U researchers have found that obesity might contribute to male infertility.
“Male factor infertility is associated with a higher incidence of obesity in the male partner,” said Ahmad Hammoud, a professor in obstetrics and gynecology who contributed to the study. “Several studies show the same thing-that obese men have lower sperm counts.”
Douglas Carrell, director of andrology and IVF laboratories at the School of Medicine, runs the andrology lab for the study.
Carrell said the ultimate goal of the research is to help people achieve pregnancy and influence people to live healthier. The research examined the relationship between male obesity and infertility.
Hammoud said that the hormones of obese men shift from male to female.
“After testosterone is produced, the fatty tissue causes it to turn into estrogen,” he said.
Hammoud said he wants to use a drug developed for breast cancer patients to prevent the hormone shift in obese males.
“The endocrinology of obesity is a timely and robust field of research, and what we know now about hormones and fat would suggest that decreasing estrogens in obese men should improve (sperm development),” said Shawn Gurtcheff, Shawn Gurtcheff, a visiting instructor in obstetrics and gynecology at the U.
Several factors may contribute to infertility in obese men, including the tendency to accumulate more pollutants in the air and increased heat around the testicle, Hammoud said.
“Pollutants are fat soluble, and if you have more fat you tend to accumulate more (pollutants) at a higher concentration for a longer period of time before your body clears it,” he said.
Brock Cassellman, a sophomore in chemistry, said obesity is becoming a more commonly accepted lifestyle among Americans, which is creating problems.
“Obesity messes your life up,” he said. “You can’t do what you need to do. It is very limiting.”
Carrell said obesity does have an effect on fertility, but he doubts it is the sole cause.
“I’m skeptical that the obesity alone is cause for infertility in men,” he said.
Hammoud said only 15 percent of obese men will have reduced sperm counts.
Hammoud, Mark Gibson, professor of obstetrics and gynecology; C. Matthew Peterson, professor and chair of the department of obstetrics and gynecology; and Wayne Meikle, professor of endocrinology and metabolism all contributed to the study, along with other researchers.