The nuts should not be lacking in a balanced diet. They are fascinating foods because they are nutritionally perfect: they are composed of a high proportion of proteins, healthy fatty acids, fiber, minerals, vitamins and antioxidant compounds.
We should all consume them daily, but men who want to be parents have more reasons: a couple of hands of nuts improve their fertility potential.
Researchers from the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology have discovered that nuts increase the amount of sperm, which also improve their vitality, mobility and shape. In other words, the sperm of men who eat nuts are arrows that are directed unapologetically at their target.
Those who eat nuts have a higher quality sperm
The participants in the study were 119 Spanish men aged between 18 and 35 years, fertile and healthy. They separated into two groups. Some enjoyed daily a mix of 60 g nuts, approximately two handfuls. The mixture consisted of almonds, hazelnuts and walnuts. The others continued with their usual diet and served as a control group.
After 14 weeks, the 119 men underwent a spermogram. The result was surprising: the group of men who had incorporated the nuts saw their fertility increase. He had improved both the quantity, vitality and motility, and the sperm morphology.
In addition, the fragmentation of the DNA of the seminal cells had been reduced, which indicates that the sperm were capable of successful fertilization and pregnancy.
The results of the study are consistent with previous research that showed that sperm could be improved with certain dietary guidelines.
Those men who consume more omega-3 and antioxidants (for example vitamin C, E, selenium, zinc and folic acid) have better sperm quality than men with deficiency of those substances.
Men need nuts
Studies conducted in different countries over the last decades show that in general the quality of sperm is decreasing, which is a difficulty for couples who wish to procreate. Experts relate this problem to exposure to endocrine disrupting pollutants such as bisphenols, phthalates or pesticides.
Stress, poor diet, sedentary lifestyle or abuse of technologies can be other factors that affect sperm.