Lycopene which is in red foods like tomatoes, watermelon, peppers, strawberries – this is a well-known fertility supplement but also like a nutrient that naturally supports fertility in men. So, foods rich in lycopene is something that you should aim for and it also has been shown to protect from prostate cancer in men as well. On the other hand zinc that it’s found in meat, eggs, oysters and some seeds and nuts as well can also have play a huge role in the male fertility and improve sperm quality and vitamin B12 is also improving sperm quality, Vitamin C that you find in fruits and vegetables – all these support sperm quality.
Every product that has been some association of high fat dairy for products and reduced male fertility but nothing written in stone is just there have been some studies linking it and I think it mostly has to do with the saturated fats instead of the high fat dairy per se but in terms of dairy consumption and fertility, if you’re not intolerant, there’s no correlation. Milk has quite a high sugar content and lactose so, if you over consume milk which I don’t think any adult does then, that may play a role. If you eat fermented foods like, if you have yogurt, it actually has prebiotics which improve fertility so, yeah there’s nothing. If you have a lot of cow milk and you are a man that may play a role in terms of estrogen so, you may have more estrogen so I can see the link to that but in general, milk is quite innocent especially in the quantities like you have some milk in your tea or in your coffee and a yogurt here there and some cheese. Everything in moderation basically.
When we look at foods and dietary patterns we generally want to look at the mediterranean dietary approach and this is wholegrains, fruit, vegetables, nuts seeds, oily fish, unsaturated fats because it is this dietary pattern that has been shown to improve global sperm parameters and linked with positive outcomes in terms of pregnancies, in terms of birth. Foods that we want to perhaps a little less of are saturated fats that we find more in our animal products, red meats, processed meats and also sugar. So it is not to say that we can’t have these foods but we want to have a little bit less.
