Eat to Improve Fertility

If you're trying to improve your fertility, you'll want to consider a variety of lifestyle changes, such as quitting smoking, not drinking alcohol, and eating an appropriate diet. Men who are trying to develop more fertile sperm and women who are trying to conceive may be able to increase their fertility by adjusting their diet. However, dietary adjustments should be coupled with fertility treatments to improve your overall fertility.

Steps

Understanding the Science Behind a Fertility Diet

1. Be aware that having a balanced, healthy diet does not guarantee higher fertility. There are many online sources and several books that claim that switching to a more balanced and healthy diet can lead to improved fertility. Though it is always beneficial to eat a healthy diet, it should not replace other fertility treatments and options. However, maintaining a healthy diet and lifestyle may reduce a woman's risk of irregular ovulation and could improve her chances of getting pregnant.
2. Keep in mind fertility diets may only work for a small subsection of women. During the scientific study of fertility diets, the trials were focused on a specific condition found in infertile women: ovulatory dysfunction, or irregular ovulation. Women who have ovulatory dysfunction may benefit from adjustments to their diet if they want to try to get pregnant.
   • For example, one study done by the Nurses’ Health Study tested over 18,000 women who were trying to get pregnant over an eight-year period. Only about 400 of these women were diagnosed with infertility related to irregular ovulation. Thus, the study linking nutrition and fertility was in fact only based on a very small number of women in the test group and may not be applicable to women who do not have irregular ovulation.
3. Talk to your doctor about your fertility treatment options. Before you try a fertility diet, speak to your physician about other medical options to treat fertility issues or infertility. There are several certified medical procedures to help you get pregnant, as well as other options to help improve your chances of getting pregnant.
   • You may be a good candidate for fertility drugs that will help regulate your ovulation. Your doctor may also suggest in vitro fertilization, intrauterine insemination, embryo testing, or reproductive immunology.

Adjusting Your Diet

1. Maintain a healthy weight. If you are overweight or underweight, your natural hormone levels could be thrown off, and this could lead to irregular or suppressed ovulation. Focus on maintaining a weight that is considered healthy for your height and body type.
   • If you have health issues like a thyroid problem, talk to your doctor about your treatment options. Try to avoid unnecessary weight gain to prevent irregular ovulation.
   • If you are overweight, losing just 5% of your body weight -- around 10 pounds if you weigh 200 pounds -- can help increase blood flow to your reproductive organs and boost your fertility.
2. Take a folic acid supplement if you have irregular periods. Folic acid is an essential nutrient for pregnant women and it can help to improve your chances of conceiving if you have irregular ovulation. However, only take the prescribed dosage of folic acid and maintain a healthy weight as well to keep your ovulation regular and consistent.
   • One major study of the effects of folic acid on women found that taking folic acid supplements can lead to a higher conception level and a higher likelihood of having twins.
   • Men can also benefit from folic acid supplements, as these can help to improve the quality of sperm.
3. Keep your insulin levels down by eating a heart-healthy diet. The insulin levels in your body can affect your sex-hormone binding globulin. This can then affect the amount of free androgen in your body, if you are a woman. Having too much free androgen can suppress your ovulation. Based on this logic, a heart-healthy diet can help to reduce your insulin levels and possibly lead to improved fertility. Low insulin levels can also benefit fertility in men as it can affect the quality of the sperm in men. A heart-healthy diet consists of:
   • Little to no red meat. The women who participated in the Nurses’ Health Study who had the highest intake of animal protein such as red meat had 39% more ovulatory infertility than women who ate lower amounts of animal protein. Some nutritionists also claim an excessive intake of animal protein could affect the sperm quality in a man.
   • A higher quantity of beans, nuts, legumes, and tempeh. Plant-based proteins like beans and other legumes, tempeh, and nuts will give your body lots of iron and folate. Both of these nutrients can help encourage egg development and ovulation.
   • A small amount of full-fat dairy. Overall, the healthy heart diet advises a low dairy intake, but a small amount of full-fat dairy by consuming yogurt, milk, or cheese, may improve your fertility. The participants in the Nurses’ Health Study who ate one to two servings of full-fat dairy had better ovulation than those who ate fat-free dairy. Some research suggests fat-free milk changes the balance of sex hormones in women, which can in turn affect their ovulation.
4. Avoid trans fats. Trans fat are often found in prepackaged baked goods, fried foods, junk foods, and some animal products can increase your body’s ability to produce insulin. Having high insulin levels can cause metabolic disturbances that may also affect your ovulation.
5. Consume more complex carbohydrates.Focus on eating complex carbohydrates that contain fiber, like fruits, vegetables, beans, and whole grains. It takes your body more time to digest complex carbs so they have a more gradual effect on your blood sugar and your insulin levels. Some studies have shown women who have diets high in less complex carbs like cookies, cakes, white bread and white rice are 92% more likely to have ovulation fertility issues than women who had diets high in complex carbs.

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Sources and Citations

See also

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• Prepare Yourself for a Healthy Pregnancy at 35 Years Old
• Tell Implantation Symptoms from PMS Symptoms
• Raise the Chances of Having a Boy
• Increase Fertility in Men

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