#130 : Food Intolerance and Conception in Women Suffering Repeated Implantation Failure

Abstract

Background and Aims: Food-specific immunoglobulins, in combination with the elevated reactive oxygen species and other inflammatory components, have been indicated to represent immunological response to food consumed. This study aimed to investigate the relationship of food intolerance and conception in women receiving IVF treatments. Method: Infertile women who had experienced at least two failed embryo transfer treatments were investigated between June 2017 and August 2021 in TUBE Fertility Clinic. The whole blood 20 mL was taken from cubital vein and complete food panel examination employing ELISA analyses were designed to assay food-specific IgG and IgE antibodies. The levels of IgG antibodies were presented through spectrophotometric analysis (Table 1). The IgG tests included 5 dairy components, 25 grains/legumes/nuts, 18 vegetables, 9 egg/meat/poultry, 21 fruits, 9 herbs/spices, 18 fish/crustacea/mollusk, and 9 miscellaneous foods including baker’s yeast. Infertile women were asked to refrain from those foods according to the level of hypersensitivity, six months were required for those with reaction class III to IV, and three months for those with reaction class II. Further IVF and embryo transfer cycles were then carried out afterwards. Results: In total, 67 infertile women enrolled in this study. Their mean age was 38.2 ± 4.3 years old. They had received 2.7 ± 1.6 previous IVF/ET cycles. All 67 women showed positive IgG and 14 (21%) women with positive IgE investigated. Grains/legumes/nuts (90%) and dairy products (86.6%) were the most common hypersensitive foods (Table 2). Thirty-one (46.3%) women conceived in their successive ET cycles after refraining from hypersensitive foods. Lower pregnancy rates were noted in those with hypersensitivity to fish/crustacea/mollusk and eggs/meat/poultry, even after refraining from those foods. Conclusion: High percentage of infertile women suffering repeated failed IVF/ET cycles presented with different levels of hypersensitivity to foods. Avoidance of hypersensitive foods may help them achieve future conception.