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What do men want? Re-examining whether men benefit from higher fertility than is optimal for women.

ABSTRACT: Several empirical observations suggest that when women have more autonomy over their reproductive decisions, fertility is lower. Some evolutionary theorists have interpreted this as evidence for sexual conflicts of interest, arguing that higher fertility is more adaptive for men than women. We suggest the assumptions underlying these arguments are problematic: assuming that women suffer higher costs of reproduction than men neglects the (different) costs of reproduction for men; the assumption that men can repartner is often false. We use simple models to illustrate that (i) menorwomen can prefer longer interbirth intervals (IBIs), (ii) if men can only partner with wives sequentially they may favour shorter IBIs than women, but such a strategy would only be optimal for a few men who can repartner. This suggests that an evolved universal male preference for higher fertility than women prefer is implausible and is unlikely to fully account for the empirical data. This further implies that if women have more reproductive autonomy, populations should grow, not decline. More precise theoretical explanations with clearly stated assumptions, and data that better address both ultimate fitness consequences and proximate psychological motivations, are needed to understand under which conditions sexual conflict over reproductive timing should arise.

SUBMITTER: Moya C

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4822429 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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What do men want? Re-examining whether men benefit from higher fertility than is optimal for women.

Moya Cristina C Snopkowski Kristin K Sear Rebecca R

Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences 20160401 1692

Several empirical observations suggest that when women have more autonomy over their reproductive decisions, fertility is lower. Some evolutionary theorists have interpreted this as evidence for sexual conflicts of interest, arguing that higher fertility is more adaptive for men than women. We suggest the assumptions underlying these arguments are problematic: assuming that women suffer higher costs of reproduction than men neglects the (different) costs of reproduction for men; the assumption t ...[more]

PMID: 27022076

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Project description:The postponement of parenthood may increase the number of couples experiencing infertility and prolonged time to pregnancy. Previous research has revealed that childless people are not well informed regarding fertility, which may threat their childbearing intentions. This study aimed to examine fertility knowledge and childbearing intentions held by Portuguese people and their use and perceived usefulness of information sources on fertility.Participants were recruited using a random-route domiciliary approach. A total of 2404 individuals aged 18-45 were asked to complete a structured questionnaire evaluating socio-demographic characteristics, childbearing intentions, fertility knowledge and information-gathering sources regarding fertility.In total, 95.5% of the participants indicated the desire to have children in the future, and 61.7% reported that having children would contribute to life satisfaction. Most of the participants expressed the desire to have two children in the future. The discrepancy between the numbers of planned and desired children was higher in men, in participants with lower education levels, in professionally active participants and in the unemployed participants. Relationship stability seemed to be more important in influencing childbearing decisions than financial stability or family support. Participants' knowledge regarding fertility was poor. Women, the participants who were older than 25, the participants with longer education and the participants with higher income exhibited the greatest levels of knowledge of fertility, although this knowledge was only slightly enhanced in these subgroups. Also, the participants overestimated both the chances of spontaneous pregnancy and the success rates of assisted reproduction techniques. Finally, the results revealed that websites were the main information sources used by the participants and only 18.0% of the participants had previously discussed fertility issues with their doctors.Although Portuguese men and women reported the desire to have children in the future, their knowledge regarding fertility and infertility risk was poor. In addition, participants used more general sources of information, such as website, but not specialized sources, such as their doctors. There is a real need to work with general practitioners to empower them to provide adequate fertility information to every childless patient.

Project description:ObjectiveDespite the increased emphasis on antiretroviral therapy and other healthcare services for HIV-infected individuals, issues of fertility desire have received relatively little attention. In particular, little is known about actual fertility desire and determinants of fertility desires among HIV-infected women and men receiving antiretroviral therapy.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted among HIV-positive individuals in public health hospitals of Addis Ababa City from 1 October to 30 November 2021. A pretested structured questionnaire was used to collect the data with a consecutive sampling technique. EpiData 4.6.2 and SPSS 25 were used for data entry and analysis. Bivariate and multivariable logistic regression analyses were done to identify factors associated with fertility desire. An adjusted odds ratio with a 95% confidence interval was computed for data interpretation. A p value of ⩽0.05 was considered to be statistically significant.ResultAmong 400 participants, 55% (95% confidence interval = 50%, 60%) have future fertility desire. Factors like age less than 35 years (adjusted odds ratio = 24.03, 95% confidence interval = 9.99, 57.83), a secondary education level (adjusted odds ratio = 2.78, 95% confidence interval = 1.21, 6.40), being married (adjusted odds ratio = 2.89, 95% confidence interval = 1.39, 5.99), being employed (adjusted odds ratio = 3.12, 95% confidence interval = 1.56, 6.24), being diagnosed with HIV in the past 1 year (adjusted odds ratio = 4.02, 95% confidence interval 2.07, 7.80) or past 2-4 years (adjusted odds ratio = 9.80, 95% confidence interval = 3.89, 26.02) have a significant association with future fertility desire. Respondents using contraceptives were 90.9% less likely to have future fertility desire (adjusted odds ratio = 0.09, 95% confidence interval = 0.05, 0.18).ConclusionThe magnitude of future fertility desire was founded high. Further research on this topic should include qualitative studies to provide a deeper understanding of people living with HIV fertility desires.

Project description:ContextIn overweight/obese women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), the relative benefit of delaying infertility treatment to lose weight vs seeking immediate treatment is unknown.ObjectiveWe compared the results of two, multicenter, concurrent clinical trials treating infertility in women with PCOS.Design, setting, and participantsThis was a secondary analysis of two randomized trials conducted at academic health centers studying women 18-40 years of age who were overweight/obese and infertile with PCOS.InterventionWe compared immediate treatment with clomiphene from the Pregnancy in Polycystic Ovary Syndrome II (PPCOS II) trial (N = 187) to delayed treatment with clomiphene after preconception treatment with continuous oral contraceptives, lifestyle modification (Lifestyle: including caloric restriction, antiobesity medication, behavioral modification, and exercise) or the combination of both (combined) from the Treatment of Hyperandrogenism Versus Insulin Resistance in Infertile Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (OWL PCOS) trial (N = 142).Main outcome measuresLive birth, pregnancy loss, and ovulation were measured.ResultsIn PPCOS II, after four cycles of clomiphene, the cumulative per-cycle ovulation rate was 44.7% (277/619) and the cumulative live birth rate was 10.2% (19/187), nearly identical to that after oral contraceptive pretreatment in the OWL PCOS trial (ovulation 45% [67/149] and live birth: 8.5% [4/47]). In comparison, deferred clomiphene treatment preceded by lifestyle and combined treatment in OWL PCOS offered a significantly better cumulative ovulation rate compared to immediate treatment with clomiphene. (Lifestyle: 62.0% [80/129]; risk ratio compared to PPCOS II = 1.4; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.1-1.7; P = .003; combined: 64.3% [83/129]; risk ratio compared to PPCOS II = 1.4; 95% CI, 1.2-1.8; P < .001 and a significantly better live birth rate lifestyle: 25.0% [12/48]; risk ratio compared to PPCOS II = 2.5; 95% CI, 1.3-4.7; P = .01 and combined: 25.5% [12/47]; risk ratio compared to PPCOS II = 2.5; 95% CI, 1.3-4.8; P = .01).ConclusionsThese data show the benefit of improved ovulation and live birth with delayed infertility treatment with clomiphene citrate when preceded by lifestyle modification with weight loss compared with immediate treatment. Pretreatment with oral contraceptives likely has little effect on the ovulation and live birth rate compared with immediate treatment.

Project description:BackgroundCurrent national (34 mg . kg-1 . d-1) and international (39 mg kg-1 . d-1) recommendations for leucine in older adults are based on data from young adults. Evidence suggests that the leucine requirements of older adults are higher than those of young adults.ObjectiveThe objective of the current study was to directly determine the leucine requirements in healthy older adult male and female study participants aged >60 y.MethodsLeucine requirement was determined using the indicator amino acid oxidation method (IAAO) with l-[1-13C]phenylalanine as the indicator. Sixteen older adults (n = 7 male and n = 9 female participants) were randomly assigned to receive 3 to 7 leucine intakes from 20 to 120 mg . kg-1 . d-1. The rate of release of 13CO2 from l-[1-13C]phenylalanine oxidation was measured, and breakpoint analysis was used to estimate the leucine requirement. The 95% CI was calculated using the parametric bootstrap method.ResultsThe mean leucine requirement for male participants was 77.8 mg . kg-1 . d-1 (upper 95% CI: 81.0) and for female participants, it was 78.2 mg . kg-1 . d-1 (upper 95% CI: 82.0) with no sex effect based on body weight. The data were therefore combined to yield a mean of 78.5 mg . kg-1 d-1 (upper 95% CI: 81.0 mg . kg-1 . d-1 ) for both sexes. On the basis of fat-free mass, the mean ± SEM leucine requirements were 115 ± 3.2 and 127 ± 2.4 mg . kg-1 . d-1 for male and female participants, respectively (P < 0.005).ConclusionsThe estimated leucine requirement of older adults is more than double the amount in current recommendations. These data suggest that leucine could be a limiting amino acid in the diet of older adults consuming the current RDA for protein and those consuming a plant-based diet. In view of the functional and structural role of leucine, especially its importance in muscle protein synthesis, current leucine recommendations of older adults should be revised. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT03506126.

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What do men want? Re-examining whether men benefit from higher fertility than is optimal for women.

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What do men want? Re-examining whether men benefit from higher fertility than is optimal for women.

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