Korean J Fertil Steril.  2003 Dec;30(4):341-350.

Dietary Behavior of Infertile Women In Korea

• Oh JS
• Jung HJ
• Kwon HC
• Park WI
• Koong MK
• Kim WY

Abstract

OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this study was to identify dietary factors related to infertility in Korean women through a case-control study.
METHODS
The case group was composed of 236 women who had been diagnosed as infertility in hospital. The control group of 181 healthy women with children were recruited from local immunization centers. Socio-economic status, medical history, dietary intakes using food frequency questionnaire and stress were surveyed by interview. Anthropometric measurements were made and the causes of infertility were identified through medical records. Fasting blood samples were taken from subgroup of the subjects.
RESULTS
The mean age of infertile and control groups was 31.1 and 32.4 years, respectively and the difference was statistically significant. The mean Body Mass Index of infertile women was not significantly different from control women, however, Waist/ Hip Ratio and Triceps Skinfolds Thickness were significantly lower in infertile women than in control women. The dietary intake status was generally satisfactory in both groups. The intakes of energy, protein, fat, carbohydrate, retinol, vitamin B2 and niacin were lower in infertile women than in control women. The infertile women also showed lower intakes of animal foods.No differences were found between two groups in serum concentrations of albumin, hemoglobin, Fe, TIBC, total cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, triglyceride, C3, IgA, IL-2, however, infertile women showed higher levels of Zn and IgG. The stress score was higher in infertile women.
CONCLUSIONS
From the results of this study, dietary factors and nutritional status do not seem to be directly related to infertility. However, the intertile women have lower nutrient intake and lower body fat content than control women. Further researches are needed according to the causes of infertility for long term to establish the relationship between dietary factors and infertility.

Keyword

Infertility; nutrition; dietary behavior; anthropometric values

MeSH Terms

Adipose Tissue
Animals
Body Mass Index
Case-Control Studies
Child
Cholesterol
Fasting
Female
Hip
Humans
Immunization
Immunoglobulin A
Immunoglobulin G
Infertility
Interleukin-2
Korea*
Medical Records
Niacin
Nutritional Status
Riboflavin
Triglycerides
Vitamin A
Surveys and Questionnaires
Cholesterol
Immunoglobulin A
Immunoglobulin G
Interleukin-2
Niacin
Riboflavin
Vitamin A