According to Womenshealth.gov, problems with ovulation, physical problems with the uterus, or uterine fibroids or blocked fallopian tubes cause difficulty in conceiving or staying pregnant for approximately 10 percent of women, between the ages of 15 and 44, in the United States.
Sources such as American Society for Reproductive Medicine guide for patients state that one third of women who are over 35 or who have waited until 35 to have a child, stand the likelihood of not being able to conceive! If you want to boost your fertility naturally and increase your odds of conceiving, there are a number of poignant tips that you can follow to help you get that much-desired baby bump.
Improve Your Nutrition
This is the most important step to help you get pregnant. In these modern times, undernourishment is a major problem in many people, despite being overweight. If your body does not have the basic foundation required to sustain a pregnancy, it simply will not allow a pregnancy to take place or continue. In an attempt to lose weight and increase health, many women go on a high-fiber, low fat diet.
Studies have shown that weight loss can help to increase fertility, but losing weight with this type of diet rarely works to increase fertility as the body is deprived of essential fats and proteins required for the production of hormones.
To optimize fertility, try out these nutritional tips:
- Increase your intake of healthy fats, especially from sources such as avocado, butter, coconuts and coconut oil, eggs, grass-fed meats, nuts, and olive oil.
- Keep away from processed grains, sugars, and starches, and any other processed foods. Include more nutrient-dense carbohydrates in your diet, such as vegetables, starchy sources like squash and sweet potatoes and some fruits.
- Make sure you get enough protein, especially from eggs, grass-fed meats and nuts. This is especially important during pregnancy since when you obtain adequate protein, you can prevent certain pregnancy complications.
- Eat plenty of vegetables, especially those that are green and leafy such as broccoli, spinach, kale, lettuce, collard, brussel sprouts, chard, cauliflower, cabbage, etc.
- Drink plenty of water. Proper hydration plays an important role in many different functions in the body, including fertility.
- Keep a check on insulin levels. Even if you do not have type II diabetes, a high-carb diet is often closely associated with some level of insulin resistance. When you optimize dietary factors, your body will become more sensitive to insulin, which in turn will improve hormone production and the proper functioning of the body.
Live a Healthy Lifestyle
We all know that habits such as smoking, high caffeine, and drug use can have a severely adverse effect on fertility. Other lifestyle factors play a role as well, including age, lack of sleep, lack of exercise (or excessive exercise), exposure to harmful chemicals, high stress levels, and certain medications or supplements.
You can increase fertility by making a few lifestyle changes such as:
- Get enough proper sleep – The production of many hormones depends a lot on sleep. According to studies, women with low serotonin and melatonin levels have a shorter luteal phase, i.e. time between ovulation and menstruation. This consequently leads to a lower chance of conceiving. Also, lack of sleep prevents the body from properly regulating adrenaline, insulin and cortisol, which in turn makes conception very difficult.
- Make sure that you obtain enough sleep every day, including taking some naps, to increase your chances of getting pregnant even if you are over 35. A few hours of recreational activity, like walking, swimming or fun sports, every week and a few weight training sessions can do you a world of good. Too much regular moderate or intensive exercise will prevent ovulation. As mentioned earlier, weight loss can help fertility, but keep in mind, that when you have too little body fat i.e. below 15-18 percent, your body can go into an anovulatory state.
- Lower Your Stress Levels – For someone who is going through the emotions based on the failure of being fertile is easier said than done. You have probably been advised to relax to increase your chances of getting pregnant. While this does not work for everyone, it is an astute idea to reduce stress. Try relaxing activities to help with the various physical causes of stress and it may help with your fertility issues.
Apart from this, minimize exposure to chemicals. Many women notice improvement when they limit exposure to conventional beauty and cosmetic products, plastic water bottles, and household chemicals. Also, check with your doctor to find out if you are taking any medications that could adversely affect fertility. Antidepressants and steroids have been known to do so, as well as medications that affect or contain hormones.
Herbs and Supplements
Your diet and lifestyle can help in reversing infertility, but some women notice better and faster results when they take herbs and natural supplements, especially women over 35 who are trying to conceive. Cod liver oil is an excellent supplement for improving fertility, a healthy pregnancy, and benefits a developing baby as well.
Some herbs are highly recommended for improving fertility, such as a red raspberry leaf, dandelion, nettle leaf, alfalfa, Maca, red clover, and chaste tree berry or Vitex. Nutrients that promote fertility include B-vitamins, Vitamin C, Vitamin D, folate, selenium, and zinc.
Using all-natural methods to help you get pregnant is the best avenue to take. They improve your general overall health and ensure that your body is all set and ready for the little bundle of joy that will soon enter your life.
