PCOS | Women’s Egg Quality dependent on metabolic factors
Mitochondrial health and infertility link is gaining momentum.
You have heard it before and here it is again… female fertility begins to decrease after the age of 30 and decreases more rapidly after 37. Egg quality is becoming a bigger issue as women choose to have children later in life and IVF itself cannot improve egg quality or reverse age-related defects.
One potential culprit at the root of this decline is the mitochondria, known as “the powerhouse of the cell” because it provides the energy needed to support the growth and development of oocytes. Aging oocytes have significantly fewer mitochondria, and increasing their mitochondrial function has been suggested to mitigate age-related ovarian decline. Aging is also associated with the loss of the cellular energy molecule NAD. Two studies in mice have now demonstrated that increasing levels of NAD+, and thereby promoting mitochondrial function, helped restore fertility in aging ovaries.
If you are a current patient of mine you will likely be familiar with NADH.
Increasing NAD levels could improve quality of eggs. This is supported by the research and I can see it in my own patient population. Many will go on to maintain this supplement in their daily regime as it impacts:
Muscle Health: Our muscles, specifically the skeletal muscles that keep us moving, require NAD and healthy mitochondria to generate the energy needed to both contract and relax [
Cardiovascular Health: The heart requires large amounts of cellular energy to stay active.
Metabolic Health: The liver is a metabolically active tissue. The liver filters our blood, detoxifies chemicals, processes medications, and metabolizes nutrients from our food.
Innate Immunity: Increasing NAD levels also has positive effects on pro and anti-inflammatory cytokines and has been linked to maintained resilience and defense against stresses, including immune stress.
Drop your questions here!
Dr C