Cannabis and IVF: Study reveals consumption may not be associated with compromised effects

A study from researchers in Canada and Israel have revealed that a history of cannabis use is not associated with compromised effects on IVF.

The study, published in the Journal of Cannabis Use, on the effects of a person’s history of cannabis use found it is not associated with compromised effects on in vitro fertilisation (IVF).

The team of researchers from Canada and Israel studied IVF treatment outcomes of male and female, non-donor patients who were cannabis consumers or not. They focused on the ongoing pregnancy rate as well as oocyte yield, fertilization rate, peak serum estradiol, sperm, and embryo quality.

There were 722 participants involved in the research of which, 68 percent were cannabis users who were mostly defined as light consumers. The study revealed a similar implantation rate at 40.74 percent compared to 41.13 percent. It also highlighted similar rates of ongoing pregnancy at 35.2 percent to 29.1 percent between users and non-users. There were no significant differences between consumers and non-consumers in any of the other areas of focus.

IVF and cannabis use

They stated: “Our study did not show any detrimental impact of current cannabis use on any of the measured IVF outcomes. … All the reproductive outcomes of cannabis users and non-users in our study were comparable. These parameters included measures of ovarian response, sperm quality, the efficiency of fertilisation, early embryonic development, and implantation.”

“In fact, the ongoing pregnancy rate per cycle start trended higher for the group of cannabis users (35.2 percent vs. 29.1 percent). This could partially relate to the female participants in the user group being younger than the non-user counterparts.”

The concluded: “They concluded, “The results of this study are in line with the newer studies suggesting that the use of cannabis is not associated with a compromised outcome for couples undergoing IVF.”

Read more: Could cannabis help with alopecia?