Does bariatric surgery benefit fertility? Everything you need to know

Obesity can be detrimental to your overall health, and can lead to all kinds of diseases, from cardiovascular problems to digestive ailments. However, believe it or not, obesity can also negatively affect your fertility. 

For this reason, procedures such as the bariatric surgeryBariatric surgeries, which aid in weight loss, can give a positive boost to fertility in a number of different ways. In this post we explain how bariatric surgery can benefit your fertility.

You might be interested in: Gastric sleeve: pros and cons 

Can obesity and overweight cause fertility problems?

Yes, both obesity and being overweight can cause multiple problems that lead to a dramatic reduction in fertility, from decreased or loss of sexual desire to hormonal disorders and metabolic problems.

In the case of women, obesity can lead to menstrual disorders that dramatically reduce fertility, such as polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) or anovulatory cycles. Obesity can also compromise egg quality, hinder artificial insemination treatments and lead to miscarriages in the event of pregnancy.

Basically, for women, obesity not only significantly reduces their overall chances of having children, but also makes pregnancies high-risk.

For men, obesity can lead to decreased sexual appetite, hormonal and reproductive cycle disorders and lower sperm production, which seriously decreases their fertility.  

How does bariatric surgery benefit fertility?

Bariatric surgery, such as gastric sleeve, gastric bypass or gastric balloon, benefits fertility by addressing many of the factors that reduce fertility:

• Improve overall healthThe fertility of men and women depends to a large extent on their overall health conditions. By treating obesity, bariatric surgery has a significant direct effect on fertility.
• Reduce metabolic and cardiovascular problemsBariatric surgery is one of the most effective ways to deal with the metabolic and cardiovascular problems caused by obesity. It improves sexual function in women and men, and ensures better hormonal health and reproductive cycles, as well as higher quality eggs and sperm.
• Regularizes women's menstrual cycleWeight loss achieved with bariatric surgery helps regularize menstrual cycles in women, which means they will be less prone to problems such as anovulatory cycles, and therefore more fertile.
• Decreases hormonal disorders and reproductive cycles.Bariatric surgery: this type of disorder seriously diminishes the fertility of any individual. As bariatric surgery helps to regain health and lose weight, these disorders become less common again, which implies a remarkable improvement in fertility.

As you may have noticed, in overweight or obese people, bariatric surgery can significantly improve fertility, not to mention making pregnancies much safer and reducing the risk of miscarriages.

If obesity causes you problems that harm your fertility, contact us and our specialists will evaluate your case.This way you will know which solution is best for you to lose excess weight and regain your health.