Natural ways to improve fertility

Natural ways to improve fertility

Getting pregnant can be very easy for some women, but for others it can be almost impossible. Some women spend years, a fortune, and a good portion of their sanity on pills, injections, and painful and uncomfortable procedures to no avail. While the medical approach should certainly be continued, there are things you can do yourself. In fact, diet and lifestyle changes can help boost fertility by up to 67 percent.

Achieving a healthy weight should be your first priority. Weight is one of the most influential factors when it comes to fertility, with both underweight and overweight associated with difficulties getting pregnant. The amount of fat stored in your body influences menstrual function and makes your cycles longer—making it more difficult to accurately predict your fertile windows. If you’re underweight, up your calorie intake by adding vegetable protein sources and high-fat dairy options, which may protect against infertility. One study showed when 5 percent of total calories came from vegetable protein instead of animal protein, the risk of ovulatory infertility decreased by more than 50 percent. Try beans, nuts and seeds instead of meat, fish or eggs. Another study looked at the effects of eating high-fat dairy more than once a day or less than once a week; it found that women who consumed one or more servings of high-fat dairy per day were 27 percent less likely to be infertile.

If you’re overweight, reducing your refined carb intake is a logical place to start to lose weight, but there’s evidence to suggest sugary foods and processed grains are associated with a greater risk of ovulatory infertility. Polycystic ovary syndrome is also associated with high insulin levels and refined carbs have a high glycaemic index, causing spikes in blood sugar and insulin levels. Cut the refined carbs and reduce the carbs altogether to improve your fertility—one large observational study found as carb intake increased, the risk of infertility also increased. Another culprit for insulin sensitivity is the trans fat. Commonly found in hydrogenated vegetable oils and processed products, trans fats are linked to infertility through their effects on insulin sensitivity. Avoid foods high in trans fats and opt for healthy fats instead, such as those found in extra virgin olive oil.

Everyone can benefit from increasing the amount of exercise they get and it turns out a sedentary lifestyle has been associated with a higher risk of infertility—each hour of exercise per week can offer a 5 percent lower risk of infertility but moderation is key. Don’t go crazy because excessive high-intensity exercise can negatively affect the reproductive system and may make you 3.2 times more likely to struggle to conceive.

Add a multivitamin to your daily routine and supplement vitamin E and vitamin B6 in particular to improve your chances of conception. Other natural ingredients can also increase your chances of getting pregnant, as they’ve been shown to help ensure a regulated menstrual cycle and regulated ovulation. Irregular ovulation accounts for 30 to 40 percent of all cases of infertility, and having irregular periods or no periods at all often indicates ovulation is absent. Although anovulation can usually be treated with fertility drugs, it is important to be evaluated for other conditions that could interfere with ovulation, such as thyroid conditions or pituitary gland malfunction causing hormonal imbalances.

Chasteberry or vitex (vitex agnus-castus) is one such fertility-promoting herb. Known as Monk’s Pepper in Germany, women in Europe have used vitex for centuries to increase their odds of conception, as well as treating symptoms associated with hormonal imbalance. Vitex helps stimulate and stabilise the reproductive hormones involved in ovulation, menstrual cycle balance, and menstrual regularity.

Maca Lepidium is a cruciferous vegetable found in the Peruvian Andes, growing in some of the harshest farmlands in the world. It handles freezing temperatures, fierce winds, and intense sunlight to provide 31 different minerals and 60 different phytonutrients to support the endocrine system. Maca helps support the pituitary, adrenal and thyroid glands, all of which are involved in hormone balance and fertility.

Finally, don’t sweat the small stuff. It can be stressful and frustrating if you’re struggling to conceive, and that’s completely natural and understandable. But having a stressful job, working long hours and generally stressing out on top of this could be increasing the time it takes you to get pregnant. All sorts of hormonal changes happen when we’re chronically stressed, so take some time to chill on the other areas of your life and seek out support and counselling if necessary.