Infertility – If a couple has regular, unprotected sex for at least a year and still cannot conceive, the partners are considered infertile. For the last few decades, the rate of infertility in the United States has increased. It is estimated that between 16 and 25 percent of all couples have serious difficulty getting pregnant. Poor nutrition, stress, environmental toxins, and an increase in STDs from more partners have all contributed to the problem. Also delaying childbirth until the 30s and 40s, when a woman’s fertility is on the decline, can be a factor.

Possible causes:

  • Low thyroid function
  • Hormonal imbalance
  • Sperm abnormalities (accounts for 40 percent of infertility cases)
  • Blocked fallopian tubes
  • Eating health-issues, particularly anorexia
  • Toxic metals
  • Obesity
  • Overly intense exercise
  • Nutritional deficiency (zinc and magnesium especially)
  • Medical conditions such as endometriosis or polycystic ovary syndrome

Diet

Good proteins and good fats (olive oil, virgin coconut oil) are key. What you don’t eat matters just as much as what you do eat! Organic fruits and vegetables are high in fiber which aids in cleansing the body. Consume cold water fish and pastured meats for essential fatty acids, and foods rich in Vitamin E, which nourishes the endocrine system.

Seaweed like kelp and nori help boost low thyroid function, which can be related to fertility. The hormonal system uses seaweed to repair tissue, regenerate cells and create hormones such as estrogen.

Beans are loaded with fiber and protein, which help fortify your digestive system and bring nutrients to reproductive tissues.

Fish contain essential fatty acids (linoleic and alpha-linolenic acid), which are essential to every cell in our body. They are also necessary for ovulation, in the process of releasing the egg and allowing the development of the corpus luteum, ovarian tissue that plays a critical role in early pregnancy. Fish can also help manage endometriosis, a condition that can cause infertility. High mercury fish can interrupt ovulation so go for safer choices like wild-caught salmon.

Broccoli and Cabbage contain a compound that stimulates more efficient use of estrogen by increasing the metabolism of estradiol, a sex hormone necessary for fertility and reproductive health. Inefficient metabolism of estradiol could have negative fertility effects.

Caffeine consumption has been linked to fertility problems, including miscarriage.

Drink filtered water only (no plastic bottles!).

Consuming trans fats hidden in foods such as French fries, potato chips, doughnuts, chocolate, and thousands of other foods may increase your risk of infertility by as much as 70 percent. Scientists from the Harvard University School of Public Health advise women wanting to get pregnant to avoid all trans fats. Trans fats are added only to improve shelf life. Read your labels! Trans fats are mostly listed as ‘hydrogenated fat’ or ‘hardened vegetable fat’ or just ‘vegetable fat.’2

There is a proven link between food intolerances and anti-sperm antibodies. Studies have found that women with multiple allergies and food intolerances were more likely to miscarry. An overactive immune system is more likely to attack its own body cells. From an immunological point of view an embryo and sperm cell are foreign bodies. Our immune systems, however, are programmed to distinguish between a foreign body and a sperm cell or embryo. A normal and healthy immune response to an embryo or sperm cell is orchestrated by Th2 cytokines. They suppress your killer cells (that’s what they are called) to leave the embryo unharmed. An abnormal immune response to the implantation of the fertilized egg is orchestrated by Th1 cytokines. Rather than suppressing your killer cells they stimulate their activity. This can lead to defects and the loss of the fetus.2

The two most widely spread food intolerances are gluten and dairy. An IgG immunoglobulin test can be done to find out if you are dairy and gluten intolerant. Many people have some level of allergy to one, the other, or both, so it is wise to avoid cow dairy (goat is okay) and gluten altogether during the preconception and pregnancy period.

Exercise

While exercise is beneficial for fertility, vigorous exercise for women at a normal weight may be preventing pregnancy. According to a study led by U.S. and Danish researchers, moderate physical activity was associated with a small increase in fertility rates amount all women, but higher levels of vigorous exercise were associated with lower fertility rates in normal-weight women, but not over-weight or obese women. According to the study author Lauren Wise, ‘”Other studies of competitive female athletes suggest that intense workouts disturb women’s monthly menstrual cycles and lead to a lack of ovulation and even the absence of menstrual periods, among other problems, Wise said. But, she added, high-intensity exercise might also impair implantation when a fertilized egg attaches to the wall of the uterus.”

Supplement Program 

1. Virgin Cod Liver Oil or Extra Virgin Cod Liver Oil

Omega-3 fatty acids stabilize hormone function.

2. C-Salts Buffered Vitamin C

Vitamin C prevents sperm agllutination in men and helps with female infertility.

3. B-Complex Plus

B-vitamin deficiencies are often present with infertility.

4. Cordyceps CS4

Cordyceps has clinical evidence suggests that it has a beneficial impact on female fertility and the success of IVF. This may be due to its ability to stimulate 17β-estradiol production, through increased StAR (steroidogenic acute regulatory protein) and aromatase expression20.

5. Zinc Picolinate

Zinc is concentrated in sperm.

*If you are getting pregnant but the baby never progresses to a heartbeat, contact us for more information.

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