Background
Although alcohol consumption and cigarette smoking are common behaviors in reproductive-age
women, little is known about the impact of consumption patterns on ovarian reserve.
Even less is known about the effects of smoking and alcohol use in reproductive-age
African-American women.
Objective
The objective of the study was to examine the impact of the patterns of alcohol intake
and cigarette smoking on anti-Müllerian hormone levels as a marker of ovarian reserve
in African-American women.
Study Design
This was a cross-sectional analysis from the baseline clinical visit and data collection
of the Study of Environment, Lifestyle, and Fibroids performed by the National Institute
of Environmental Health Sciences. A total of 1654 volunteers, aged 23–34 years, recruited
from the Detroit, Michigan community completed questionnaires on alcohol intake and
cigarette smoking and provided serum for anti-Müllerian hormone measurement. Multivariable
linear and logistic regressions were used as appropriate to estimate the effect of
a range of exposure patterns on anti-Müllerian hormone levels while adjusting for
potential confounders including age, body mass index, and hormonal contraception.
Results
Most participants were alcohol drinkers (74%). Of those, the majority (74%) engaged
in binge drinking at least once in the last year. Women who reported binge drinking
twice weekly or more had 26% lower anti-Müllerian hormone levels compared with current
drinkers who never binged (95% confidence interval, –44, –2, P < .04). Other alcohol consumption patterns (both past and current) were unrelated
to anti-Müllerian hormone. The minority of participants currently (19%) or formerly
(7%) smoked, and only 4% of current smokers used a pack a day or more. Neither smoking
status nor second-hand smoke exposure in utero, childhood, or adulthood was associated
with anti-Müllerian hormone levels.
Conclusion
Results suggest that current, frequent binge drinking may have an adverse impact on
ovarian reserve. Other drinking and smoking exposures were not associated with anti-Müllerian
hormone in this cohort of healthy, young, African-American women. A longitudinal study
of how these common lifestyle behaviors have an impact on the variability in age-adjusted
anti-Müllerian hormone levels is merited.
Key words
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: July 11, 2016
Accepted:
July 5,
2016
Received in revised form:
June 27,
2016
Received:
April 4,
2016
Footnotes
This study was supported by National Institutes of Health grant R21HD077479-01; National Institutes of Health Grant K12HD050121–Northwestern University Women’s Reproductive Health scholar award; Harold Amos Medical Faculty Development Award from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Friends of Prentice, Evergreen Invitational, Woman’s Board. This research was supported in part by the Intramural Research Program of the National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, and in part by funds allocated for health research by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
Dr Marsh is a consultant for Allergan. The other authors report no conflict of interest.
Cite this article as: Hawkins Bressler L, Bernardi LA, De Chavez PJD, et al. Alcohol, cigarette smoking, and ovarian reserve in reproductive-age African-American women. Am J Obstet Gynecol 2016;215:758.e1-9.
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© 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
