FERTILITY IN WOMEN

 

           FERTILITY IN WOMEN



This is a sensitive topic in the health and wellness space.

Nowadays there is a huge burden of infertility all over the world. There is an increase in the rates of IVF about 5-10% every year.

Fertility is declining year after year yet it’s not given the attention it deserves.

In my practice as a Nutritionist, I get to handle a lot of women with issues like difficulty getting pregnant, lack of ovulation or hormonal imbalances that can be a threat to fertility.

Why there are increasing rates of infertility

-          Lack of preconception education

-          Processed vegetable and seed oils everywhere

-          Endocrine disrupters in everything like shady make-up products, fragrances

-          Food industry and the way they over process foods and make convenience foods

-          Long term hormonal contraceptives

-          Hustle culture and always on the   go

-          Overuse of medications and antibiotics

How we eat, move, sleep and manage our stress levels actually impacts our fertility.

Becoming fertile is based on successful regulation and abundance of energy in the body. The goal is to maintain homeostasis.

Preconception nutrition.

There’s a need to focus on egg & sperm quality for healthy pregnancy and healthy baby during preconception.

When trying to conceive, one need to look a number of factors like gut health to ensure maximum absorption of nutrients, your nutrient status, hormone balance, your mental or stress status and overall health to decrease inflammation.

Factors that can contribute to subfertility include;

-          Nutrient deficiencies

-          Gut health concerns

-          Adrenal imbalance

-          Low levels of progesterone

-          Inflammation

All these can cause stress in the body which can make it hard for the body to feel safe enough to recreate or reproduce.

A minimum of 100 days is what it takes to see a significant improvement in egg quality. This is a good time to start preparing for conception.

Tips to get you started on Fertility

1.      Focus on nutrient dense real foods.

These include variety of animal protein sources like beef liver, grass fed beef, eggs, quality dairy, fatty fish and also well soaked and cooked beams and pulses

Take easily digestible carbohydrates. These include root vegetables like sweet potatoes, irish potatoes, rice, quinoa, fruits etc

Don’t forget to add in healthy fats like real butter, olive oil, avocado, ghee or lard and avoid seed and vegetable oils which are ultra-processed and hard to digest.

 

Always combine protein, carbs and fats in your meals. This will nourish your body and help it feel safe to carry out key functions like boosting fertility and reproduction

 

2.      Eat within 1 hour of waking to avoid the risk of your body having to run on stress hormones. Always take a nutritious, savory breakfast before taking that coffee.

3.      Eat enough and at regular intervals. Avoid skipping meals and going long hours without eating. If you often wake up at night to pee or get distracted in your sleep you need to add a bedtime snack that has a combination protein and carbs.

4.       Help your body feel safe by intentionally managing stress, experiencing joy with friends

5.      Moderate exercises like daily walks and strength training. Avoid getting addicted to workouts and over exercising.

6.      Focus on 7-9 hours’ sleep. This supports our natural detox pathways and hormone balance

7.      Supplements. Some of the essential fertility nutrients include folate, vitamin B6, choline, Vitamin B12, omega 3, vitamin E, minerals, ubiquinol (co-enzyme Q10)

8.      Decrease toxic burdens by switching to more organic products.

 

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