According to a recent study, ovarian reserve may improve in women in their 30s and 40s who get moderate sun exposure. The Steroids study examined how sun exposure affected female fertility. Researchers examined how the levels of a specific hormone, called anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH), varied with the seasons.
Women over 30 had higher levels of AMH in the spring and autumn when there was moderate levels of sun radiation intensity. These were noteworthy outcomes. Researchers did not find this effect in women under 30, though, suggesting that the effects of sun radiation on female fertility may increase with age. Further investigation is necessary to comprehend these variables and their possible therapeutic consequences.
The effect of sun exposure on fertility in women with varying maternal ages was examined by the researchers. The study, which took place in Israel, involved 2,235 women, the majority of whom were in their 20s to 40s. Their goal was to get further insight into the connection between exposure to sun radiation and anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH), a marker of female fertility. It is common practice to measure an anti-mullerian hormone level when assessing a patient’s fertility.
The ovarian reserve is correlated with this level. Studies have shown that AMH decreases with age, which therefore also affects fertility, according to medical news today from non-study author Dr. Kelli V. Burroughs, a national media expert on women’s health and the chair of the OB-GYN department at Memorial Hermann Sugar Land in Texas.
The new study’s researchers point out that AMH doesn’t always indicate the calibre of oocytes, though. For four years, the study’s authors examined participant data. Researchers used information from the Israeli Meteorological Service website to quantify sun radiation in Israel’s centre area.
After discovering that AMH levels decreased with age, the researchers split the subjects into two age groups: those who were 20–29 years old and those who were 30–40 years old. Researchers found no correlation between AMH levels and the seasons or solar radiation intensity for women in the 20–29 age group.
For women in the 30- to 40-year age range, the outcomes were different, though.Compared to the winter months, when there were low levels of sun radiation intensity, researchers discovered that these women’s AMH levels increased in the spring and autumn when there were intermediate levels of solar radiation intensity.Additionally, they discovered that individuals in the 30- to 40-year-old age group whose AMH levels were taken in the summer had much greater levels than those whose AMH levels were taken in the winter.
Participants were further split into two age groups by the researchers: 30-35 and 36-40 years old. They did not discover a significant relationship between the season or the intensity of solar radiation and AMH levels in the 30- to 35-year-old group. AMH levels were found to be greater in the months with moderate sun intensity and in the summer as opposed to the winter in the 36–40 group.
According to Dr. Burroughs, this study is intriguing because it raises the possibility that the amount of sunlight or UV exposure may have a seasonal impact on the AMH in women between the ages of 30 and 40.
The study found increased levels of AMH with moderate UV exposure in the spring and autumn, however the mechanism underlying the association between seasonal UV light exposure and AMH is unknown. It was also observed that the effects of varying UV exposure levels on AMH levels were opposing. Fertility is complicated and influenced by numerous factors. Certain variables that may contribute to infertility can occasionally be changed.
For instance, being underweight or obese can both raise the chance of infertility. Fertility can be reduced by smoking and binge drinking. In addition, autoimmune diseases, thyroid disease, endometriosis, and polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) can all affect a woman’s ability to conceive.
Dr. Kecia Gaither, MPH, the director of Perinatal Services/Maternal Foetal Medicine at NYC Health in New York and a double board-certified OB-GYN and maternal-fetal medicine specialist, was not involved in the study. Drugs, stress, female factors (endometriosis, fibroids, polyps, hormonal imbalances, PCOS, etc.), and male factors (low sperm counts) are only a few of the numerous variables that can affect fertility. The environmental component, such as exposure to direct sunshine, should be noted as a factor associated with favourable reproductive health [or] outcomes.
Dr. Burroughs stated: “More women than ever are delaying having children until their 30s and 40s for a number of reasons, such as increased access to contraception, work obligations, education, and career objectives. Fertility may suffer if a woman waits until her third or fourth decade of life to have children because as she ages, her ovarian reserve, or total egg count, begins to decrease.
A woman is deemed to be advanced maternal age (AMA) if she is over 35. The relationship between ageing and falling reproductive status is reflected in this language. There are several restrictions on this study. Firstly, it doesn’t prove that the components that are observed are causally related.
The absence of a significant correlation between AMH and seasons and people aged 20 to 29 is also acknowledged by the researchers as potentially due to the smaller sample sizes of the former group compared to the latter. The fact that the researchers did not examine the levels of the hormones luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicular stimulating hormone (FSH) in women between the ages of 26 and 30 is also acknowledged, and it may have affected their results.
Additionally, because the research was limited to a single region of the world, its findings might alter if it had been done elsewhere. The analysis conducted by the researchers did not consider the individuals’ country of origin. Finally, some clinical data, such as reproductive history, was not available to the researchers. The authors of the study point out that as research advances, the putative advantages of sun exposure should be weighed against the hazards, which include skin damage and cancer.
