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When you think about having a baby, the first thing that comes to mind is hormones. Of course hormones play a major role in getting pregnant and maintaining a pregnancy but there is so much more to it than that.
Here are just a few other things to consider when wanting to start a family:
Diet:
Poor diet and nutrition is one of the leading causes of infertility in both men and women.
The lack of good nutrition can make a person either overweight or underweight, and it can cause organs to function improperly. While couples can't control all the causes of infertility, they can control their eating habits. And, nutrition and a healthy body weight for both partners can have a significant impact on the ability to conceive. Vitamins gained through good diet, such as B6 and B12, are integral to energy metabolism and cellular function.
Researchers from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Harvard Medical School have just published a review of past studies that examined the impact of diet on fertility. Here's what they found.
For women trying to become pregnant naturally (without "assistive reproductive technologies" such as in vitro fertilization), the following vitamins and nutrients were linked to positive effects on fertility:
· Folate (Vitamin B9)
· Vitamin B12
· omega-3 fatty acids
· Healthy diets
Trans fat and "unhealthy diets" (those "rich in red and processed meats, potatoes, sweets, and sweetened beverages") were found to have negative effects.
It is said that eating according to your blood type can help you get slim, stay healthy and fight off disease. The food you eat reacts chemically with your blood type and the incorrect reaction can cause inflammation and discomfort in your body. Eating foods with lectins (a type of protein) that are not compatible with your blood type can cause blood cell clumping and can result in health problems such as kidney disease, heart issues, hypertension, infertility and diabetes — and that it can also cause weight gain and difficulty losing weight.
Inflammation is connected to quite a few diet and lifestyle factors. By making some changes in these areas, you can reduce inflammation in the body, lower your risk of disease, and help your body shed excess weight.
Here is how to eat according to your blood type to help reduce inflammation.
TYPE A : People with type A blood are more prone to heart disease, cancer and diabetes and a meat free diet is suggested. Load up on fruits and vegetables, beans, legumes and whole grains for optimum health.
TYPE B : People with type B blood are more susceptible to autoimmune disorders, such as chronic fatigue, lupus, and multiple sclerosis. They however, do have a robust immune system and a tolerant digestive system. It is best to avoid corn, wheat, buckwheat, lentils, tomatoes, peanuts, and sesame seeds. Chicken can also be problematic. Eating green vegetables, eggs, certain meats, and low-fat dairy are good choices.
TYPE AB : People with type AB blood tend to have lower rates of allergies, but heart disease, cancer, and anemia are common. Foods to focus on include tofu, seafood, dairy, and green vegetables. People with type AB blood tend to have low stomach acid so it is best to avoid caffeine, alcohol, and smoked or cured meats.
TYPE O: People with type O blood tend to suffer with tummy issues as well as hayfever, asthma and other allergies. Type O do best with animal proteins, while dairy products and grains may cause problems. Gluten, lentils, kidney beans, corn, and cabbage can lead to weight gain in people with this blood type.
It is an easy change to make to eat according to your blood type and will change the way your body feels and looks.
Digestion:
There’s a link between fertility and gut health, and when your gut is unhealthy, you can experience problems with conception. In fact, gut imbalances can directly affect ovulation, ovary health, the fertilization process, the chances of implantation, and more. This occurs because the gut microbiome can be considered an endocrine organ in itself. It frequently interacts with sex hormones such as testosterone, androgen, estrogen, and estradiol, which support your reproductive health. Thus, when your gut health is compromised, the resulting sex hormone imbalances can lead to reproductive disorders or infertility.
An imbalanced gut microbiome can contribute to the following reproductive health conditions:
· Cancers
· Irregular Periods
· Vaginal Infections
· Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)
· Endometriosis
It’s important to note that poor gut health doesn’t only affect women. In men, poor gut health can affect sperm quality, which can lead to a double dose of fertility difficulties. The microbiome can affect the body’s ability to produce sperm, which could affect his ability to conceive with you.
It’s important to remember that the importance of gut health doesn’t diminish once you conceive. In fact, poor gut health can cause issues with pregnancy and inhibit embryonic development. Researchers have revealed that the important “good” microbes in the gut are also present in the reproductive tract, including the vagina, uterus, and even the placenta that nourishes the fetus.
As a result, disturbances in the gut microbiota can cause disruptions in the microbiota in the reproductive tract.
Stress and Lifestyle:
Approximately 10 to 15% of couples are impacted by infertility. Recently, the pivotal role that lifestyle factors play in the development of infertility has generated a considerable amount of interest. Lifestyle factors are the modifiable habits and ways of life that can greatly influence overall health and well-being, including fertility.
Many lifestyle factors such as the age at which to start a family, nutrition, weight, exercise, psychological stress, environmental and occupational exposures, and others can have substantial effects on fertility; lifestyle factors such as cigarette smoking, illicit drug use, and alcohol and caffeine consumption can negatively influence fertility while others such as preventative care may be beneficial.
While it's unlikely that stress alone can cause infertility, stress interferes with a woman's ability to get pregnant. Research has shown that women with a history of depression are twice as likely to experience infertility. Anxiety also can prolong the time needed to achieve pregnancy.
Several recent studies have found links between the women’s levels of day-to-day stress and lowered chances of pregnancy. For example, women whose saliva had high levels of alpha-amylase, an enzyme that marks stress, took 29% longer to get pregnant compared to those who had less.
Your body is smart, it knows that periods of stress aren’t good times to have a baby
At the same time, stressed women probably may be more likely to smoke or drink too much alcohol or caffeine which do not help.
Stress hormones such as cortisol disrupt signaling between the brain and the ovaries, which can trip up ovulation.
Iron and Oxygen Levels:
Research has started to unveil a potential connection between iron deficiency and issues related to fertility. It appears that iron deficiency may affect a woman's capacity to conceive and sustain a healthy pregnancy. A lack of sufficient iron can lead to weakened egg health and anovulation, both of which can contribute to fertility complications.
Additionally, studies indicate that iron deficiency could disrupt the menstrual cycle, potentially leading to fertility problems.
Iron deficiency anemia is a prevalent health condition that arises when your body doesn't have enough iron to produce hemoglobin. Hemoglobin is the protein in red blood cells responsible for carrying oxygen throughout your body. When hemoglobin levels drop due to iron deficiency, it can result in symptoms like fatigue, weakness, pale skin, and difficulty concentrating.
During pregnancy, the body needs up to three times more iron to support the fetus's development. Iron deficiency during pregnancy can lead to complications like low birth weight, preterm labor, and even miscarriage. Thus, maintaining adequate iron levels is critical.
Overall Health:
The liver produces the bile that helps you digest fats, and the gallbladder stores it until it's required for digestion. Because it’s been stored, the bile in your gallbladder is more concentrated than the bile secreted by the liver. Bile is an important component in the elimination of estrogen and its metabolites through the liver, so sluggish function (or even worse, no gallbladder at all) often leads to sluggish hormone elimination and resultant hormone symptoms.
Here’s how the gallbladder and hormones are connected:
· Hormonal Disruption: Gallbladder problems can disrupt hormonal balance. For example, gallstones can cause estrogen dominance, leading to heavier and more painful periods.
· Stress and Inflammation: Chronic inflammation, often seen in gallbladder disease, can trigger stress in the body, affecting the regularity of the menstrual cycle.
· Nutrient Malabsorption: Gallbladder issues can impair the digestion and absorption of essential nutrients. Deficiencies in vitamins like B and D can lead to menstrual irregularities.
Vitamin D:
There was a study in 2012 that was called Infertility Unit of the Fondazione Ca' Granda at Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico that discovered women with sufficient levels of vitamin D were nearly twice as likely to conceive compared with those who had decreased levels of vitamin D.
Two additional studies that have also shown vitamin D is associated with higher pregnancy rates including one study that showed those with a normal vitamin D level were four times more likely to get pregnant compared to those who had a lower vitamin D levels.
Some studies have shown that women who have lower levels of vitamin D are associated with PCOS and uterine fibroids. Vitamin D assists in the production of the anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH), which is the measure of a woman’s ovarian reserve.
Increasing your Vitamin D intake can potentially improve your egg quality, which would help your chances of conceiving.
Bacteria:
Bacterial infections can cause infertility in males & females both. Let’s take a look:
Chlamydia
Chlamydia is one of the most common STIs in women, especially in young women. Painful urination is one of the symptoms, but the disease is most often asymptomatic. Chlamydia can affect the genitals, urinary tract, and eyes. If left untreated, it can lead to blindness, infertility, pelvic inflammatory disease, and ectopic pregnancy. It also poses a high risk to the health of infants born to infected mothers.
Gonorrhea
People diagnosed with Gonorrhea are at risk of serious complications. If left untreated, the disease can cause inflammation of the uterus and lead to infertility. A pregnant woman can also pass the infection on to her child. Also, infection in pregnant women can lead to premature labor and delivery as well as permanent blindness in the newborn.
Trichomoniasis
Trichomoniasis is the most common curable STI. The organism Trichomonas vaginalis is a parasite that lives in the lower genital tract and is usually transmitted during sexual intercourse. It is problematic because it can infest areas not covered by the condom, which therefore does not fully protect against infection.
People of both sexes can get trichomoniasis. Symptoms vary from person to person, but many people who are infected do not know they have it and are therefore at risk of transmitting the infection.
Trichomoniasis can increase the risk of contracting or transmitting other STIs such as HIV, and pregnant women with them are at risk of having premature babies and low birth weight.
So many areas of the body are connected to how your body will conceive and carry a baby and it is important that you take care of all of them. Yes, fertility meds have their place but if the rest of the body is not happy it can substantially decrease your chances.
At Essential Health Wellness Centre, we look at the body as a whole and treat imbalanced areas to make sure your body is working in all areas – that in turn leads to a healthy body that can conceive or carry a new life.
We also do DNA GrowBaby Gene testing. So if you want to check before falling pregnant what you need to be cautious about when falling pregnant, or if you are struggling to conceive, or if you are having miscarriage's etc then this DNA test is for you.
So either way we can definitely help you with fertility.
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