The Mediterranean diet could play a crucial role in the success of fertility treatments. A study led by the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), with participation from Hospital Doctor Peset in Valencia, has identified a relationship between this dietary pattern and a vaginal environment more favorable for pregnancy.
The research, developed by the Institute of Agrochemistry and Food Technology (IATA-CSIC), analyzes the vaginal microbiota of women with primary infertility and concludes that diet can influence the probabilities of achieving pregnancy. Women who adhered to the Mediterranean diet showed a less diverse but more stable vaginal microbiota, dominated by Lactobacillus bacteria, associated with a healthy environment for embryo implantation.
Conversely, those with lower adherence to this diet showed a greater presence of bacteria like Gardnerella vaginalis, linked to microbial imbalances and poorer reproductive outcomes. The work, published in the scientific journal Food & Function, also identifies differences in microbiota between pregnancies that went to term and those that ended in miscarriage, reinforcing the role of these microorganisms in pregnancy evolution.
“"Fertility does not depend solely on hormonal or genetic factors, but also on modifiable elements such as diet and microbial balance."
The researchers emphasize that nutrients present in the Mediterranean diet, such as vitamins A, C, D, and E, zinc, or calcium, could exert a protective effect against alterations in the vaginal microbiota. The study opens the door to using vaginal microbiota as a potential fertility biomarker and proposes diet as a complementary tool in assisted reproduction treatments. However, the authors warn that these results must be confirmed with broader investigations before widespread clinical application.
