's first sexual partner could be passed to her children. However, the implications and mechanisms of this effect are not entirely clear, with some outlets framing the findings as a discredited theory of heredity. The idea that a mother's ex-partner could influence the characteristics of her future offspring has been reported, although the scientific basis and significance of this claim are uncertain.