Lifestyle - Planning on having a baby?
Then stop drinking sugar-sweetened beverages, as an intake of one or more such drinks a day - by either partner - may decrease the chances of conceiving, a study warns.
The findings showed that both the female and male intake of sugar-sweetened beverages was associated with a 20% reduction in fecundability - the average monthly probability of conception.
Women who consumed at least one sugary drink a day had 25% lower fecundability, while male consumption was associated with 33% lower fecundability.
“We found positive associations between the intake of sugar-sweetened beverages and lower fertility, which were consistent after controlling for many other factors, including obesity, caffeine intake, alcohol, smoking, and overall diet quality,” said lead author Elizabeth Hatch, a Professor at the Boston University School of Public Health.
“Couples planning a pregnancy might consider limiting their consumption of these beverages,” Hatch said, in a paper published in the journal Epidemiology.
The intake of energy drinks was related to even larger reductions in fertility, although the results were based on small numbers of consumers.
Little association was found between the intake of fruit juice or diet soft drinks and fertility.
Previous studies have linked the consumption of these beverages to weight gain, Type 2 diabetes, early menstruation and poor semen quality.
For the new study, the team surveyed 3 828 women aged 21 to 45 living in the US or Canada, and 1 045 of their male partners.
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