It turns out that obesity leads to lower sperm count and lower libido
Previous research has shown that obesity reduces testosterone in men, lowers sperm count and reduces libido. It is not fully understood why obesity brings about these changes, but research using mice has revealed part of the cause.
Obesity Alters POMC and Kisspeptin Neuron Cross Talk Leading to Reduced Luteinizing Hormone in Male Mice | Journal of Neuroscience
Brain changes linked to obesity result in low sperm count, mouse study finds
Obesity is a serious disease that affects two out of five adults in the U.S. Obesity is known to lead to serious health problems such as cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes, but it can also lead to reduced sperm count and decreased libido due to a decline in testosterone.
Using mice fed a high-fat diet to mimic human obesity, University of California, Riverside's Jurzica Koss and her colleagues found that obesity causes chronic changes in the brain: The brains of obese mice had fewer connections between neurons and fewer receptors that signal the brain that enough energy is available to stop eating.
The affected area was the hypothalamus, which regulates food intake, body temperature, thirst, and reproduction. The hypothalamus contains neurons that regulate the synthesis and secretion of hormones from the pituitary gland, but in obese mice, when neurons no longer function normally, hormone levels from the pituitary gland decrease, leading to lower testosterone and sperm count. Koss emphasized that the same brain mechanisms as in mice also exist in humans.
'We first want to see whether we can reverse these changes by putting the high-fat diet back on a normal diet and helping the mice lose weight,' said Koss. 'We hope to prove that after a period of weight loss, the brain is able to reset the body's food intake.'
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