Pregnancy, stress reduces the chances of getting pregnant

The impact that stress causes on a woman's body also significantly reduces her chances of getting pregnant.

This is what emerges from a study by Southeast University in Jiangsu (China), published in Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica.

    The study based its assessments on measuring the "allostatic load", or the 'weight' on the organism of the efforts made to adapt and cope with the different circumstances of life.

    The team of researchers looked at 444 women who were trying to get pregnant.

Based on 9 stress indicators (such as blood pressure, blood sugar, cortisol, norepinephrine and cholesterol), the team divided the women into 4 groups, from A, with minimal "allostatic load", to D, with the increased "allostatic load".

    In the 12 months of observation, the pregnancy rates for the four groups (AB — C — D) were 55.4%, 44.5%, 50.9% and 26.9%, respectively.

After excluding the impact of other factors, group D, the one with the greatest "allostatic load", showed a 59% reduction in the odds of becoming pregnant compared to the group with the least "allostatic load".