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Hum. Reprod. Advance Access published online on February 19, 2009
Human Reproduction, doi:10.1093/humrep/dep024
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© The Author 2009. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org

Associations between dietary patterns and semen quality in men undergoing IVF/ICSI treatment

M. Vujkovic1, J.H. de Vries2, G.R. Dohle3, G.J. Bonsel1, J. Lindemans4, N.S. Macklon1,5, P.J. van der Spek6, E.A.P. Steegers1 and R.P.M. Steegers-Theunissen1,7,8,9,10

1 Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Erasmus University Medical Centre, Rotterdam, The Netherlands 2 Department of Human Nutrition, Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands 3 Department of Andrology, Erasmus University Medical Centre, Rotterdam, The Netherlands 4 Department of Clinical Chemistry, Erasmus University Medical Centre, Rotterdam, The Netherlands 5 Department of Reproductive Medicine and Gynecology, University Medical Centre, Utrecht, The Netherlands 6 Department of Bioinformatics, Erasmus University Medical Centre, Rotterdam, The Netherlands 7 Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus University Medical Centre, Rotterdam, The Netherlands 8 Department of Paediatrics, Erasmus University Medical Centre, Rotterdam, The Netherlands 9 Department of Clinical Genetics, Erasmus University Medical Centre, Rotterdam, The Netherlands

10 Correspondence address. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Erasmus University Medical Centre, room Ee22.71a, PO Box 2040, 3000CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands. E-mail: r.steegers{at}erasmusmc.nl

BACKGROUND: This study investigates whether dietary patterns, substantiated by biomarkers, are associated with semen quality.

METHODS: In 161 men of subfertile couples undergoing in vitro fertilization treatment in a tertiary referral clinic in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, we assessed nutrient intakes and performed principal component factor analysis to identify dietary patterns. Total homocysteine (tHcy), folate, vitamin B12 and B6 were measured in blood and seminal plasma. Semen quality was assessed by sperm volume, concentration, motility, morphology and DNA fragmentation index (DFI). Linear regression models analyzed associations between dietary patterns, biomarkers and sperm parameters, adjusted for age, body mass index (BMI), smoking, vitamins and varicocele.

RESULTS: The ‘Health Conscious’ dietary pattern shows high intakes of fruits, vegetables, fish and whole grains. The ‘Traditional Dutch’ dietary pattern is characterized by high intakes of meat, potatoes and whole grains and low intakes of beverages and sweets. The ‘Health Conscious’ diet was inversely correlated with tHcy in blood (β = –0.07, P = 0.02) and seminal plasma (β = –1.34, P = 0.02) and positively with vitamin B6 in blood (β = 0.217, P = 0.01). An inverse association was demonstrated between the ‘Health Conscious’ diet and DFI (β = –2.81, P = 0.05). The ‘Traditional Dutch’ diet was positively correlated with red blood cell folate (β = 0.06, P = 0.04) and sperm concentration (β = 13.25, P = 0.01).

CONCLUSIONS: The ‘Health Conscious’ and ‘Traditional Dutch’ dietary pattern seem to be associated with semen quality in men of subfertile couples.

Key words: nutrition/assisted reproduction/environmental effects/infertility/sperm quality

Submitted on November 12, 2008; resubmitted on January 5, 2009; accepted on January 19, 2009.


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