Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data shows that birth rates have been declining for women in their teens to early 30s, while women in their early 40s are showing an increase in birth rate. This data suggests that more and more women are waiting until their mid 30s to early 40s to start growing their families. While there are many reasons to do that, such as gaining education, career demands, and self-explorations, the female biology does not support that lifestyle and as a result we see a worldwide growth in the cases of infertility.
One of the reasons we see this growth is the fact that females, unlike the males, have all their eggs at birth and cannot produce more eggs later in life. Those eggs quantity and quality decline with age, resulting in fewer chances to conceive. Although there is no way to produce new eggs, there are plenty of ways to improve the quality of the eggs that are going to be selected and used in your next menstruation cycle.
Studies show that improving the quality of your eggs can dramatically improve your chances to conceive, whether you are using Artificial Reproductive Technology or trying to conceive naturally.
A large body of research suggests that improving females’ lifestyle, food intake, supplements and mindset, has a dramatic effect on birth rate.
See below for further information and techniques that were scientifically proven to increase your chances to conceive:
Lifestyle improvements that can increase your chances to conceive: Reducing chemical from the environment were shown to dramatically improve your chances to conceive. Those chemicals can be found in your food, perfume, shampoo, body wash, humidifier, plastics you use as food containers or drinks and cleaning or garden products.
Things you should consider doing to avoid environmental chemicals:
Wash fruit and vegetables to remove pesticides, fungicides, herbicides and other chemicals that may have been sprayed on them.
Eat fewer processed, canned, pre-packaged foods. Limit the amount of oily fish (salmon, tuna, sardines) and fatty meats you eat as pesticides, heavy metals and fat-soluble chemicals can accumulate in these animals.
Drink from glass or hard plastic bottles, rather than soft plastic bottles. Heat food in a china or glass bowl and cover it with a paper towel or a plate rather than using soft plastic takeaway containers.
Avoid air fresheners, smoke, strong chemicals, heavily perfumed products, plastic smells and fumes.
Open windows to bring fresh air into your home.
Avoid pesticides and herbicides in the garden, at work or in the home. Instead, try using ‘green chemicals’, which use non-toxic agents to reduce pests and weeds.
Avoid detergents, hand sanitizers, cleaning products, and carpet cleaners or strong chemicals like glues, paints, and varnishes which contain all types of chemicals. If you can, replace them with ‘green products’ which have non-toxic agents.
Read the labels on cosmetics, shampoos, conditioners, hair colorings and body washes and choose products that don’t have parabens.
Read the labels on food products and avoid those with additives, preservatives and anti-bacterial agents.
Food intake and supplements can increase your chances to conceive: You are what you eat! Eating a wholesome diet, full of natural nutrients and vitamins was shown to improve both eggs and sperm quality and to increase your chances to conceive.
Some fertility superfoods you should consider eating are: sunflower seeds, citrus fruits, beans and lentils, asparagus, egg yolks and walnuts.
When it comes to supplements, OBGYN doctors recommend prenatal vitamins to every woman who is planning to get pregnant or actively trying (in addition to women who are already pregnant or nursing, that is).
Here are some important ingredients that should definitely be in your prenatal if you want to increase your egg quality and your chances to conceive:
Folate: B vitamin that supports healthy development of the baby’s brain. Vitamin B12 and B6: These two other B vitamins are recommended for the preconception period, based on few studies that suggest a possible correlation between consistent intake of these two B vitamins and normal ovulation and conception.
Zinc, selenium, iodine: While there is a wide range of minerals involved in reproductive processes, zinc, selenium and iodine were previously shown to be particularly essential. All three are involved in the proper functioning of the thyroid glands, which play a wide role in women’s reproductive processes, from hormonal regulation to egg maturation to thickening of the endometrium.
Antioxidants: Although ovarian follicles naturally contain a whole host of antioxidant vitamins and enzymes, these are often diminished in women in their 40s. To support a healthy antioxidant defense system for women 40+, doctors recommend a few antioxidants, such as Vitamin C and Vitamin E.
CoQ10: in addition to standard prenatal vitamins, if you are going to add just one other supplement, make it Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10). Studies have suggested that CoQ10 levels decline with age. For women over 40, doctors recommend adding CoQ10 to their daily consumption.
Vitamin D: Unrecognized deficiency of Vitamin D is one of the four unexpected obstacles to pregnancy today. Checking your vitamin D levels are highly recommended in general and while trying to conceive in particular.
Disclosure: You should consult with your doctor before making any changes to your daily supplements consumption.
Mindfulness techniques that may increase your chances to conceive: Studies show that what affects infertile couples the most during their journey to parenthood is their mindset. One’s mindset, resulting from his/her beliefs, schemas and attitude affects the way information is being processed in the brain and the way he/she perceives life. It appears that the individual’s beliefs about infertility will determine their mind and body reaction and can affect both their mental and hormonal state.
According to few recent studies, infertility was found to be correlated with psychological consequences. For some women, infertility can be perceived as a major crisis and as a result can activate a psychological stress reaction that can cause emotional stress and various negative psychological reactions, such as depression, worry, anger, shame, jealousy, loneliness, despair, low self-esteem, emotional instability, feelings of sexual inadequacy, sexual dysfunction and reduced sexual satisfaction.
Therefore, it is extremely important to pay attention to any early signs of stress and it is why we, at Eve Fertility, put so much effort in supporting the mindset of our clients. Making sure they practice mindfulness, have enough emotional support and guidance.
It was well documented that few mindfulness techniques can dramatically improve the well being of both females and males.
The intervention is based on a stress management technique and its main objective is to increase the person’s ability to cope with stress. This results in strengthening both the psychological and physical well being.
Recommended mindfulness techniques that were found to reduce stress levels in infertile couples include relaxation, acupuncture, breathing techniques, biofeedback, counseling, meditation, dream interpretation and self exploration work, support-group, yoga, exercise, etc.
With Love;
Heather Sharfi, PhD
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