Are you planning on trying for a baby?

Have you been trying to conceive with the same partner for more than one year?

Have you experienced a miscarriage or are currently going through IVF?

What is infertility?

Infertility is the inability to conceive with the same partner after one year of having unprotected intercourse. It is a major and increasing concern amongst 1 in 6 couples trying to conceive (Fertility Society of Australia and New Zealand, 2023). Absolute infertility is when there is no chance of conception, whereas subfertility is a reduced chance of conception.

About 30% of fertility problems in couples originate in the woman, 30% originate in the man and 30% are found in both partners. Unexplained infertility, meaning there is no cause found, occurs in about 1 in 10 couples.

Factors affecting fertility in Women

Hormonal disorders such as hypothalamic amenorrhoea, PCOS, PID, endometriosis and uterine fibroids have been found to be the main contributors to fertility in women.

Factors affecting fertility in Men

The main contributing factors in men include: absent sperm (azoospermia), low sperm count (oligospermia), poor sperm quality and shape, poor sperm motility, obstructions to the passage of sperm, erectile dysfunction and low testosterone levels.

Stress

Stress is also a major contributing factor. Baram et al. (2019) found that 50% of females rated their infertility as one of the most stressful times in their lives.

Other factors

Environmental toxins such as Bisphenol A (BPA), heavy metals and xeno-oestrogens

Drug use such as alcohol and smoking.

Infertility rates are on the rise and in addition to the statistics above, 25% of women have a miscarriage and 4% of children are born via assisted conception (Fertility Society of Australia and New Zealand, 2023).

Contributing factors include physiological imbalances, infections, stress, environmental toxins, alcohol and smoking, body composition and dietary factors.

The good news…

…getting to the source of the issue and addressing the contributing factors nutritionally may help improve chances of fertility and falling pregnant. Preconception care planning and addressing pre-existing and underlying health issues prior to pregnancy can improve pregnancy outcomes for the mother, foetus, and newborn.

What is Preconception Care?

This is the period of time where couples actively engage in optimising their health and wellbeing prior to trying to conceive.

The final stages of spermatogenesis takes 72 –76 days and the final stages of oocyte development takes ~100 days. Thus, your preconception care plan should start at least 6 months prior to conception as this will probably affect the health of your reproductive cells today.

Preconception planning aims to reduce adverse reproductive outcomes including:

1. those relating to a couples’ reproductive activity such as infertility and sub-fertility, spontaneous abortions, unwanted or untimed pregnancy.

2. pregnancy complications such as gestational diabetes, ectopic pregnancy, pre-eclampsia, placental abruption, premature rupture of membranes.

3. those pertaining to the foetus/newborn such as: congenital malformations, intra-uterine growth restriction, congenital disabilities (motor, sensorial, cognitive, behavioural), congenital tumours, SIDS, prematurity, chromosomal and monogenic genetic diseases.

The preconception period usually involves some medical or functional pathology to assess the baseline health of the couple.

Preconception planning can improve pregnancy outcomes for the mother, foetus, and newborn.

What does a preconception care plan include?

Weight management

Improving dietary patterns

Moderating discretionary foods

Limiting alcohol & caffeinated drinks

Reducing stress

Limiting exposure to environmental toxins

Increasing physical activity

Prenatal supplementation

If you are planning a pregnancy in the near future and would like help with preconception, I would love to work with you.