The Associations between Dietary Habits and Semen Parameters in Israeli Population

Introduction:

Semen quality and male fertility have been declining over the past few decades. This phenomenon has been attributed mainly to environmental, nutritional and lifestyle habits. Unlike other risk factors affecting semen quality, diet poses an opportunity for intervention, thus making it important to consider as a clinical/practical tool.

Aim:

To investigate the association between dietary habits and semen parameters in Israeli population.

Patients and Methods:

Men (n=280) attending a fertility center between 2012-2015 were surveyed using a Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ). Semen samples were analyzed. Statistical analysis was conducted to study associations between various nutritional components and semen parameters. Specific nutrients, food groups and adherence to dietary patterns were analyzed using two different methodologies (factor analysis and a-priory defined dietary indexes).

Results:

Regarding specific food groups, men with better lifestyle habits including higher amounts of vegetables, fruits, nuts, legumes, or whole grains demonstrated significantly higher semen parameters. Moreover, analysis of dietary patterns, found that most semen parameters among men in the highest adherence of Alternative Healthy Eating Index (AHEI) scoring were significantly higher in comparison to men in the lowest adherence of the index, where; mean sperm concentration was higher by 45% (45·10⁶ vs. 31·10⁶, P<0.01), mean total sperm count was higher, by 29 (101·10⁶ vs. 78·10⁶, <0.01), mean normal sperm morphology percentage was higher by 21% (8.1 vs. 6.7, P<0.01).

Conclusions

The results of our study indicate that better dietary habits are associated with better overall sperm quality. Following those findings, we recommend using nutritional screening as a public clinical /practical tool.