Preconceived lifestyle advice for people with infertility
The low quality evidence suggests that preconceived lifestyle advice on a combination of topics may make little or no difference in the number of births. Because we could not find any studies that examined these outcomes or because the quality of the studies was very low, there was insufficient evidence to draw conclusions about the effects of preconceived lifestyle advice on adverse events, miscarriage, or safety. This review does not provide clear guidance for clinical practice in this area. However, it does highlight the need for high-quality RCTs to investigate preconceived lifestyle advice on a combination of topics and to assess the associated efficacy and safety outcomes in infertile men and women.
Boedt T, Vanhove AC, Vercoe MA, Matthys C, Dancet E, Lie FongS. Preconceived lifestyle advice for people with infertility. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2021, No. 4. Art. No.: CD008189. doi: 10.1002 /14651858.CD008189.pub3.
Commentary
This study reviewed seven RCTs involving 2130 participants.
It suggests that advice on lifestyle has little effect on fertility. Lifestyle advice such as body mass index (BMI), vegetable intake, alcohol consumption, and men quitting smoking were evaluated, as was advice for women taking folic acid supplements.
As for the next item, weight advice, the results of the study only confirmed the results for women with infertility and obesity, but it is unclear whether the advice has any impact compared to general fertility treatments. It is also unclear whether the advice would have any effect on gestational diabetes, high blood pressure, or miscarriage, but it could slightly reduce BMI.As for the advice on alcohol consumption and smoking, it was unclear whether each advice had any effect, and these studies were only conducted on women with a history of drinking and smoking.
What is the point of this study? What I am trying to say with this study is that I am not sure if the advice commonly given for infertility is beneficial for pregnancy and its complications. This is what the study showed. The conclusion is that the effect of the advice is unknown.
In other words, "you have to be healthy" to have a child is not an absolute.
