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Diabetes and infertility

Internal diseases, such as diabetes and its precursors, such as insulin resistance, can significantly reduce the chances of having one's own child. It is therefore important (especially when one is overweight or has diabetes in one's family medical history) to rule out or treat such diseases prior to commencing a fertility treatment.

Diabetes

In most patients, overt diabetes is already known at the point in time when they present at the fertility centre. Since pregnancy poses a risk for diabetic women, blood sugar should be very well adjusted, and other risk factors, such as smoking, alcohol or severe excess weight, should be avoided.
This also applies to men with diabetes who want to have children, since poorly adjusted sugar levels can significantly reduce sperm quality and be a cause of childlessness.

Insulin resistance

Insulin resistance, the precursor to diabetes, also represents an altered sugar metabolism. It is relatively common and can be diagnosed by means of simple blood tests. If insulin resistance is present, adjusting exercise habits and building muscle through exercise is the first step. Very good results can be achieved, and regular ovulation can be induced by reducing one's weight by about 10–15%.
However, insulin resistance also occurs in lean individuals and is often associated with PCOS (polycystic ovarian syndrome), which results in a lack of ovulation and extremely long, irregular cycles.
In such cases, hormone therapy is recommended for egg maturation, usually in combination with metformin. Metformin is a diabetes medication that reduces the formation of new sugar in the liver and increases the sensitivity of the body's cells to insulin.
This has a positive effect on egg maturation and can significantly increase one's chances of getting pregnant.

Get advice at your TFP clinic. An individual plan will then be created for you.