Clin Exp Reprod Med.  2025 Mar;52(1):79-86. 10.5653/cerm.2024.06982.

Associations of dietary inflammatory indices (DII and E-DII) with sperm parameters

• Sadeghpour S
• Sedgi FM
• Daneghian S
• Adabi SB
• Behroozi-Lak T
• Pashaei M
• RasouIi J
• Valizadeh R
• Ghasemnejad-Berenji H

• KMID: 2565488
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.5653/cerm.2024.06982

Abstract

Objective
This study aimed to explore the ambiguous link between dietary inflammatory indices and sperm parameters. Specifically, it investigated the associations between the dietary inflammatory index (DII) and the energy-adjusted dietary inflammatory index (E-DII) with sperm motility, morphology, and count in men undergoing routine semen analysis.
Methods
A cross-sectional study was conducted with 144 men enrolled, where semen samples were collected and evaluated according to the 2010 World Health Organization guidelines. Dietary data were gathered using a 147-item semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire developed by the researchers. Pearson correlation analysis was employed to assess the relationships of the DII and E-DII with sperm parameters.
Results
The mean DII and E-DII scores were 1.23±1.1 and 0.49±0.43, respectively. The mean values for sperm motility, morphology, and count were 43.08%±19.30%, 78.03%±26.99%, and 48.12±44.41 million, respectively. Both motility (r=−0.353) and count (r=−0.348) were found to be inversely and significantly correlated with DII. Similarly, Pearson correlation tests revealed strong and significant inverse correlations of motility (r=−0.389) and count (r=−0.372) with E-DII.
Conclusion
The findings suggest that a diet with a higher anti-inflammatory potential may be associated with increased sperm count and motility, but not with changes in morphology. Further research is necessary to confirm these findings, elucidate the underlying mechanisms, and identify dietary modifications that could improve male fertility.

Keyword

Dietary inflammatory indices; Infertility, male; Nutrition; Semen analysis