Sustained weight loss can help improve semen quality in men with obesity

Men everywhere in the world are affected by deteriorating semen quality – sometimes called an outright fertility disaster.

Now, nonetheless, there could also be excellent news for a number of the men who’re experiencing issues.

In a brand new medical examine, researchers from the College of Copenhagen and Hvidovre Hospital present that men with obesity improve their semen quality in the event that they lose weight – and preserve the weight loss.

“It was stunning to us that such an enormous enchancment can be proven in the semen quality in connection with a weight loss. And as 18 p.c of Danes have obesity, this new information may very well make a distinction,” says Professor Signe Torekov who headed the examine collectively with Professor Romain Barres on the Novo Nordisk Basis Middle for Primary Metabolic Analysis.

The brand new findings could also be excellent news for the fertility, as a hyperlink between larger sperm depend and sooner achievement of being pregnant has beforehand been proven.

The examine has been revealed in the acknowledged journal Human Replica which enjoys one of many highest rankings in the sphere of fertility. A complete of 56 men with obesity participated, aged 18-65 years and with a physique mass index between 32 and 43.

Sustained weight loss obligatory

Signe Torekov explains that it has lengthy been recognized that obesity is related with decreased semen quality. Earlier research have additionally urged a hyperlink between weight loss and elevated semen quality, however these research have had so few members or such modest weight loss that it has been troublesome to attract conclusions from them, she explains.

However now we’re able to just do that. That is the primary long-term randomized examine, the place we’ve got proven that semen quality in men with obesity improve with a sustained weight loss.”

Signe Torekov, Division of Biomedical Sciences

“The men misplaced a median of 16.5 kg which elevated the sperm focus by 50 p.c and the sperm depend by 40 p.c eight weeks because the weight loss. Through the 52 weeks, the trial lasted following the weight loss, the men maintained the improved semen quality. However solely the men who maintained the weight loss: after a 12 months, these men had twice as many sperm cells as earlier than their weight loss. The men who regained weight, misplaced the enhancements in semen quality,” she explains.

Half of a bigger examine

The examine is a sub examine of a serious publication on weight loss, which was revealed in the New England Journal of Medication in Could 2021. A complete of 215 Danes with obesity participated in the bigger examine. It was amongst these members that 56 of the men additionally supplied semen samples to analyze whether or not semen quality and weight loss could possibly be associated.

Within the trial, all members first adopted an eight-week routine with a low-calorie food regimen, ensuing in a weight loss. Then the members have been randomly divided into 4 teams.

Two of the teams acquired placebo remedy, whereas the opposite two teams acquired obesity remedy. Among the many two placebo teams, one group needed to observe an train program the place every week, they needed to do a minimal of 150 minutes of average bodily coaching or 75 minutes of laborious coaching – or a mix.

The opposite group didn’t change their typical stage of bodily exercise. The 2 teams that acquired obesity remedy have been divided in the identical method, into a gaggle with and a gaggle with out an train program.

After a 12 months, it was proven that the group that solely exercised and didn’t obtain remedy, in addition to the group that solely acquired obesity remedy and didn’t train, maintained the weight loss of 13 kg.. The group that each acquired obesity remedy and exercised misplaced further weight and improved well being. The placebo group – those that thought they got remedy, however didn’t train – had regained half of the weight loss with aggravation of most of the danger elements associated to improvement of sort 2 diabetes and heart problems.