People think they need some incredible treatments or drugs before they can get pregnant. But in most cases getting pregnant can be as simple as getting the timing right, avoiding the substances which harm your fertility and embryo and eating the right food from the start.
Always be very careful with your diet, there are so many things out there that can cause male and female fertility issues. I always recommend strict diet changes combined with my unique style of acupuncture and recommended supplements to improve the fertility engine in the body and get it to work more efficiently.
Diet
It amazes me how many people still consume food loaded with trans fats, and drink coffee and alcohol on a daily or weekly basis! This is going to get you into trouble quickly. Did you know that trans fats hidden in foods such as doughnuts, chocolate, chips, pies, takeaways and thousands of other foods can increase risk of fertility problems by 70%? Scientists from Harvard University School of Public Health recommend to women wanting to get pregnant to AVOID all trans fats.
Caffeine
Another favourite past time – COFFEE! “Let’s meet for a coffee” how often do you say that? How often do you drink coffee? It’s part of our culture, our way of life. We socialize and do business over coffee. We study and work nursing a cup of coffee. And while some studies are suggesting it’s good to have a cup of coffee a day to keep Alzheimer’s away, other much more important studies are telling us loud and clear: “Coffee decreases fertility and increases miscarriage risk!”. A large study from Connecticut found that consuming as little as 1 cup of coffee per day increases the risk of not conceiving by 55%! And if you have 2-3 cups per day that risk rises to 100% and continues to increase with an additional cup up to 176%!
And did you know that women who drank coffee before and during pregnancy had twice the risk of miscarriage? A study found that 2-3 cups of coffee a day doubles the risk of miscarriage. Since you are not in the age group where you should be concerned about Alzheimer’s disease, put that cup of coffee down and give it up for the time being. You’ll have to give it up when you get pregnant anyway so you might as well do it now and eliminate that risk factor straight away and boost you fertility by 50% immediately.
Easier said then done right? Yes, coffee is addictive and cravings, headaches and feeling tired and fuzzy headed don’t sound too appealing! But the truth is those are just the symptoms created by the toxins leaving your body. Your body finally got the chance to deal with the toxic substances when you stopped ingesting them. It’s a bit like cleaning the house after a party. You will not start cleaning the house during the party as you know it’s futile. Your body is the same, it likes to conserve energy and go about things wisely. It lets you pile up the toxins and when you stop it quickly goes to work to clean up the mess!
Headaches and cravings can be dealt with a good nap, a big glass of filtered water and a good dose of fresh air. So when you do decide to kick the coffee habit do it over the weekend or when you don’t have much on your plate.
Alcohol
And here is another favourite past time – ALCOHOL. “Can’t make it for coffee? Let’s have drinks tonight instead!” I bet you said that before. Who hasn’t? While it’s great to get merry in a circle of friends with a glass of your favourite drink in your hand, drinking is not so great if you are trying to get pregnant:
Scientists WARN us: Alcohol is very harmful to women’s eggs and men’s sperm before conception and as little as ONE glass can reduce fertility by 50%! This can further lead to damage of the developing embryo and result in a miscarriage. And although it’s been known for a long time that drinking while pregnant is a no-no, drinking BEFORE pregnancy has been completely ignored.
Smoking
This doesn’t stop with alcohol – smoking and consumption of recreational drugs can also severely reduce your conception odds.
A study tested the effects of cigarette smoking on semen quality of infertile men and found that sperm motility (ability to propel forward) decreased in light smokers while heavy smoking produced abnormal sperm shape.
Did you know that miscarriages more commonly occur when the male partner has lower sperm counts and nearly 50% visually abnormal sperm? And did you also know that 40% of all infertility cases are due to the male?
Drinking coffee, alcohol and smoking are detrimental to sperm quantity and quality. Scientists discovered that quitting smoking has increased the sperm count in men who quit smoking for 5-15 months by 50% -800% respectively!
It’s better to start with what you have direct control over and really focus on getting those things right, then rushing into the unfamiliar waters of treatments with low success rates and gigantic bills which only harm your health in the long run. Let’s face it and be really frank here; smoking, drinking alcohol and coffee and eating bad food will get you into trouble sooner or later. If it’s not fertility problems, then it’s premature ageing, excess weight, diabetes and all the horrible degenerative diseases that come in tow. Remember, it’s not about drugs and fixing it when it’s broken…it’s about prevention and allowing the body to heal itself naturally. That’s where acupuncture can help.