Relation Between Emotional Stress and Infertility

Many speculations regarding the decline in human fecundity are believed to be related to environmental factors, including life style. Among many other factors, perceived psychological stress has been suggested to alter both male and female fertility.

There are many ways to asses stress, one of which is done by filling questionnaires. DASS-21, a 21-item questionnaire, is a set of three self-report scales (Depression, anxiety, stress scale). The negative emotional states of depression, anxiety and stress can be measured using DASS21.

Each of the three DASS scales contains 7 items. Each item is rated on a four-point scale of severity. By using DASS scale, stress and anxiety level of the subject can be monitored in different situations in life.

Another way to asses stress can be done by measuring peptides that are secreted in acute and chronic stress, one of them is cortisol.

Cortisol is a glucocorticoid class steroid hormone; it is produced in humans by the zona fasciculate of the adrenal cortex within the adrenal gland. It is quantified as a marker for hypothalamic pituitary adrenal axis reactivity. In humans, cortisol levels are increased in stress, depression, and selected systemic diseases such as Cushing's syndrome as well as in response to low blood-glucose concentration as well as a response to psychosocial stress.