Antioxidants Help Prevent High-Fat Diet-Induced Reproductive Issues, Study reveals

In a systematic review published in the journal Frontiers in Nutrition, researchers conducted a comprehensive assessment of the role of antioxidants in mitigating female reproductive complications induced by high-fat diets.

These diets, abundant in saturated and trans fats, are known to generate reactive oxygen species (ROS) that induce oxidative stress. This oxidative stress disrupts the female reproductive system by causing irregular ovulation, premature ovarian failure, impairing blood flow to reproductive organs, and disrupting the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis. Consequently, hormonal imbalances, insulin resistance, and inflammation can affect oocyte quality and compromise pregnancy maintenance.

Biological matrices containing antioxidants such as carbocyclic sugars, phytonutrients, organosulfur compounds, hormones, neuropeptides, organic acids, and vitamins have been identified as potential countermeasures against ROS-induced damage.

The systematic review involved an analysis of data from 121 studies to evaluate the effectiveness of these biological matrices in preventing ovarian complications resulting from high-fat diet-induced oxidative stress.

The analysis highlighted that components like carbocyclic sugars, phytonutrients, organosulfur compounds, and vitamins play crucial roles in enhancing ovarian follicle resilience, improving oocyte quality, and extending reproductive lifespan. Moreover, in vivo studies using mammalian preclinical models demonstrated the efficacy of antioxidants derived from biological matrices in alleviating conditions induced by high-fat diets.

Specifically, high-fat diets impair ovarian follicle development, survival, and hormone production, thereby affecting oocyte quality and embryo development negatively. However, in rodent models, dietary interventions incorporating phytonutrients from barley and dates have shown promise. These interventions preserved ovarian follicles, stimulated their development and proliferation, restored ovarian tissue integrity, and elevated endogenous antioxidant levels.

The research also indicated that antioxidants derived from biological sources effectively reduced the incidence of atretic follicles, mitigated ovarian inflammation, and minimized ovarian cell death. This was observed by changes in ovarian weight, reduction in peri-ovarian fat deposits, and modulation of LH receptor activity, suggesting potential therapeutic benefits for managing reproductive health under conditions of oxidative stress induced by high-fat diets.

Reference: Berardino CD. 2024. High-fat diet-negative impact on female fertility: from mechanisms to protective actions of antioxidant matrices. Frontiers in Nutrition. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnut.2024.1415455/full