Dietary Antioxidant Intake in Relation to Semen Quality Parameters in Infertile Men: a Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Conflict of Interest The authors declare that they have no competing interests. plays an essential role in reducing sperm quality [5]. Under physiological conditions, a small amount of ROS is produced by the spermatozoa for the capacitation and fertilization process. However, when the concentration of ROS in the body increases, spermatogenesis process may become disorderly. Also, lipid peroxidation and oxidative stress can damage sperm DNA [6]. Through its intrinsic scavenging activities, the body can eliminate ROS and other lipid peroxidation-derived metabolites. However, excessive amounts of this metabolites in semen can overwhelm the antioxidant defense mechanisms [5]. Evidence coming from previous studies has shown that there was a link between dietary pattern and the body's antioxidant defence system [7]. Some micronutrients such as vitamin C, zinc, folic acid, carnitine, and carotenoids play an antioxidant role in the body and can reduce the level of ROS and its harmful effects on semen parameters. Some previous studies have reported that men with a high dietary intake of antioxidants have a lower frequency of sperm aneuploidy and improve sperm quality [8-10]. However, the results of the studies are still contradictory. Theiaim of this study was to describe the relationship between the dietary intake of antioxidant nutrients and semen quality in infertile men. MATERIALS AND METHODS Study population The present study is a cross-sectional study on infertile men with oligospermia that was conducted at Isfahan Infertility and Fertility Center, Isfahan, Iran. Study participants were recruited at admission to the center for treatment of infertility between October 2017 and January 2018. One hundred seventy-five oligoasthenospermia men were enlisted who sought infertility remedy at the Isfahan Infertility Center were selected for this study. The Ethical Committee of Esfahan University of Medical Sciences approved the study with the code of IR.MUI.RESEARCH.REC.1397.1.265 and informed consent were obtained from all participants. Patients were asked to complete questionnaires about the demographic information, medical history and fertility history, drugs, physical activity, and smoking. The inclusion criteria were: willing to contribute, age ranges from 20 to 45 years, low sperm count (< 20 million), and motility lower than 60%, damaged morphology higher than 65% and not receiving other treatments. We excluded patients whose causes of infertility were hormonal disorders, epididymal duct obstruction, testicular atrophy, testes scrotum, azoospermia, urinary tract infection, testicular surgery, testicular tumor, anatomical abnormalities of the genital area. Also, we excluded patients with diabetes, inflammatory disease, chronic kidney, and renal disease and if they were taking hormone therapy or antioxidant supplements such as vitamin C, omega-3, resveratrol, and vitamin E. A semen sample that was produced on-site by masturbation was taken from all of the participants. Evaluation of anthropometric indices, dietary intake Weight (Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis, Omron BF511; Omron Healthcare, Osaka, Japan) was measured while the participants wore light clothing and no shoes with 0.1-kg accuracy. Also, height was measured with a strip meter for with 0.5-cm accuracy. The BMI was calculated by dividing the body weight (kg) by the height (m 2). A validated detailed food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) [11] was used to evaluate the participant's dietary intakes. This questionnaire contains a comprehensive list of food items (106 items) that are consumed by Iranian adults. The main groups in this questionnaire include dairy products (9 https://doi.