Diabetes And Fertility: How Diabetes Can Affect Your Fertility
Diabetes and Fertility: How Diabetes Can Affect Your Fertility Home Uncategorized Diabetes and Fertility: How Diabetes Can Affect Your Fertility Diabetes and Fertility: How Diabetes Can Affect Your Fertility Youve have been trying with no luck to get pregnant and have not been able to a find a reason for your infertility. You may have tried a fertility cleanse , begun eating a fertility diet, and are taking all the right supplements and herbs, but are still having trouble conceiving. It may be time to have a simple blood test to determine if your glucose levels are too high. With the rates of Type II diabetes rising every year in the U.S., more and more infertility specialists are looking toward this health issue as a main cause of some otherwise unexplained infertility cases they see. According to the American Diabetes Association, there are more than 200,000 new cases of Type II diabetes diagnosed every year, with another 2.4% of the general childbearing population suffering from the disease but not knowing it. When it comes to diabetes and infertility the answer is clear: there is a connection, unless you factor in the metabolic syndrome and polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS).. No, in many cases (especially among women), diabetes alone does not necessarily keep them from getting pregnant, but it oftentimes keeps them from staying pregnant especially if their glucose control is poor and theyve had the disease for a long time. In many cases, say fertility doctors, a woman with higher than normal glucose levels can get pregnant month after month. Unfortunately her diabetes status prevents that embryo from implanting in the uterus, causing a miscarriage before she ever realizes she is pregnant. In this case, the diabetes isnt preventing conception, but is preventing an Continue reading >>
The Effects Of Diabetes On Male Fertility And Epigenetic Regulation During Spermatogenesis
Go to: GLUCOSE METABOLISM IN SPERM Sperm cell is the most differentiated mammalian cell. The main goal of sperm consists of transferring male haploid DNA to female DNA through a series of mechanisms that imply their displacement along the female genital tract and fertilizing ability.11 Energy in sperm cells is mainly used to maintain the motility to complete capacitation and subsequent acrosome reaction.12,13,14 Sperm cells need energy to acquire and maintain motion competence after epididymal maturation because they are actually immotile in testis.14 Much adenosine triphosphate (ATP) in sperms is consumed for maintaining the motility. Except some metabolites, such as lactate and citrate, sperm mainly utilize sugars as an energy fuel including glucose, mannose, and fructose. The two main metabolic pathways involved in energy generation are anaerobic glycolysis and oxidative phosphorylation.15 Inhibitors of either oxidative metabolism or glycolysis in many species show that either pathway alone can maintain mobility independently.16 Sperm metabolism can proceed through glycolysis, mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation or the pentose phosphate pathway. The predominant pathway used depends on species, oxygen content and/or hexose availability. In fact, sperm have a mitochondrial sheath in the midpiece, where the oxidative processes may take place.15 Therefore, the most important glycolytic enzymes are mainly located in the principal piece of the tail which is connected to the fibrous sheath.15,17,18,19,20,21 Glucides are polar molecules that are rich in -OH groups and can passively cross the lipidic bilayer in a very slow and inefficient manner. Therefore, carriers are required when cells uptake glucides.15 An important role of supplying cells with energy is realized by Continue reading >>
Diabetes Mellitus: The Infertility Triple Threat
Diabetes Mellitus: The Infertility Triple Threat Colors as possibility. Feathers in a kite shop, Beijing, China Based on the feedback received from doctors reading the blog, we are introducing a new feature: Case of the Month. This Case of the Month is an actual patient from The Turek Clinic . It is presented to recognize American Diabetes Association Alert Day . He is a 31-year old who has been trying to conceive with his 28-year old wife for 2 years. During this time, he has noticed a lower sex drive and has had trouble ejaculating . His medical history is negative except for a 6-year history of diabetes mellitus that is well controlled with insulin injections. Exacerbated, he states I really dont know whats happening to me! Upon further questioning, the sex drive issue started even before they were trying to conceive. Regarding ejaculation, the patient states that his erections are not very strong and, although he has the sensation of climax, nothing comes out of the penis with ejaculation. In fact, he is concerned that things might be backing up in his body with these symptoms. First identified as a disease of sweet urine in ancient times, diabetes mellitus a metabolic disease characterized by high blood sugar ( glucose ) levels. It is one of the most common medical diseases in the U.S., affecting 26 million adults and children or about 8% of the population . Among those affected, about 15 million are people of reproductive age. Normally, blood glucose levels are tightly controlled by insulin , a hormone produced by the pancreas. When the blood glucose rises, say after eating food, insulin is released to decrease the glucose level. In patients with diabetes, there is low or no production of insulin and therefore blood sugar levels are elevated. The sugars spill int Continue reading >>
Diabetes And The Female Reproductive System.
Endocrinol Metab Clin North Am. 2013 Dec;42(4):915-46. doi: 10.1016/j.ecl.2013.07.007. Epub 2013 Sep 26. Diabetes and the female reproductive system. Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Beth Israel Medical Center, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, 317 East 17th Street, 7th Floor, New York, NY 10003, USA. The insulin/insulin-like growth factor (IGF) pathways and glucose metabolism act as mediators of human ovarian function and female fertility. In normal insulin action, insulin binds to its own receptors in the ovary to mediate steroidogenesis and act as a co-gonadotropin. Insulin with other factors may influence ovarian growth and cyst formation. The IGF pathway also seems to influence normal ovarian function. Insulin signaling affects reproductive function. Dysregulation of this pathway leads to altered puberty, ovulation, and fertility. Better understanding of the normal physiology and pathophysiology of insulin, IGF, and glucose effects on the human reproductive system will allow for better outcomes. Diabetes in pregnancy; Insulin and the ovary; PCOS Continue reading >>
The Effects Of Diabetes On Your Body
When you hear the word “diabetes,” your first thought is likely about high blood sugar. Blood sugar is an often-underestimated component of your health. When it’s out of whack over a long period of time, it could develop into diabetes. Diabetes affects your body’s ability to produce or use insulin, a hormone that allows your body to turn glucose (sugar) into energy. Here’s what symptoms may occur to your body when diabetes takes effect. Diabetes can be effectively managed when caught early. However, when left untreated, it can lead to potential complications that include heart disease, stroke, kidney damage, and nerve damage. Normally after you eat or drink, your body will break down sugars from your food and use them for energy in your cells. To accomplish this, your pancreas needs to produce a hormone called insulin. Insulin is what facilitates the process of pulling sugar from the blood and putting it in the cells for use, or energy. If you have diabetes, your pancreas either produces too little insulin or none at all. The insulin can’t be used effectively. This allows blood glucose levels to rise while the rest of your cells are deprived of much-needed energy. This can lead to a wide variety of problems affecting nearly every major body system. The effects of diabetes on your body also depends on the type you have. There are two main types of diabetes: type 1 and type 2. Type 1, also called juvenile diabetes or insulin-dependent diabetes, is an immune system disorder. Your own immune system attacks the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas, destroying your body’s ability to make insulin. With type 1 diabetes, you must take insulin to live. Most people are diagnosed as a child or young adult. Type 2 is related to insulin resistance. It used to occur i Continue reading >>
High Sugar In Men And Sperm Count
Written by Jodi Thornton O'Connell; Updated August 07, 2018 Men with diabetes can develop problems that interfere with fertility. 4 Healthy Vegetables for High Blood Sugar Eating a diet high in sugar might taste yummy to those with a sweet tooth, but its poor nutrition can have a devastating effect on your health. The substance can also cause genetic damage to your sperm and lower your sperm count, making it more difficult to conceive a child. Drinking as little as one sugar-sweetened drink per day can cause up to a 20 percent decrease in sperm count, according to a recent Harvard study. The sugar as well as trans fats interferes with chemical signaling in the sperm and reproductive organs. In countries where people consume a standard Western diet high in sugar and fat, the average male sperm count has decreased by more than 50 percent since 1973. The average male tested had sperm counts that were at the minimum for being able to fertilize an egg. Energy drinks can be high in sugar, with some brands doling out as much as 58 grams nearly a quarter cup. While sugar can contribute to lowered sperm counts, caffeine can actually damage the DNA in the sperm, making it nonviable to fertilize an egg. Add in herbs like ginkgo biloba, ginseng and guarana all of which can give you heart palpitations, headaches and fatigue when combined with caffeine and sugar and you're left not feeling like even trying to conceive. Sugar is just one aspect of the standard Western diet that contributes to a lower sperm count. Western diets tend to contain significant amounts of red and processed meats, saturated animal fats, refined grains and processed convenience foods. The average Westerner consumes an average of 66 pounds of sugar each year. A review of studies comparing this dietary pattern Continue reading >>
Diabetes And Erectile Dysfunction
Men with diabetes are at a higher risk of erectile dysfunction, or impotence, especially if their diabetes is not well controlled. There are many effective treatments available. Discuss the problem with your doctor as soon as you notice a change. On this page: Men with diabetes are at a higher risk of erectile dysfunction or impotence, especially if their diabetes is not well controlled. Erectile dysfunction means you cannot have an erection that is sufficient to perform sexual intercourse. Many men experience short-term episodes of erectile dysfunction but, for about one in 10 men, the problem may continue. See your doctor if you notice any failure to achieve an erection. Causes of erectile dysfunction Erectile dysfunction can be caused by physical and psychological factors including: stress, anxiety and nervousness problems in relationships poor health drinking too much alcohol cigarette smoking some medications some operations low levels of the male hormone testosterone. Physical erectile dysfunction happens over a period of months or years and is often a gradual loss of function. If erections still occur spontaneously overnight or in the morning, this indicates that the problem may be psychological. The link between diabetes and erectile dysfunction The reasons why men with diabetes are more prone to problems with erectile dysfunction are not fully understood. However, we do know that men with diabetes are more likely to develop erectile problems when their diabetes is not well controlled. Over the long term, poor control may result in increased damage to the nerves and circulation that controls blood flow to the penis. If blood glucose levels are kept in the normal range, it will help reduce the chance of these problems occurring. Diagnosis of erectile dysfunction Continue reading >>
Diabetes And Sexual And Reproductive Health | Andrology Australia
Erectile dysfunction (ED) is when a man is unable to get and/or keep an erection that allows sexual activity with penetration. It is not a disease, but a symptom of some other problem, either physical or psychological or a mixture of both. How common is erectile dysfunction in men with diabetes? Up to four in every five men with diabetes may eventually experience ED, and they are twice as likely to have erectile problems as men without diabetes. Age increases the chance of getting both ED and diabetes. ED is more common in men with high blood pressure and high cholesterol (common conditions in people with diabetes), and in those who are smokers. reducing blood flow to the penis or by affecting the function of blood vessels in the penis, making it more difficult for a man to get and/or keep an erection lowering the levels of testosterone (the male sex hormone). Can ED be prevented in men with diabetes? Erectile problems are more likely to happen when blood glucose levels are poorly controlled. Keeping blood glucose and blood lipids (cholesterol and triglycerides) normal is important to prevent nerve and blood vessel damage to the penis. Not smoking and drinking less alcohol may also help prevent erectile problems. It is important to first manage the diabetes and any other linked conditions, such as high blood pressure. Once diabetes is properly controlled, the first treatment for erectile problems is usually an oral medicine (PDE5 inhibitors) such as Viagra, Cialis or Levitra. The tablets work in about half of men with diabetes. If oral medicines do not work well, other treatments can be used, including vacuum devices, penis injections and surgery. Low libido is the term used to describe a lack of interest in sexual activity. Sexual desire, or libido is produced by a co Continue reading >>
Women, Sex, And Diabetes
Diabetes can cause physical and emotional issues that can affect your sex life. For women, the problem can be less obvious than it is for men. If you don't feel quite like yourself in the bedroom, there are things you can do to be more comfortable and at ease. Dryness. Vaginal dryness is the most common sexual issue for women who have diabetes. High blood sugar levels can harden the blood vessels in the vaginal wall. That can affect lubrication and make sex uncomfortable. Prescription or over-the-counter vaginal lubricants can help. Less feeling. High blood sugar also can affect the tiny blood vessels that bring blood to your nerves. If those nerves don't work the way they should, you can lose some feeling in your vagina. That can make you less likely to get aroused or to have an orgasm. Vaginal infections. If your blood sugar isn't managed, you're also more likely to get a yeast or urinary tract infection. The itching, burning, and irritation they cause can make sex uncomfortable. See your doctor at the first sign of one of these infections. Depression. The challenges of managing diabetes can make you feel anxious or depressed. That can affect your desire for sex. Type 2 diabetes also can cause you to gain weight. That can affect your self-esteem. Therapy, medication, or a combination of both can help. If diabetes is affecting your sexual satisfaction, try these things to help: Keep your blood sugar under control. This can go a long way toward fixing many sexual problems. Vaginal dryness, yeast infections, and a decreased sex drive can all get better when your blood sugar levels are well managed. That can even help reverse some nerve damage. Talk to your doctor. Don't be shy. Your doctor can help narrow down the possible causes of your issues and suggest treatments. So Continue reading >>
How Does Diabetes Affect Your Sex Life?
Having diabetes affects much more than a person's diet - it can impact every aspect of their life, including their sexual health. Similarly, it is not just the physical side effects of diabetes that cause problems. Diabetes can have an impact on a person's mental health, their sex drive, and their self-esteem. How does diabetes impact the sexual organs? Diabetes can affect the sexual health of both men and women in the following ways: Impact on women Damage caused by diabetes to the nerves can affect a woman's ability to sense sexual stimulation and arousal. This can affect the release of vaginal lubricant, which may result in painful sex and reduced ability to experience an orgasm. When a woman who has diabetes goes through the menopause, she may experience sudden drops in her blood sugar levels. This may affect a woman's sexual health because she may have to check her blood sugar before having sex. She might also experience symptoms of low blood sugar during sex. This may make sex seem more of an inconvenience than a pleasure. Women with diabetes are also more likely to experience infections, such as thrush, cystitis, and urinary tract infections. These can all impact the ability to have sexual intercourse. Impact on men Men with diabetes often have reduced testosterone levels, which can affect their sex drive. However, the main sexual health problem affecting men who have diabetes is an inability to achieve and, or, maintain an erection. According to the Joslin Diabetes Center, an estimated 50 percent of men who have had diabetes for 10 years experience erectile dysfunction (ED). In order for a man to achieve an erection, significant blood flow to the penis is required. However, diabetes damages the blood vessels, which can affect blood flow to the penis. Diabetes ca Continue reading >>
Diabetes And Your Period: 5 Things Women Need To Know
A typical menstrual cycle lasts about 28 days with a normal range of 21 to 35 days. Itis best measured by the number of days between your periods.During this approximately month-long cycle, hormonal fluctuations trigger ovulation and then menstruation . These hormonal fluctuations can affect other body systems and functions as well as your reproductive system.Women living with diabetes may experience some unique menstrual challenges as a result of these complex hormonal interactions. 1. Your Blood Sugar Level May Be More Difficult to Control at Certain Times of the Month Are you frustrated with chasing your glycemic control in the week before your period?Are you wondering why your blood sugars are off when you aren't doing anything differently than you did last week? This difficult glycemic control is a real thingyou are not imagining it. The reason why your blood sugar may be more difficult to control the closer you get to your period has to do with the hormonal changes of your menstrual cycle. Roughly halfway through your menstrual cycle ovulation occurs. At that point in your cycle, your progesterone levels increase. Studies have shown that progesterone is associated with increased insulin resistance . That means that during the second half of your cycle after ovulation (the luteal phase) when your progesterone levels are naturally higher you will have some relative insulin resistance. This physiologic response is known as luteal phase insulin resistance. Luteal phase insulin resistance will often naturally result in more hyperglycemic episodes even if you are not changing your exercise and diet in any way. But there is an even bigger luteal phase challenge for women living with diabetes. The same increase in progesterone that causes you to be temporarilymore resist Continue reading >>
Diabetes May Affect Men's Fertility
May 2, 2007 -- Men with type 1 diabetes may have more DNA damage in their sperm, possibly hampering fertility, a preliminary study shows. The study was small and doesn't prove that type 1 diabetes causes male infertility. But the findings deserve further research, write the researchers, who are based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. They included Ishola Agbaje, MD, of the Reproductive Medicine Research Group at Queen's University of Belfast. Agbaje and colleagues studied semen and blood samples from 27 men with type 1 diabetes. Those men weren't necessarily infertile; they were invited to participate in the study while getting routine diabetes checkups. For comparison, the researchers also studied semen and blood samples from 29 men without diabetes who were undergoing infertility tests. Both groups of men were in their early to mid-30s, on average. The men with diabetes had lower semen volume than the men without diabetes. But the diabetes patients' semen volume was still within the normal range set by the World Health Organization (WHO). Sperm count, shape, and motion (motility) were similar in both groups of men. But when the researchers analyzed the sperms' DNA, they found more DNA damage in the diabetes patients' sperm. Sperm damage may increase infertility, note the researchers. Many factors can cause DNA damage. It's not clear whether diabetes was responsible for the DNA damage seen in the study. The study didn't include any men without diabetes who weren't undergoing infertility tests. Such men might have even less DNA damage in their sperm than the study groups, the researchers note. Agbaje's team calls for further studies on DNA sperm damage -- and its possible fertility consequences -- in men with type 1 diabetes. The study appears online in the journal Human Re Continue reading >>
Female Reproduction And Type 1 Diabetes: From Mechanisms To Clinical Findings
The functional reproductive alterations seen in women with type 1 diabetes (T1D) have changed as therapy has improved. Historically, patients with T1D and insufficient metabolic control exhibited a high prevalence of amenorrhea, hypogonadism and infertility. This paper reviews the impact of diabetes on the reproductive axis of female T1D patients treated with modern insulin therapy, with special attention to the mechanisms by which diabetes disrupts hypothalamic–pituitary–ovarian function, as documented mainly by animal model studies. A comprehensive MEDLINE search of articles published from 1966 to 2012 was performed. Animal model studies on experimental diabetes and human studies on T1D were examined and cross-referenced with terms that referred to different aspects of the gonadotropic axis, gonadotrophins and gonadal steroids. Recent studies have shown that women with T1D still display delayed puberty and menarche, menstrual irregularities (especially oligomenorrhoea), mild hyperandrogenism, polycystic ovarian syndrome, fewer live born children and possibly earlier menopause. Animal models have helped us to decipher the underlying basis of these conditions and have highlighted the variable contributions of defective leptin, insulin and kisspeptin signalling to the mechanisms of perturbed reproduction in T1D. Despite improvements in insulin therapy, T1D patients still suffer many reproductive problems that warrant specific diagnoses and therapeutic management. Similar to other states of metabolic stress, T1D represents a challenge to the correct functioning of the reproductive axis. Disorders resulting in ovulatory disturbances are a relatively common cause of infertility. They occur most frequently in the context of WHO group 2 anovulation as reflected, for examp Continue reading >>
Effects Of Diabetes On Sexual And Reproductive Health
Diabetes is a condition in which there is excessive production of glucose in the blood. If undetected or not controlled, diabetes can cause complications both in the short term (including increased risk of infections) and long term. If undetected or poorly controlled, diabetes can cause blindness, kidney failure, and nerve damage,reduced blood circulation that may lead to lower limb amputation, and can increase the chance of cardiovascular disease (heart attack and stroke). Men with diabetes also have a higher chance of developing sexual and reproductive health problems including: Erectile dysfunction Androgen (or testosterone) deficiency Low libido (sexual desire) Type 2 diabetes is more prevalent in women than in men, while both genders are affected equally by type 1 diabetes. Women with uncontrolled diabetes often face problems like Decreased libido Decreased vaginal lubrication Problems reaching orgasm and painful sexual intercourse Urinary Problems Infections It is hence important that Diabetes can directly affect the functioning of reproductive and sexual health in affected individuals. Healthcare professionals need to have an understanding of how diabetes affects women's reproductive health to provide appropriate advice, thereby empowering women, their partners and families to make appropriate decisions. It is highly recommended to seek advice from your physician regarding optimal blood sugar management in addition to sexual counseling and reproductive counseling for a healthy life. Continue reading >>
Do Insulin Replacement And Omega3 Protect The Male Reproductive Function Of The Streptozotocin-induced Diabetic Mice?
Do Insulin Replacement and Omega3 Protect the Male Reproductive Function of the Streptozotocin-Induced Diabetic Mice? 1Department of Anatomy, Afzalipour School of Medicine, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran 2Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences, Yazd, Iran 3Physiology Research Center, Institute of Neuropharmacology, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran 4Afzal Research Institute (NGO), Kerman, Iran Correspondence should be addressed to Seyed Noureddin Nematollahi-Mahani ; ri.ca.umk@ihallotamenn Received 18 March 2017; Accepted 4 June 2017; Published 10 July 2017 Copyright 2017 Atefe Yaghoubi et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License , which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Diabetes mellitus (DM), the most common metabolic disease, might affect different organs such as male reproductive system. Experiments have shown that n-3 fatty acids could improve male reproductive function. Present study was performed to examine the effects of omega3 on sperms and testicular parameters in diabetic mice. Adult NMRI male mice were randomly divided into intact and diabetic groups ( ). Streptozotocin-induced diabetic animals were divided into 4 groups of diabetic-saline (Dia-Sa), diabetic-insulin (Dia-Ins), diabetic-omega3 (Dia-omg3), and diabetic-insulin-omega3 (Dia-Ins-omg3). Following confirmation of diabetes, different treatments including 3 U/100 g insulin subcutaneously and 400 mg/kg omega3 orally were administered, where applicable according to the treatment groups. Thirty-five days later, the sperm number, motility, progression, and normal morphology were Continue reading >>
