Energy balance
Combined reduced-calorie diet and aerobic exercise interventions significantly improve pregnancy rates in overweight and obese women seeking fertility treatment compared to standard care or no intervention.
If you are overweight or obese and trying to conceive, combining a reduced-calorie diet with aerobic exercise is the most effective non-surgical way to increase your chances of pregnancy. Focus on reducing fat and refined carbohydrates while increasing physical activity. Note that while this improves pregnancy rates, it does not necessarily reduce the risk of miscarriage.
In women, reduced calorie diets and exercise interventions were more likely than control interventions to result in pregnancy [risk ratio 1.59, 95% CI (1.01, 2.50)]...
Why this rating
Based on a meta-analysis of 14 RCTs, though heterogeneity was noted and blinding was impossible.
Source
How effective are weight-loss interventions for improving fertility in women and men who are overweight or obese? A systematic review and meta-analysis of the evidence
Damian Best et al. · Human Reproduction Update · 2017
DOI 10.1093/humupd/dmx027
More from this paper
- Weight loss interventions do not reduce miscarriage rates in overweight and obese women, despite improving pregnancy rates.Good
- Weight loss interventions in overweight and obese men do not show consistent or significant improvements in fertility outcomes due to a lack of high-quality randomized studies.Limited
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