Put down the bacon butty – bacon is blamed for lowering sperm count

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Couples trying to conceive are always bombarded with varying advice as to how best to achieve it.   However, if you caught the latest research from the American Society for Reproductive Medicine it showed that for men trying for a baby the effect of eating bacon and red meat lowers sperm count.  So put down that bacon butty and the dinner option for men trying to conceive should be certain types of fish – which is now believed to improve fertility.

156 men who were enrolled in in vitro fertilisation due to fertility issues were involved in the study and they, and their partners were questioned about their diet including their consumption of processed meat, red meat, white meat, poultry and fish.

Dr Afeiche, who led the study, stated that

“We found the effect of processed meat intake lowered quality and fish raised quality”.

In fact the results were that men who ate less than half a portion of processed meat a day had 7.2% normal sperm while those eating a half or more had only 5.5%.

Dr Allan Pacey, Chairman of the British Fertility Society stated

“The relationship between diet and men’s fertility is an interesting one and there is certainly now convincing evidence that men who eat more fresh fruit and vegetables have better sperm than men who don’t. However, less is known about the fertility of men with poor diets and whether specific foods can be linked to poor sperm quality.”

So if you are currently trying to conceive you might need to take a harder look at your diet and of course follow Learner Mama’s Top Tips for getting pregnant – which of course includes watching your diet!

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