healthy diet and weight loss for unexplained infertility in obease women
A new study from the US has revealed that, despite decades of advice to the contrary, the likelihood of getting pregnant and carrying a baby to term for an obese woman with unexplained infertility is not improved through weight loss prior to conception.
The randomised research, carried out by Penn State College of Medicine in Pennsylvania, studied 379 women with obesity and unexplained infertility from nine medical centres across the US.
Half of the cohort lost weight through intense dieting, using meal replacements and medication, and increased physical activity. The other half increased their physical activity without the express purpose of losing weight.
Both groups undertook the programmes for 16 weeks prior to completing three cycles of infertility therapy consisting of ovarian stimulation and intrauterine insemination.
The women who dieted intensely lost, on average, 7% of their bodyweight, while the non-dieting group typically maintained their body weight. However, in terms of pregnancies and healthy births, there were no significant differences between the two groups.
Dr Richard Legro, who led the study, said that although the findings differ from current clinical standards of pregnancy care, “there’s just not enough evidence to recommend preconception weight loss in women with obesity and unexplained infertility”.
Despite no quantifiable improvement in reproductive fitness for the study group, the diet and exercise programmes did provide wider health benefits for the cohort.
Researchers noted a significant reduction in metabolic syndrome among the cohort. Metabolic syndrome describes a collection of health conditions that increase the risk of suffering other serious health problems such as heart disease, stroke and diabetes.
Daniel J. Haisenleder, PhD, of the School of Medicine’s Center for Research in Reproduction, said, “Weight loss improved metabolic health in these subjects. Unfortunately, the changes seen did not improve fertility.
“Infertility within this population remains an important health issue, and will require further studies to address the problem in the future.”