Overweight Male Children at Risk of Infertility: Study Reveals Impact of Obesity on Testicular Size

A new study suggests that overweight male children tend to have smaller testicle sizes, which puts them at risk of infertility in adulthood.

Infertility affects both the mental health and the economic and social life of people of childbearing age. Infertility affected 48 million couples in 2010. Although male infertility is often overlooked by experts, researchers believe it is a contributing factor to couple infertility in about half of all cases. However, in most cases, the cause of male infertility remains unclear.

According to a German study published in the European Journal of Endocrinology, which assessed infertility in more than 20,000 male patients referred to a fertility center, about 70% of them were not diagnosed.

A large proportion of childless male patients have no explanation for their infertility. Research also indicates a trend towards decreasing sperm concentration and total sperm count over the past 40 years.

In parallel with the declining sperm count, the worldwide prevalence of childhood obesity has increased from 32 to 42 million. Experts estimate that about 60% of children today will become obese by the age of 35, as various environmental conditions (including exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals) and personal habits (such as a sedentary lifestyle or eating disorders) have changed dramatically over the past few decades. .

The new study found that apart from the chances of developing health conditions such as heart attack, stroke and diabetes, obesity in boys can also increase the risk of infertility in adulthood. The researchers revealed that weight gain during adolescence reduces testicular size, which is expected to eventually impair sperm production in adulthood.

Italian surveys also revealed testicular enlargement in nearly a quarter of young men aged between 18 and 19 years whose future fertility is at risk.

The researchers conducted the study on children and adolescents between the ages of 2 and 18, who were referred to the pediatric endocrinology unit at the University of Catania, in Sicily, to control body weight.

The researchers collected data on testicular size, age, body mass index and insulin resistance in 268 children and adolescents. They found that boys of normal weight had a testicle volume 1.5 times higher than those who were overweight or obese at puberty.

Children and teens in the study who had normal insulin levels had testicular volume 1.5 to 2 times higher than those with hyperinsulinemia, a condition often associated with type 2 diabetes where patients have higher levels of insulin in their blood. Thus, those who were overweight or obese, hyperinsulinemia or insulin resistance showed lower testicular volume than their healthy peers.

Since low testicular volume predicts poor sperm production in adulthood, the researchers here believe losing weight could help patients avoid infertility later in life.

“Although the prevalence of childhood obesity is increasing worldwide, the impact of obesity and associated metabolic disorders on testicular development is not well known,” said Rossella Canarella, one of the paper’s authors.

She continued, “In this study, we found that being overweight or obese was associated with a decrease in testicular volume at puberty. In addition, comorbidities associated with obesity, such as hyperinsulinemia and insulin resistance, were found to affect testicular volume before and after puberty. Therefore, we expect that More careful control of body weight in infancy could represent a preventative strategy for preserving testicular function later in life.”