March 1, 2007 -- Ice Cream Scoop: Full-Fat Facilitates Fertility

In case you needed another reason to eat ice cream, researchers now believe it’s good for a woman’s reproductive health. A new study, published in the February 28th edition of the journal Human Reproduction, suggests eating full-fat milk or ice cream increases your chances of ovulating. And the more you eat, the more likely you are to ovulate. That’s assuming your overall calorie intake stays the same.

The study looked at the eating habits of more than 18,000 women, age 24 to 42. After accounting for other factors, like smoking or drinking, the researchers found that women who ate full-fat ice cream two more times a week had a 38 percent lower risk of ovulation-related infertility. That’s compared to women who had full-fat ice cream less than once a week. So what about low-fat foods? The study found that women who ate at least two servings of low-fat milk products a day were 85 percent more likely to have problems ovulating than women who only ate one serving. The researchers suggest women trying to get pregnant keep a careful eye on calories, but eat full-fat until conception.  It could give new meaning to the expression “fat chance.”