Infertility is a condition of the female or male reproductive system that is characterized by the impossibility of achieving a pregnancy after 12 months or more of regular unprotected sexual intercourse, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), which indicates that this problem It affects around one in six people in the world, which represents 17.5% of the adult population.
Researchers consider male infertility to be a contributing factor to couple infertility in about half of cases, but its causes are unknown in most of them. In fact, a German study that analyzed the possible origin of the disorder in more than 20,000 men referred to a fertility center failed to make a diagnosis in approximately 70% of them. Now, new research has found that being overweight in childhood can reduce testicular volume and make these boys more likely to become infertile men. Their findings have been published in the European Journal of Endocrinology.
In the last 40 years, scientific evidence has also shown a trend towards decreased sperm concentration and total sperm count. On the other hand, there has also been an increase in the prevalence of childhood obesity, which has gone from 32 million to 42 million affected children. Experts estimate that around 60% of today’s children will be obese by the time they are 35 years old.
“More careful control of body weight in childhood could represent a preventive strategy to maintain testicular function later in life”
Surveys conducted in Italy have also found testicular hypotrophy in almost a quarter of young men aged 18 to 19 whose future fertility is therefore at risk. In recent decades, in addition, significant changes have appeared in the lifestyle of the population, from exposure to endocrine disruptors (chemical substances that alter the endocrine system), to a greater sedentary lifestyle, or suffering from eating disorders.
Factors that can affect sperm production
The new research has been carried out by scientists from the University of Catania, in Sicily, who carried out a retrospective cross-sectional study in 268 children and adolescents from 2 to 18 years of age who had been referred to the Pediatric Endocrinology Unit of said university for evaluation. body weight control. The researchers analyzed data on testicular volume, age, body mass index and insulin resistance from all of them and found that those whose weight was normal had 1.5 times greater testicular volume compared to those who were overweight. or obesity in prepubertal age.
Boys and adolescents tested with normal insulin levels had 1.5- to 2-fold greater testicular volume compared with those with hyperinsulinemia, a condition of higher than normal blood insulin levels often associated with with type 2 diabetes. Thus, those who were overweight or obese, hyperinsulinemia, or insulin resistant showed lower testicular volume than those who were healthy.
A lower testicular volume is a risk factor for reduced sperm production during adulthood, so the researchers believe that weight loss could help those affected to avoid infertility in the future. “Although the prevalence of childhood obesity is increasing worldwide, the impact of obesity and associated metabolic disorders on testicular growth is not well understood,” explained Rossella Cannarella, one of the authors of the article.
He adds: “In this study we found that being overweight or obese was associated with lower prepubertal testicular volume. Furthermore, obesity-related comorbidities such as hyperinsulinemia and insulin resistance were found to influence testicular volume before and after puberty. Therefore, we speculate that more careful control of body weight in infancy could represent a preventive strategy to maintain testicular function later in life.”
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