Women who work or lift a lot may struggle to get pregnant

Women who work more than 40 hours a week or routinely lift heavy loads may take longer to get pregnant than women who don’t, a U.S. study suggests.

Researchers followed 1,739 nurses who were trying to get pregnant and estimated 16 percent of them failed to achieve this goal within 12 months, and 5 percent still hadn’t conceived after two years.

Working more than 40 hours a week was linked with taking 20 percent longer to get pregnant compared to women who worked 21 to 40 hours.

Moving or lifting at least 25-pound loads several . . .