For a number of years it has been known that obese women will have more difficulty conceiving a child than women who are a healthy weight. Obese women wanting to have children are advised by their doctor to lose weight in order to maximise their chances of becoming pregnant.
Now, for the first time, new research has shown that obese men will also find it more difficult to become fathers as a result of their weight. At the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology conference in Barcelona, researchers presented evidence showing that obese men have lower sperm counts and more fertility problems than men who are a healthy weight.
There are a number of reasons why this is the case. First, men who are overweight or obese are far more likely to suffer from type 2 diabetes. This can lead to their sperm being genetically damaged and render it incapable of fertilising the female’s egg. Secondly, the excess fat that an obese man will carry in his groin area may lead to an overheating of the testicles which, in turn, causes them to produce less sperm and sperm incapable of fertilising an egg. The testicles hang outside the body because sperm needs a cool environment to survive. If the testicles are ‘insulated’ in layers of fat, this will render the body’s ingenious design useless.
The rise of type 2 diabetes in men and women of reproductive age is having an extremely strong negative effect on fertility. The risk of type 2 diabetes can be as much as ten times greater in a person who is obese compared with someone of a normal weight.
In 2006 male infertility accounted for 33 per cent of infertility treatments. This was an increase of 5 per cent rise from just six years earlier in 2000. This follows the trend of the male sperm count decreasing over the last two decades.
The scientists presenting the research concluded that, for too long, a man’s general health has been ignored in the issue of fertility. Infertility treatment centres focus on the general health of the woman but often fail to take a detailed history of her partner. In order to maximise the couple’s chances of conception, this is a balance that needs to be readdressed.