Can obesity and overweight affect fertility?

Obesity has a detrimental influence on all system including reproductive health. Obesity can have a major effect on fertility and complications in early pregnancy. A wide range of issues because of obesity are hormonal imbalance, ovulation. Metabolic syndromes like PCOS, diabetes do affect fertility in the majority of women in reproductive age group.

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Obesity can contribute to problems with ovulation and to irregular menstrual periods: It also contributes to a lowered response to fertility treatment and to miscarriages. Research indicates that reducing obesity improves women’s reproductive health. Women with a condition called polycystic ovary syndrome, or PCOS, face a higher risk of both obesity and infertility. Lifestyle changes, such as losing weight, can trigger body changes that facilitate conception in women with PCOS.

Men’s obesity also is associated with a higher risk of infertility. There are several ways that excess weight may affect a man’s fertility, including changes in his hormone and semen production.

How to tell if you are overweight or obese?

Most common categorization of overweight or obese is as per your BMI ( Body Mass Index)

It is calculated by Weight in kg / (Height in meter)²

Ideal BMI is between 18.5 to 24.9. BMI between 25 to 29.9 is considered overweight & BMI above 30 is obese.

With increasing prevalence of obesity and overweight in reproductive age group. Infertility, Pregnancy complication, miscarriage rates & poor reproductive outcome has been noted.

Hormones and Infertility:

Hormonal secretion is affected because of increased peripheral aromatization of androgens to estrogen, insulin résistance and hyperinsulinemia in obese women leads to hyperandrogenemia.

There is a decrease in values of sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) & Insulin-like growth factor binding protein (IGFBP) & increased levels of leptin. All this leads to decreased neuro-regulation of the hypothalamic pituitary ovarian axis (HPO). These alterations explain impair ovulatory function & So the reproductive health

It can be concluded obesity causes infertility by various pathway included Impair follicular development quantitative and qualitative decline in Oocyte development, fertilization, embryo development & Implantation.