Health:Women trying to conceive ‘should eat a big breakfast’

There are countless old wives’ tales about how to get pregnant – from planting a rosemary bush to avoiding mints.

But it seems there is a much easier tip for some women having trouble to conceive – eat a hearty breakfast.

Scoffing 900 calories in a fry-up at the start of the day may do nothing for your waistline but it could help your ovaries, a study suggests.

Researchers examined whether the timing of meals could help women who suffer menstrual irregularities because of polycystic ovary syndrome. The condition affects up to ten per cent of women of reproductive age and disrupts their reproductive abilities.

PCOS creates a resistance to insulin, leading to an increase in male sex hormones – known as androgens.

It can also cause hair loss on the scalp, an increase in body hair, acne and even diabetes.

Sixty women with the condition, aged between 25 and 39, were divided into two groups and allowed to eat 1,800 calories a day. One group ate their largest meal, approximately 980 calories, at breakfast, while the other consumed their main meal of the day in the evening.

Those who started the day with a big breakfast began to ovulate more regularly, which improved their fertility, and saw their resistance to insulin drop.

In the ‘breakfast’ group, levels of the male hormone testosterone dropped by almost half, while the ‘dinner’ group’s level remained neutral.

Study leader Prof Oren Froy, from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, said: ‘The research clearly demonstrates that, indeed, the amount of calories we consume daily is very important.

‘But the timing as to when we consume them is even more important.’

The study’s findings were published in the journal Clinical Science.

Adapted from The Metro