Fertility News

Australian Researcher Links Obesity to Infertility - 08/28/2007

While obesity has been blamed for the difficulties in conception of obese women, Cadence Minge a researcher from Adelaide University Research Center for Reproductive Health has found the first direct scientific link between obesity and infertility. This finding may shed some light on why some obese women experience difficulties getting pregnant.

Minge studied female rats on high fatty diets and discovered that high levels of fat and cholesterol negatively affected the eggs in the ovaries, even before fertilization. Minge stated that damaged eggs in obese rats did not develop into healthy embryos.

Minge also pinpointed peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma, the protein responsible for nourishing the egg in the ovaries before fertilization. However, in rats with high intake of fat this protein fails to work, explaining why the eggs’ quality and health suffers.

Testing to see how to re-activate the protein, Minge found that rosglitazone, the anti-diabetes drug, compensates for the affects of the protein. Rats treated with the drug produced healthier offspring with a higher birth weight.

So can this drug be used in women with obesity? Minge advises against it because the drug produces side effects that may not be reversible. But, the best thing to do is to lose weight says Minge. Weight loss that is about 10 to 20 pounds in obese women is enough to induce ovulation if they suffer from anovulation.

Source: INQUIRER.net

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