Diet and Lifestyle in the Prevention of Ovulatory Disorder Infertility

Abstract

II.

Dietary patterns and difficulty conceiving: a nested case–control study

“…After excluding women with extreme total caloric intakes (defined as <500 or >3,500 kcal/d) (n = 282) and women with missing values on important covariates (n = 94), our effective sample comprised 485 cases and 1,669 matched controls. Given the observed number of women who reported having consulted for difficulty getting pregnant and the number of controls per case, our statistical power was 90% assuming an a priori rate of difficulty getting pregnant of 10% (1) and an expected odds ratio of 0.5 assuming a two-tailed α error of 0.05 (9).…”

“…Chavarro et al (9), however, drawing upon their previous findings linking dietary factors to infertility, developed a diet score defined by its conformity to several key factors: high monounsaturated trans fatty acid intake, the consumption of vegetables rather than meat as a protein source, low glycemic carbohydrates, whole-fat dairy products, multivitamins, and iron from plants and supplements. They found that this fertility diet was associated with a 69% lower risk of ovulatory disorder infertility.…”

“…Increased insulin resistance, present among women with diabetes, polycystic ovary syndrome, high body weight, or decreased physical activity, seems to lead to ovulatory dysfunction (9,10). However, more studies are needed to verify the role of the abovementioned dietary factors on ovulatory infertility in other populations.…”

17. Role of micronutrients in the periconceptional period

“…Interestingly, the Nurses' Health Study II, a prospective cohort study of more than 116,000 women aged 24-42 years, demonstrated that a high 'fertility diet' score was characterized by a lower intake of trans fat with a simultaneous greater intake of mono-unsaturated fat, a lower intake of animal protein with greater vegetable protein intake, a higher intake of high-fiber and low glycemic carbohydrates, a greater preference for high fat dairy products and a higher non-heme iron intake (Chavarro et al, 2007a). In particular, the dietary trans unsaturated fats may increase the risk of ovulatory infertility when consumed instead of carbohydrates or unsaturated fats commonly found in non-hydrogenated vegetable oils (Chavarro et al, 2007b) and replacing animal sources of protein with vegetable sources of protein may reduce the risk of infertility because of anovulation (Chavarro et al, 2008).…”

Hippocrates: timeless still

“…1.21 6 The author observes correctly that obesity and a sedentary lifestyle have a negative impact on women's reproductive health, as has also been reported in contemporary studies. [11][12][13] He attempts a physiological explanation for male fertility problems, which differs from modern understanding but which connects the act of horse riding to sexual and reproductive dysfunction in men. Current studies suggest that activities Hippocrates: timeless still similar to horse riding, such as cycling, can impair male fertility by increasing scrotal temperature 14 and increase the risk of erectile dysfunction by perineal compression causing vascular, endothelial and neural abnormalities.…”