Diet and Lifestyle Can Affect Your Fertility

Thousands of women are declared perfectly healthy, but they still cannot get pregnant. One of the most common causes for the inability to conceive is ovulatory disorder, a condition with often unknown cause. Scientists found recently that poor diet and unhealthy lifestyle might be one of the main reasons for ovulatory disorder infertility.

ovulation, ovulation disorder, getting pregnantWhat is ovulatory disorder

Women suffering from ovulatory disorder have irregular periods or do not menstruate at all. Even if they get their period, their eggs do not develop well or are not being released from the ovaries. What causes this is not clear, but it can be often traced to eating disorders, insulin resistance, too much exercise or hormonal imbalance.

Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health, Department of Nutrition, worked for eight years with 17,544 women who did not have infertility history and were trying to become pregnant. The goal of this long-term study was to find the link between the ovulatory disorder and certain food choices and lifestyle.   Scientists paid particular attention to lifestyle factors and consumption of monounsaturated fats, vegetable protein, carbohydrates with low glycemic index and other nutrients, previously believed to lower the risk of ovulatory disorder.

Food and fertility

Scientists found that the increased popularity of ” Ëœfertility diets” ™ may be positively related to lowering the risk of ovulatory disorder and consequent infertility. A combination of ” Ëœfertility diet” ™, healthy weight and increased physical activity was found to lower the risk of female infertility due to the ovulatory disorder by 69 percents. What that really means is that 69 percents of cases of infertility due to the ovulatory disorder is preventable by making simple changes in nutrition and lifestyle.

Fertility diets have been around for a while, and a number of websites offers advice on what to eat in order to increase your chances of getting pregnant. A group of scientists ” “ Dr. Jorge E. Chavarro, Dr. Walter C. Willett, and Patrick J. Skerrett. ” “ published recently a book The Fertility Diet, offering detailed and scientifically supported advice on what ” Ëœfertility diet” ™ should consist of. They offer nutritional advice that is basically good to follow as a part of healthy lifestyle, regardless of our wish to get pregnant or not.

Dr. Chavarro and friends” ™ fertility diet

1. Eat healthy fats. Eliminating trans fats and using more vegetable (unsaturated) oils is good not only for fertility but for avoiding heart diseases, damage to blood vessels and improving insulin sensitivity. Nuts, vegetable oils, fish like salmon and sardines and nuts should be part of any healthy diet.

2. Eat protein from vegetables, not meat. Proteins from peas, beans, soy and nuts are found to improve fertility.

3. Carbs are important, but slow carbs are better choice. Foods rich in fiber, such as vegetables, whole grains, fruits and beans are rich in carbohydrates that are digested slowly, improving fertility, controlling blood glucose and insulin levels.

4. Got milk? Avoid skim milk while trying to get pregnant, it seems that it has negative effect. Whole milk is much better, so indulge in a glass of whole fat milk, yoghurt or ice cream daily.

5. Eat your iron. Iron-rich plants such as beans, spinach, tomatoes, pumpkin, beats and whole grains are all fertility boosters.

6. Drink a lot of water. Tea and coffee in moderation are fine, even a glass of wine occasionally. Stay away from sodas, they have been found to increase your risk of ovulatory infertility.

7. Keep your weight under control. Both overweight and underweight women are at higher risk of ovulatory infertility. Body mass index of 20 to 24 should be your goal.

8. Get off that couch. Regular exercise is found to improve female fertility, but overdoing it can create opposite effect.

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Chinenye
22. December 2017
Chinenye
22. December 2017
What do I do to get pregnant

deborah mc daid
6. December 2016
deborah mc daid
6. December 2016
jessica i do advocate the importance of drinking and eating full fat dairy products, and although you may think you know your job very well as an infertility practitioner, i can tell you that i struggled to get pregnant. I felt run down and tired on my government recommended diet of grains and fruit, so i went low carb, high fat and started consuming full fat versions of dairy products and now i feel wonderful, i have so much energy and my son is now a year and a half thanks to full fat dairy and ice cream so there you go. Your myth has been debunked

Jessica
21. September 2015
Jessica
21. September 2015
I am appalled that you are recommending ice cream to a woman trying to get pregnant. There is overwhelming research showing that dairy itself is not ideal for women with fertility concerns. Yet you recommend combining that dairy with sugar in an ice-cream instead of recommending dairy alternatives. I treat women with infertility every day, and I can promise you the answer is not whole milk and ice-cream. This is upsetting to see that practitioners are actually recommending this.

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Written by HealthStatus Team
Medical Writer & Editor

HealthStatus has been operating since 1998 providing the best interactive health tools on the Internet, millions of visitors have used our blood alcohol, body fat and calories burned calculators. The HealthStatus editorial team has continued that commitment to excellence by providing our visitors with easy to understand high quality health content for many years. Our team of health professionals, and researchers use peer reviewed studies as source elements in our articles. Our high quality content has been featured in a number of leading websites, USA Today, the Chicago Tribune, Live Strong, GQ, and many more.

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