Potential Adverse Effects of Female and Male Obesity on Fertility: A Narrative Review

Abstract

Context: Despite several studies documenting that obesity affects female and male fertility and leads to multiple adverse reproductive outcomes, the mechanisms involved are not elucidated. We aimed to summarize the potential adverse effects of female and male obesity, as well as the impact of weight loss on their fertility status. Evidence Acquisition: This review summarizes papers investigating the potential adverse effects of female and male obesity and the impact of weight-loss interventions on fertility among reproductive age populations. PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar databases were searched for retrieving studies published up to November 2019 on obesity/overweight among reproductive age populations. Results: The review of 68 studies revealed that female and male obesity/overweight increases the risk of sub-fecundity and infertility. The destructive effects of female obesity on reproduction are attributed to a variety of ovarian and extra-ovarian factors. In women with overweight or obesity, the time taken to conceive is longer, and they have a decreased fertility rate, increased requirement for gonadotropins, and higher miscarriage rate when compared to those with normal weight. Male obesity may lead to subfertility, mainly because of the disruption of the hypothalamus-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis, increased testicular temperature, impairment of the physical and molecular structure of sperm, decreased sperm quality, and erectile dysfunction due to peripheral vascular disease. Most studies recommend lifestyle interventions as first-line therapy in the general population of women and men with obesity and infertility. Conclusions: This study shows the negative effects of female and male overweight and obesity on fertility. Therefore, educational interventions on the adverse effects of obesity and the benefits of weight reduction, such as increasing pregnancy rate, should be considered for couples seeking fertility.