Women need amounts of energy to develop and maintain normal reproductive function which is not necessary physiological activity for body. When body is in situation of low energy availability, namely deficient energy intake and (or) excessive energy expend, the energy redistribution will happen accompanied with reduced reproduction function. It can manifest as inhibition of hypothalamic-pituitary-ovary axis to different extents and ovulation dysfunction, menstrual disturbance and infertility as clinical symptoms. Long term energy deficiency can result in decrease of body fat, while the adipose tissue play key role in the relationship between nutrition and reproduction, thus exerting an influence on menarche initiation and menstrual cycle maintenance. The female athlete triad and anorexia nervosa are two typical examples of pathological situation under energy deficiency and low body fat over long term. Now, in order to restore body fat, we consider decreasing exercise consumption and increasing diet intake to increase body fat rate as necessary conditions for reproductive rehabilitation. In this review, we will focus on the influences of energy deficiency and low body fat on female reproductive health.

Energy metabolism; Functional hypothalamic amenorrhea; Reproductive health; Female athlete triad syndrome; Anorexia nervosa