The following points highlights the three main components of anti-fertility food. The components are: 1. Saturated Fat and Infertility 2. Folate 3. Acrylamide.
Component # 1. Saturated Fat and Infertility:
Animal studies have shown that dietary fats affect male fertility. Human and animal studies have also correlated a specific fatty acid composition of sperm with semen quality.
In their preliminary cross-sectional study, Attaman et. al (2012) found high intake of saturated fats was negatively related to sperm concentration whereas higher intake of omega-3 fats was positively related to sperm morphology. Jensen et al (2013) found a significant dose-response association between high intake of saturated fat and lower sperm concentration & total sperm count in men.
Men in the highest quartile of saturated fat intake had a 38 per cent lower sperm concentration and a 41 per cent lower total sperm count than did men in the lowest quartile. They reason it out as the changes in diet over the past decades implying that reduction in saturated fat intake may be beneficial for both general and reproductive health.
Trans unsaturated fats may increase the risk of ovulatory infertility when consumed instead of carbohydrates or unsaturated fats commonly found in non-hydrogenated vegetable oils. Each 2 per cent increase in the intake of energy from trans unsaturated fats, as opposed to that from carbohydrates, was associated with a 73 per cent greater risk of ovulatory infertility after adjustment for known and suspected risk factors for this condition [relative risk (RR) = 1.73; 95 per cent].
Obtaining 2 per cent of energy intake from trans fats rather than from n-6 polyunsaturated fats was associated with a similar increase in the risk of ovulatory infertility (RR = 1.79; 95 per cent). In addition, obtaining 2 per cent of energy from trans fats rather than from monounsaturated fats was associated with a more than doubled risk of ovulatory infertility (RR = 2.31; 95 per cent).
Recently, high frequency of subnormal human sperm counts is reported. It has been suggested that environmental estrogens could be responsible for the putative secular decline in sperm counts. Dairy foods contain large amounts of estrogens. While some studies have suggested dairy as a possible contributing factor for decreased semen quality, no consistent reports are seen across studies. Afeiche et al (2013) found that intake of full-fat dairy was inversely related to sperm motility and morphology.
These associations were driven primarily by intake of cheese and were independent of overall dietary patterns. Chavarro et al (2007 b) followed the premenopausal women without a history of infertility who attempted a pregnancy or became pregnant during an 8-year period. They found that high intake of low-fat dairy foods to increase the risk of an ovulatory infertility whereas intake of high-fat dairy foods to decrease this risk.
Component # 2. Folate:
Folate is necessary for the synthesis of DNA, transfer RNA, and the amino acids cysteine and methionine. Thus, it plays an important role in human reproduction. In animals, folic acid supplementation increased ovulation rates (and subsequently litter sizes) in pigs while folic acid deficiency decreased ovulation in rats.
Previous human studies documented higher pregnancy rates among users of micronutrient supplements either with or without fertility disorders. Further, regular use of multivitamins was associated with a decreased risk of ovulatory infertility with B vitamins, in particular folic acid, explaining some of this association.
Component # 3. Acrylamide:
The presence of acrylamide has been reported in a variety of human foods including heat-processed starchy foods such as potato chips and bread. Kermani Alghoraishi et al (2010) reported that acrylamide, decreased sperm vitality and displayed abnormal sperm parameters in progressive motility and total motility through effects on membrane integrity.