Low-fat Dairy Raises Risk of Infertility

By: Sylvia Hubbard

Eating low-fat dairy products might well increase women's chances of infertility, according to a new U.S. study. Researchers discovered that if women consumed two or more servings of low-fat dairy products every day, their chances of infertility caused by lack of ovulation were 85 percent higher than other women.

While medical science has known for some time that an extreme of body weight, whether low or high, has an effect on fertility, the researchers said they do not know how low-fat dairy fits into the equation. They emphasized that age is a more significant factor in infertility than diet.

The significance of the new study is its size - researchers studied over 18,000 women aged 24 to 42 from 1991 to 1999. At the beginning of the study, none of the women had a history of infertility. However, 438 of the women developed anovulatory infertility, and the development was strongly correlated with low-fat dairy. On the other hand, those who consumed at least one serving a day of high-fat dairy had a 27 percent lower chance of infertility due to lack of ovulation.

As a result of their study, the researchers recommend that women trying to conceive eat only full-fat dairy foods, and switch back to low-fat once they are pregnant.