New research has found that maintaining a healthy weight could help boost the quality of a man’s sperm.
Carried out by a team at the Rovira i Virgili University in Spain, along with researchers from the University of Utah in the United States, the Ahvaz Jundishapur University in Iran, and the National University of Córdoba in Argentina, the study looked at 88 existing articles that investigated how weight – low weight, normal weight, overweight and obese – could affect a man’s sperm quality.
The findings, published in the journal Obesity Reviews, showed that being overweight and/or obese were both associated with various measurements of low semen quality, including semen volume, sperm count and concentration, sperm vitality (the percentage of living healthy sperm in semen), total motility (the ability of sperm to move efficiently), and percentage of normal morphology (the shape of the sperm).
The results also showed that being underweight was also associated with a lower percentage of normal sperm morphology.
The researchers said that their review is the most comprehensive analysis to date of the existing research, and suggests that maintaining a healthy body weight could be important for increasing sperm quality, and potentially, a man’s fertility.
This is particularly significant given that infertility affects between 10% and 15% of all couples of reproductive age.
Recent research has found that sperm quality can also be boosted by taking supplements of selenium, zinc, omega-3, coenzyme Q10 and carnitines, which have been shown to improve sperm mobility and morphology.
A small trial also found that eating 60g of almonds, hazelnuts and walnuts daily, significantly improved sperm count, vitality, motility and morphology.
Meanwhile, research published last year (2019) showed that eating a healthy diet and avoiding sugar could improve sperm quality within just two weeks. – AFP Relaxnews
Already a subscriber? Log in
Get 20% OFF The Star Digital Access
Cancel anytime. Ad-free. Unlimited access with perks.
