• Researchers from Denmark studied the fertility and family health of 9,232 adults
  • They found that men born to obese women had a higher risk of being infertile
  • The same did not appear to apply to the daughters of overweight women
  • The team said the causes of the increased risk of male infertility were unclear 
  • However, such could be related to inflammation or foetal hormone exposure 

The sons of women who were overweight prior to giving birth are around 40 per cent more likely to grow up to be infertile, a study has warned.

Researchers from Denmark studied 9,232 adults — of whom around nine per cent were found to suffer from infertility.

The team found an association between mothers who had a body mass index, or ‘BMI’, of 25 or more in pregnancy and a higher risk of infertility in male children.

The same did not seem to apply, however, to the daughters of overweight women. 

Obesity causes a number of changes in the body which can have impacts on a growing foetus — and, in particular, lead to inflammation.

It is believed that hormone disruptions or mineral deficiencies resulting from obesity can also slow an unborn child’s development.

In the UK, more than half of all pregnant women are overweight or obese — an issue which increases the risk of miscarriages and stillbirths.

Research has shown that youngsters born to overweight parents are much more likely to become fat themselves — leading to type 2 diabetes and heart disease.

Read more: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-9115183/Health-Boys-born-overweight-women-40-cent-likely-grow-infertile-study-finds.html