Bacon, Fish and Sperm

Patients are always asking me are there dietary changes they can make to enhance their chances for pregnancy. In the case of men with low sperm counts, the answer is often no. However, researchers from Harvard School of Public Health looked at men’s diet and the quality of their sperm in a study presented at the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) meeting. Interestingly, they found that men who consumed lots of processed meats such as bacon and sausage had poorer quality sperm and those who consumed lots of dark meat fish such as salmon and tuna had better quality sperm. While these findings are preliminary; the study size is small and the data has not been published yet, this does suggest that nutrition may play a real role in male infertility.

Avoiding a toxic environment…….in the womb

The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) and the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) have begun a program to educate women about the dangers of everyday toxins in the enviroment. Some of these chemicals have been associated with  infertility, stillbirth, miscarriage, childhood cancers and impaired brain development.  

They have recommended that pregnant women limit :

• processed foods
• products containing BPA
• foods high in animal fat
• pesticides and solvents
• animal fats
• unwashed fruits and vegetables
• fish high in Mercury such as Tuna, Marlin, Swordfish, Shark, Tilefish, Chilean Sea Bass