Heavy lifting and shift work can harm a woman's fertility, here's why

Thursday, 9 February 2017

A research, published on Monday February 6, 2017 in the journal Occupational and Environmental Medicine found that working antisocial hours (in the evenings or night) or rotating shifts, may impact female fertility. Also, jobs that involve heavy lifting on a regular basis could reduce a woman's fertility, particularly among overweight and obese women.

 

Though the underlying cause is not known and more research is needed to further verify the findings, the team at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health believes that women in their reproductive years may need to consider this when trying to conceive.

Lidia Mínguez-Alarcón, a research fellow in the Department of Environmental Health and lead author of the study, in a statement said

"Our study suggests that women who are planning pregnancy should be cognizant of the potential negative impacts that non-day shift and heavy lifting could have on their reproductive health". 

Recent studies have shown potential associations between physically demanding jobs or shift work and reduced fertility, but this new study explored direct biomarkers for fertility in the body, such as egg numbers and hormone levels, to suggest possible mechanisms behind the change.