Boosting Your Fertility

Have a read here for a full nutritional plan and listen to a series of infertility expert interviews

PUREHEALTH PRECONCEPTION PLAN

This plan is the one I have been using for years and is designed to get your body into optimum health, to ensure you conceive naturally or to encourage the success of assisted conception.

It is based on well-researched methods, proven in trials to increase the success rate of IVF treatment from 15% to over 49%.

You should stay on the plan for a minimum of 4 months; it takes 3 months for new sperm and eggs to be produced. It will mean better quality eggs and sperm, and fertilisation and implanting is more likely to be successful.

The basics are:

• Eat a healthy diet
• Check and correct your nutritional status
• Adopt a healthy lifestyle
• Get screened for infection
• Avoid environmental toxins

The Plan

1. If you have time, complete a cellular or homeopathic detox to build a good foundation for health. Ask me for the detox guidelines (I can't put them on here.)

2. Follow the Purehealth Wellbeing Diet as closely as possible. To make it even better, avoid all wheat and dairy - choose the How To Eat Well recipe book for help on this as it combines the healthy eating principles with wheat and dairy-free.

3. Have a hair mineral analysis if appropriate to check for high levels of toxic metals in your body.

4. Test to see if you are digesting and absorbing properly. (Ask me for a home test sheet). For more info on this, see here.

5. Have a vitamin and mineral screen (using hair or blood) to check for excesses and deficiencies, especially of Zinc and Copper.

6. Follow the advice and supplement regimen given to you to correct 3, 4 and 5 above.

7. At the very least, your supplement programme should include the following:

an ante-natal formula ( my faves are NHP Fertility Plus for Women and Biocare's Ante Natal Forte)

30mg Zinc per day (total)

1g linseed/flaxseed oil per day

1g Vitamin C per day

Other useful items might include probiotics, agnus castus etc depending on your needs.

8. The father-to-be should take an ante-natal formula for men which should include 1g of arginine per day and 3-400iu Vitamin E per day, zinc, folic acid and carnitine. Try NHP's Fertility Plus for Men.

9. Avoid smoking, drinking alcohol and social drugs as much as possible.

10. Avoid over the counter medications as much as possible, unless absolutely necessary. Talk to your GP about the necessity of prescribed drugs and any possible effect on fertility.

11. Men should wear loose underwear and trousers, take showers, not baths, avoid sitting down for long periods without taking a brief walk and avoid riding a bike.

12. Ensure both of you are checked for any genito-urinary infections. Tests should be carried out for chlamydia, cytomegalovirus, mycoplasmas, rubella, toxoplasmosis, genital herpes, garderella, anaerobic bacteria, Group B haemolytic streptococci, klebsiella and candida. This can often be done via your GP, fertility or GU Clinic as part of a routine test.

13. If infections are present, take the antibiotics given, but also a strong probiotic such as Biocare's Bioacidophilus Forteand check again afterwards to see if the infection has cleared up.

14. Avoid toxins. Choose green and non-toxic toiletries and cleaning products. Don’t dye your hair or have a perm, don’t decorate. Filter your water. Buy organic, especially meat and fish and avoid using plastic as much as possible as they contain xenooestrogens that affect your hormone balance. Avoid dental work if possible. See the  sections here  and here for help with this.

15. At the end of the 4 months, have your nutrient levels/toxic metal levels reassessed to ensure they are back to normal or establish whether more work needs to be done.

For supplies of any products mentioned, click here.

Important

Remember - always check out with your health practitioner or GP before starting anything new especially if you are taking any other medicines, are pregnant or trying to conceive or have high blood pressure. See here for more advice on interactions with meds and general cautions.