Natural conception nearly 50% more likely after weight loss, study
The researchers said the findings were particularly significant as NHS commissioning bodies across England restrict access to NHS-funded IVF for women with a Body Mass Index (BMI) over 30.Evidence from a wide range of interventions were used, including diet programmes, exercise and weight loss medications.On average, women in the intervention groups lost 4kg (9lbs) more than those in the comparison groups.But the researchers stressed that while the review provided "the clearest picture yet of the benefits for conception", the effect on the ultimate goal – a healthy baby - "is still unclear".Prof Astbury said the evidence on live birth rates "was of very low certainty because many studies did not follow the pregnancies through to birth and report this outcome"."It was also interesting that when we restricted the analysis to low-energy diet replacement programmes, which lead to greater weight loss, there was an increase in live births, but this needs to be confirmed in larger trials," she said."Policymakers should consider whether integrating structured weight loss support into fertility services could improve outcomes for patients, while potentially reducing overall costs by increasing the number of women who conceive naturally."Dr Moscho Michalopoulou, lead author from Oxford's Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, said the findings "suggest that offering structured weight loss support could improve the chance of conceiving naturally, which may avoid the need for IVF treatment"."Programmes that help women achieve greater weight losses have the potential to help more women achieve a successful outcome, and should be tested in larger high-quality trials."
You can follow BBC Oxfordshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
26 minutes ago
- The Independent
Palestinian woman, 20, dies in hospital after being evacuated from Gaza to Italy
A 20-year-old Palestinian woman, transferred from the Gaza Strip for urgent medical treatment, has died in Italy, a hospital confirmed on Saturday. Named by Italian media as Marah Abu Zuhri, she was admitted to Pisa University Hospital late on Wednesday as part of a humanitarian mission. Described as being in a "state of severe physical deterioration" and arriving with a "very complex, compromised clinical picture," she died on Friday. Her death followed a respiratory crisis and subsequent cardiac arrest. Hospital staff had performed tests and started supportive therapy before her death. She had travelled to Italy accompanied by her mother. Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said almost 120 Gazans — 31 patients and their families — had been flown to Rome, Milan and Pisa on three planes. In a post on X, Tajani said that it was the 14th medical evacuation of Palestinians that Italy had conducted since January 2024, and the largest. The hospital did not specify whether the woman had suffered from malnutrition, but said that she had arrived in a 'state of severe physical deterioration.' Eugenio Giani, leader of the Tuscan region, expressed his condolences Saturday for the woman's death. Earlier in the week, United Nations spokesman Stephane Dujarric said that starvation and malnutrition in Gaza were at their highest levels since the Israel - Hamas war began. The U.N. says nearly 12,000 children under 5 were found to have acute malnutrition in July — including more than 2,500 with severe malnutrition, the most dangerous level. The World Health Organization says the numbers are likely an undercount. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said last month no one in Gaza is starving. 'There is no policy of starvation in Gaza, and there is no starvation in Gaza," he said. U.S. President Donald Trump responded to Netanyahu's claim by noting the images emerging of emaciated people. 'I don't know,' Trump said when asked if he agreed with the Israeli leader's comment. 'I mean, based on television, I would say not particularly because those children look very hungry.' Over the past two weeks, Israel has allowed around triple the amount of food into Gaza than what had been entering since late May. That was after 2.5 months when Israel barred all food, medicine and other supplies, saying it was to pressure Hamas to release hostages taken during its October 2023 attack that launched the war.
The Independent
an hour ago
- The Independent
Gazan woman evacuated to Italy in a 'state of severe physical deterioration' dies in hospital
A 20-year old Palestinian woman described as being in a 'state of severe physical deterioration' has died after being transferred to Italy for treatment, the hospital said Saturday. The patient was admitted to Pisa University Hospital late Wednesday and died on Friday. She was removed from the Gaza Strip as part of a humanitarian mission and arrived with a 'with a very complex, compromised clinical picture,' according to the hospital. She died after entering a respiratory crisis and subsequently going into cardiac arrest, it said in a statement. Hospital staff had performed tests and started supportive therapy before she died, the statement said. The woman, named by Italian media as Marah Abu Zuhri, had arrived in Italy with her mother. Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said almost 120 Gazans — 31 patients and their families — had been flown to Rome, Milan and Pisa on three planes. In a post on X, Tajani said that it was the 14th medical evacuation of Palestinians that Italy had conducted since January 2024, and the largest. The hospital did not specify whether the woman had suffered from malnutrition, but said that she had arrived in a 'state of severe physical deterioration.' Eugenio Giani, leader of the Tuscan region, expressed his condolences Saturday for the woman's death. Earlier in the week, United Nations spokesman Stephane Dujarric said that starvation and malnutrition in Gaza were at their highest levels since the Israel-Hamas war began. The U.N. says nearly 12,000 children under 5 were found to have acute malnutrition in July — including more than 2,500 with severe malnutrition, the most dangerous level. The World Health Organization says the numbers are likely an undercount. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said last month no one in Gaza is starving. 'There is no policy of starvation in Gaza, and there is no starvation in Gaza," he said. U.S. President Donald Trump responded to Netanyahu's claim by noting the images emerging of emaciated people. 'I don't know,' Trump said when asked if he agreed with the Israeli leader's comment. 'I mean, based on television, I would say not particularly because those children look very hungry.' Over the past two weeks, Israel has allowed around triple the amount of food into Gaza than what had been entering since late May. That was after 2.5 months when Israel barred all food, medicine and other supplies, saying it was to pressure Hamas to release hostages taken during its October 2023 attack that launched the war.
Times
an hour ago
- Times
I was so happy to be pregnant. Why did antenatal depression strike?
T hree weeks into my third pregnancy, in the summer of 2022, my husband, Jon, and our two children, Sidney and Remy, went on holiday to France for the summer. I felt crap. I was tired and really sick. So sick, in fact, that when we got back to the UK I wound up in hospital. They kept me in overnight because I'd been vomiting nonstop for about 12 hours. For the next few weeks I couldn't keep any food down. Eventually the vomiting stopped but all I could do was sit in bed and eat croissants; I was repulsed by everything else. That was just the beginning. After our holiday I went from feeling a bit down and tired to constantly exhausted — and so, so miserable. I didn't want to get out of bed. I felt as if I'd lost my personality. I cried every single day and I looked dreadful. I look back at pictures of that time now and I'm dead behind the eyes.
