More fertile by eating well. Following an organic Mediterranean diet for at least 3 months, low in carbohydrates and rich in legumes, whole grains, green leafy vegetables and other antioxidant ingredients (including spices), doubles testosterone levels in men and protects the DNA of spermatozoa. In the Italy of empty cradles, a study led by the Institute of Translational Pharmacology of the National Research Council (CNR) demonstrates this for the first time, published last November in ‘Current Research in Food Science’ and presented at the latest National Congress of the Italian Society of Andrology (SIA).
Infertility, a growing problem that affects 15-20% of couples globally, is also fought at the table. Its causes can be different, from lifestyle to environmental factors, from stress to unfavorable socio-economic conditions – recalls Alessandro Palmieri, president of Sia and professor of Urology at the Federico II University of Naples – and diet is crucial: “Incorrect dietary practices, overweight and obesity – he explains – can in fact cause hormonal imbalances and directly modify the function and molecular composition of spermatozoa”. Furthermore, “an incorrect diet can accentuate the deleterious and pro-oxidant effects of stress and pollution – adds the president of Italian andrologists – and cause DNA fragmentation in spermatozoa, one of the factors underlying male infertility, which significantly reduces the chances of conceiving naturally or through procedures such as intrauterine insemination and in vitro fertilization. Reducing oxidative stress is therefore essential to increase a couple’s chances of conceiving”.
The Italian study is the first to quantify the effect of an antioxidant diet: “It verified how the organic Mediterranean diet can counteract the pro-oxidant effect of pollutants and have benefits in men with low fertility, doubling the secretion of testosterone and reducing by 47%”, therefore halving, “the presence of spermatozoa with fragmented DNA”.
But here’s how the Cnr study was conducted and what it concluded. From November 2020 to October 2021 – Sia explains – the authors followed 50 men aged 35 to 45, of normal weight, non-smokers and who did not regularly drink alcohol, without chronic diseases or varicocele, who had decided to follow a pre-conception diet. They were all assigned a diet with precise nutritional guidelines: consumption of 80% organic foods; daily intake of whole grains and low glycemic index foods; elimination or reduction of dairy products; daily consumption of fermented foods such as yogurt or kefir and red fruits; daily intake of green leafy vegetables and nuts; frequent consumption of legumes, cruciferous vegetables, blue fish and eggs; elimination of processed meats, packaged products and consumption of fruit not exceeding 300 g per day; frequent use of spices such as ginger, turmeric, coriander, rosemary, basil, garlic, onion and parsley. A subgroup of 20 participants were also given additional instructions to reduce their carbohydrate intake to 35% of their daily caloric intake. The 50 men followed the diet for 3 months, before undergoing a testosterone test and a sperm DNA fragmentation test.
“It was observed that the subjects, 3 months after starting the diet – summarizes Veronica Corsetti, first author of the study, nutrition biologist, researcher at the CNR and president of the association Fertilelife – recorded a 116% increase in testosterone levels, which more than doubled from 3.2 nanograms/milliliter to 6.92 ng/ml. At the same time, the group of men who followed a diet with a reduction in carbohydrate intake and an increase in antioxidants, through the daily consumption of red fruits and a minimum of 3 portions of fresh vegetables per day, reported a reduction in the percentage of spermatozoa with fragmented DNA, which fell to 23.2% compared to the initial 44.2%.
“With this study – comments Corsetti – we have been able to demonstrate for the first time that men who adhere to the Mediterranean diet and reduce their carbohydrate intake experience less sperm DNA fragmentation and increased testosterone levels. The male contribution to a couple’s fertility is fundamental and the results of this study underline the importance of dietary variation and the inclusion of organic foods to achieve this goal”.
“There is no doubt that the Mediterranean diet is universally recognized as beneficial for maintaining general health and reducing the incidence of major chronic diseases,” observes Fabrizio Palumbo, medical director at the Urology Unit of the Di Venere Hospital in Bari.
“This diet – the specialist describes – is characterized by a high consumption of vegetables, fruit, olive oil, cereals, dairy products and nuts, with a very low intake of red meat and a moderate consumption of fish and wine. It is characterized by a high consumption of fibers that have a positive impact on the intestinal microbiota, leading to an overall improvement in male infertility. In addition, unsaturated fatty acids and monounsaturated fatty acids in the foods that are part of it are able to reduce oxidative stress and cholesterol, preventing the fragmentation of sperm DNA, with a consequent better quality of spermatozoa. Finally, the polyphenols contained in the Mediterranean diet exert antioxidant effects that have anti-inflammatory properties and that prevent sperm agglutination, which occurs when spermatozoa stick together forming actual piles that prevent their movement”.
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