Just two handfuls of nuts a day can improve sperm quality, according to a new Australian study.
Putting a few handfuls of nuts in your mouth every morning could be the key to improving your swimmers, according to a new study from Monash University.
A new systematic review Published in Advances in nutrition This month, it struggled to find a large body of high-quality research on the topic, ultimately settling on just two randomized controlled trials to include in its meta-analysis.
Together, the two randomized controlled trials involved 223 healthy men aged 18 to 35 who ate about two servings of nuts per day for about three months.
Participants in one study received 75g of shelled English walnuts per day and participants in the second study received 30g of walnuts, 15g of almonds and 15g of hazelnuts.
All men followed a Western-style diet. In both studies, the control group continued to eat a regular nut-free diet.
After three months, the walnut cohort in both studies showed improvement in the motility, morphology and vitality of their sperm, although there was no difference in sperm concentration.
The working hypothesis was that because walnuts are highly concentrated in alpha-linolenic acids and monounsaturated fatty acids, they were able to positively regulate fatty acid concentrations in the sperm membrane, thereby enhancing the anti- inflammatory and increasing antioxidant capacity.
“A higher concentration of antioxidants in follicular fluid correlates with the production of high-quality oocytes, which ultimately contributes to successful embryo development,” the researchers wrote.
“During spermatogenesis, developing sperm are very sensitive to oxidative stress in the seminal fluid, so the higher concentration of antioxidants reduces sperm DNA fragmentation.”
Future studies could interrogate different combinations of nuts, the researchers said.
For example, nuts – for example almonds, Brazil nuts, cashews, hazelnuts and walnuts – have an “optimal fatty acid profile”.
Although the results of the meta-analysis were promising, two other observational studies – included in the review but not in the meta-analysis – found no significant association between nut consumption and fertility.
This could be because the observationally studied populations had low nut intake, the researchers wrote.
“The statistical analysis of both studies was adjusted to account for other factors such as physical activity,” said lead author Dr. Barbara Cardoso.
“The results show that this simple strategy has positive effects independent of other lifestyles. »
Dr Cardoso, a researcher at Monash University’s Department of Nutrition, Dietetics and Food, said the next logical step in research was to study the effects of nuts on female fertility.
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