Eating More Seafood Could Increase Fertility, Says New Study

Summer tends to have us reaching for all of the lobster, crab legs, and freshly-caught fish we can find, but regardless of the season, you may want to seriously up your seafood intake if you plan to get pregnant.

According to a new study from The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, a higher intake of seafood among both men and women has been associated with increased sexual activity and fertility. To test the relationship between heightened seafood intake and time to pregnancy (TTP), clinical paper author and Research Associate at Harvard Audrey J Gaskins, Sc.D and her team, studied 501 couples in both Texas and Michigan who were trying to conceive and followed them for one year, or until they became pregnant. The couples were asked to keep a daily journal to record their seafood intake and frequency of sexual activity in order to determine results.

The study ultimately found that males and females that consumed eight or more servings of seafood per cycle had higher fertility rates of 47 percent and 60 percent, respectively, when compared with couples who consumed 1 or less servings of seafood. Couples with both partners consuming 8 or more servings of seafood per cycle had 61 percent higher fertility rates than those consuming less. These couples with the highest seafood intake of 8 or more servings also recorded a higher sexual activity frequency of 22 percent.

The bottom line? If you’re planning for a baby, you’ll want to consider adding more seafood to your menu— oh, and spending more quality alone time.

You’ll also want to read 6 Ways to Prepare Your Body for Pregnancy or We Debunked These 5 Common Fertility Myths.