High-fat diet harms sperm quality

Saturated fatty acids increase the risk of male infertility

15.03.2012

Infertility in men could possibly be due to excessive consumption of saturated fats. US researchers at Harvard Medical School and the Boston Harvard School of Public Health have found that diets high in unsaturated fatty acids result in significantly reduced sperm production.

Like the scientists around Jill Attaman of Harvard Medical School in the online edition of the journal „Human Reproduction“ In their current study, the number of sperm in men with particularly high fat consumption was significantly lower than in the other subjects. The researchers attributed the effect to the saturated fatty acids they contain. In the case of unsaturated omega-3 fatty acids, however, an opposite effect could be demonstrated. Here, the increased consumption brought a slightly improved sperm production with it, the statement of Attaman and colleagues.

Relationship between diet and sperm quality
As part of their study, the US researchers examined the sperm of 99 men at the average age of 36, who had gone through medical treatment for reproductive problems. Seventy-one percent of subjects were overweight or obese (body mass index greater than 25) and most study participants (67 percent) were non-smoker for life. The researchers not only controlled the quality of the semen of the subjects, but also asked the study participants to their dietary habits in order to draw conclusions about possible connections. In addition, Jill Attaman and colleagues used the so-called gas-liquid chromatography (GLC) to study the fatty acids in sperm and seminal plasma in 23 study participants.

Increased fat intake has a negative effect on the sperm
Overall, the increased „Fat intake is negatively associated with the total number of sperm and their concentration“, write the US researchers. The men in the top third of the total fat intake had a 43 percent lower sperm count and 38 percent lower sperm concentration in the ejaculate, as the subjects of the lower third of the fat consumption, so the statement of Jill Attaman. With the help of GLC, the relationship was attributed to the increased intake of saturated fatty acids. The unsaturated omega-3 fatty acids, on the other hand, even brought about a slight increase in the amount of sperm. This was 1.9 percent higher in the subjects in the top third of the intake of omega-3 fatty acids, as in the study participants from the bottom third, report the US researchers.

Nutrition change in unfulfilled desire for children?
The US reproductive physicians come to the conclusion that one „High intake of saturated fats negatively affects the sperm concentration“ works while a „higher intake of omega-3 fatty acids beneficial to the sperm morphology“ Influence. However, Jill Attaman admitted that urgently „Studies with larger samples required“ are, „to confirm these results.“ Their study provides a first basis for taking a closer look at the influence of fatty food on male fertility. Although the link between obesity and infertility has been studied in some previous studies, it has never been confirmed. Even in the current study of US physicians, only an impairment of the sperm concentration was found, which would not have led to the infertility of men. The US researchers recommend considering the fact that a diet with low levels of saturated fats and high levels of omega-3 fatty acids is generally considered to promote health in reproductive problems, a diet change attempt. (Fp)

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Picture credits: Thommy Weiss