Authors : Ishani Sarkar; Joydeep Das; Banani Bindhani

Volume/Issue : Volume 11 - 2026, Issue 2 - February

Google Scholar : https://tinyurl.com/5arzu3c2

Scribd : https://tinyurl.com/34jm9ksy

DOI : https://doi.org/10.38124/ijisrt/26feb812

Note : A published paper may take 4-5 working days from the publication date to appear in PlumX Metrics, Semantic Scholar, and ResearchGate.

Abstract : Obesity, largely driven by high-fat diet (HFD) consumption, is a significant global health concern that adversely impacts female reproductive health. This review explores the effect of HFD on ovarian morphology, oocyte quality and in vitro fertilisation (IVF) rates. Evidence shows that HFD exposure reduces primordial follicle reserves, increases follicular atresia, and induces lipotoxicity and mitochondrial dysfunction withing oocytes, leading to impaired maturation and fertilization potential. Additionally, HFD alters hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis signalling, disrupts steroidogenesis, and promotes oxidative stress and chronic inflammation, collectively compromising fertility. IVF studies in both animal models and humans reveal that HFD-associated obesity lowers oocyte competence, fertilization rates and pregnancy success, despite sometimes unaffected embryo quality. Mechanistically, endocrine, endocrine and metabolic disturbances underlie these reproductive impairments. Understanding the pathways affected by HFD highlights the need for targeted nutritional and therapeutic interventions to mitigate fertility decline in obese female individuals.

Keywords : Oocyte, Fertilization, Diet, Estrogen, Progesterone.

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