Life-style factors and female infertility

Buck GM, G M Buck, Sever LE, L E Sever, Batt Re, R E Batt, Pauline Mendola, P Mendola
Epidemiology (Cambridge, Mass.) · 1997 · doi:10.1097/00001648-199707000-00015 · PMID:9209860
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⚙ AI-generated summary by qwen3.7-flash, 2026-09-03 ⓘ

This review identifies cigarette smoking and intrauterine device use as risk factors for primary tubal infertility, while noting limited assessment of lifestyle impacts on endometriosis-related infertility.

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This review summarizes epidemiologic literature regarding the impact of lifestyle factors, including smoking, alcohol consumption, body mass index, and physical exercise, on female infertility. The authors identified cigarette smoking and intrauterine device use as corroborated risk factors for primary tubal infertility, while extreme body size was linked to primary ovulatory infertility. Other substances like cocaine and marijuana were noted as possible risk factors, though evidence remains less consistent across studies. The paper explicitly notes that few risk factors have been assessed for secondary infertility or specific subtypes such as endometriosis-related infertility. Relevance to endometriosis: listed as one indication for infertility evaluation, but the paper's main focus is general lifestyle risks rather than endometriosis pathology.

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Abstract

We summarize the epidemiologic literature on the effect of life-style factors such as cigarette smoking, alcohol and caffeine consumption, physical exercise, body mass index, and drug use on female infertility. We identified relevant papers through MEDLINE, Index Medicus, and a manual review of reference lists. Risk factors that affect the risk of primary tubal infertility and that were corroborated in two or more studies include use of intrauterine devices (especially the Dalkon Shield) and cigarette smoking. We identified extremes in body size as a risk factor for primary ovulatory infertility. Cocaine, marijuana and alcohol use, exercise, caffeine consumption, and ever-use of thyroid medications were possible risk factors for various subtypes of primary infertility. Few risk factors have been assessed or identified for secondary infertility or other less common subtypes, such as cervical or endometriosis-related infertility.
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Life-Style Factors and Female Infertility - Germaine M. Buck - Lowell E. Sever - Ronald E. Batt - Pauline Mendola We summarize the epidemiologic literature on the effect of life-style factors such as cigarette smoking, alcohol and caffeine consumption, physical exercise, body mass index, and drug use on female infertility. We identified relevant papers through MEDLINE, Index Medicus, and a manual review of reference lists. Risk factors that affect the risk of primary tubal infertility and that were corroborated in two or more studies include use of intrauterine devices (especially the Dalkon Shield) and cigarette smoking. We identified extremes in body size as a risk factor for primary ovulatory infertility. Cocaine, marijuana and alcohol use, exercise, caffeine consumption, and ever-use of thyroid medications were possible risk factors for various subtypes of primary infertility. Few risk factors have been assessed or identified for secondary infertility or other less common subtypes, such as cervical or endometriosis-related infertility.

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Condition tags

endometriosisinfertility

MeSH descriptors

Infertility, Female Life Style Alcohol Drinking Alcohol Drinking Alcohol Drinking Body Weight Caffeine Caffeine Female Humans Infertility, Female Infertility, Female Infertility, Female Intrauterine Devices Intrauterine Devices Intrauterine Devices Patient Acceptance of Health Care Prevalence Risk Factors Smoking

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europepmc
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pubmed
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