Research
Hormonal
Adipose tissue serves as a significant extra-gonadal source of estrogen through the conversion of androgens, meaning that body fatness directly influences the quantity and potency of circulating estrogen and thus reproductive ability.
Body fat is not just stored energy; it is an active endocrine organ that produces estrogen. Very low body fat levels can lead to estrogen deficiency, disrupting menstrual cycles and fertility.
GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
The recent findings that conversion of androgens to estrogen takes place in adipose tissue... suggest that adipose tissue may be a significant extra-gonadal source of estrogen. Body weight, hence fatness, also influences the direction of estrogen metabolism to the most potent or least potent forms.
Why this rating
Based on cited biochemical studies.
Source
BODY FAT, PUBERTY AND FERTILITY
Rose E. Frisch · Biological reviews/Biological reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society · 1984
DOI 10.1111/j.1469-185x.1984.tb00406.x
narrative_reviewCited 315×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
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