When you and your partner make the decision to have a baby, the initial excitement and happiness that you feel at the thought of conceiving can slowly turn into worry and anxiety if it doesn't happen right away. The deep desire to become a mom is like no other—it can be all-consuming and heart wrenching. And the waiting game...almost agonizing. Especially if you've had no success for a number of months or even years, or if you've experienced a miscarriage or still birth.
I know this because I've been there.
Although I'm a firm believer in relaxing, having fun, and letting nature take its course, I also know there's a good chance that simply improving the way you eat can boost your chances of becoming pregnant.
Whether you’re planning a pregnancy or struggling to conceive, here are some tips on how to boost your chances of conceiving and prepare your body for a healthy pregnancy:
Bridget Swinney, RD, author of "Eating Expectantly," mentions in her book that "One of the most important factors affecting fertility is weight. Conceiving is more difficult if you’re underweight or overweight. In fact, it’s believed that weight issues cause 12% of infertility." She goes on to explain that because fat cells produce estrogen, a hormone affecting ovulation, having too few (underweight) or two many (overweight) fat cells can negatively affect fertility. She suggests that it's a good idea to get as close as possible to your ideal weight before seeking help with fertility treatments because reaching a healthy weight alone may be enough to spur normal ovulation and a successful pregnancy.
Reaching a healthy weight prior to conceiving can also reduce the risk of birth complications and having a baby who is too large or too small at birth. Being overweight is also linked to Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS), which can cause insulin resistance, often resulting in difficulty conceiving and even infertility. Luckily, even a weight loss of 5-10% can dramatically improve someone's chances of conceiving.
Organic fruits and vegetables do not contain synthetic pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers and are not genetically modified (do not contain GMOs). Certified organic meats and poultry are free from hormones and antibiotics and are most often grass fed and pasture run. Because we don't know the how these chemicals or GMOs affect babies in utero, it's a good idea to eat organic whenever possible when you're pregnant and while trying to conceive.
When you cannot buy organic meats and poultry, search out grass-fed meat (perhaps from a local farm or farmers market). While I'm suggesting this, I realize that buying organic can be pricey and may not be realistic all the time. Focus on the “dirty dozen” (12 most chemically-contaminated fruits and veggies) and don’t worry so much about the “clean 15” (least contaminated fruits and veggies).
Get at least 3 colors of veggies and fruits per day (5 is ideal). The brighter and more colorful the vegetable or fruit, the higher the antioxidant and phytochemical content is. These natural healthy compounds combat other harmful compounds called free radicals, which can cause damage to your reproductive organs, eggs and an embryo. Free radicals can negatively affect virtually every step in the reproductive process, from egg maturation to conception.
Including a variety of colorful veggies and fruits everyday is very important to keeping free radical damage to a minimum and preparing your body for a healthy pregnancy. Fruits such as blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, red currants, plums and pomegranates are among the richest in antioxidants. Veggies such as spinach, olives, asparagus, broccoli, arugula and red peppers are packed full, and many spices such as mint, sage, oregano, cinnamon, ginger and cloves are also high in antioxidants. Nuts, seeds and whole intact grains are great sources as well.
Too much alcohol can not only harm a developing fetus, but it also may have a negative affect on conceiving in the first place. While many babies were likely conceived after a cocktail or two (ahem...), this should likely not be part of your conception plan. Although studies of alcohol’s affects on fertility are inconclusive, some do show a slight link between drinking and difficulty conceiving. When Danish researchers looked at 430 couples trying to have their first child, they found that women’s ability to get pregnant decreased as more alcohol was consumed. Women who had fewer than five drinks a week were twice as likely to get pregnant as those drinking ten drinks a week.
What's more is that alcohol intake by both men and women during the first week of conception is associated with higher risk of miscarriage. If you are already having difficulties conceiving, consider playing it safe and limiting alcohol all together.
If you are trying to conceive, it's not a bad idea to limit your caffeine intake to the equivalent of one to two cups of coffee per day (about 200 mg caffeine per day max). You may even want to cut out caffeine altogether if you’re having difficulty conceiving or undergoing in vitro fertilization, as caffeine constricts blood vessels, slowing blood flow to the uterus and potentially making it harder for fertilization of the egg to happen at all.
If you’re a regular coffee drinker, don’t quit cold turkey as you will likely experience withdrawal symptoms such as headaches. Gently decrease the amount of caffeine that you consume and consider switching your java to decaf.
If it’s a starchy white food, only enjoy it once in a while. The same goes for candy, sugary drinks such as pop and sweet desserts. These foods are yummy and enjoying them once in a while is fine, but they also spike your blood sugar level, sending your insulin levels flying. Women who suffer from infertility often have elevated insulin levels and insulin resistance (most common in women with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome). Overproduction of insulin can decrease the quality of eggs and it also constricts the tiny arteries that supply blood to the uterus and ovaries.
It’s best to stick to whole, unrefined grains and fruits and veggies for carbohydrate energy and make sure to always pair your carb foods with protein (coming from meats and alternatives as well as dairy foods).
Fish is not only a great source of protein, but certain fish contain large amounts of omega-3 fatty acid which is essential for a baby’s mental, visual and neural development. It’s important that you consume enough omega-3 fat while pregnant (2-3 oz servings per week of oily fish, such as salmon, trout, Atlantic mackerel, anchovies, and herring).
If you are trying to become pregnant, stay away from high mercury fish such as white canned tuna, swordfish, ahi tuna, and marlin. Mercury is toxic to a developing fetus and can linger in a woman’s blood stream for over a year. If you don’t eat fish, include plant sources of omega-3 such as walnuts, almonds, omega-3 enriched eggs and chia seeds. You can take a DHA/EPA supplement that contains both DHA and EPA.
It is important that you’re getting enough iron before you become pregnant so that you do not become deficient once you conceive. You can obtain iron from meats, poultry, and fish as well as beans and lentils, eggs, fortified breakfast cereals and some vegetables.
Folate is a B vitamin that is essential for protecting your growing baby from neural-tube defects such as spina-bifida. It’s especially important to get enough folate or folic acid before you become pregnant, because your baby’s neural tube will form just three to four weeks after conception, when many women don’t even realize that they’re pregnant.
You can get Folate from spinach, broccoli, asparagus and fortified breakfast cereals. Your pre-natal multivitamin (which you should be taking at least three months prior to starting to conceive), should contain 27 mg of iron, 0.4-1.0 mcg of folic acid (synthetic form of folate), no more than 770 mcg (2565 IU’s) Vitamin A, 2.4 mcg Vitamin B12 and at least 400 IU’s Vitamin D.
Listeria is a harmful bacterium that can cause Listeriosis. Listeriosis can cause early miscarriage—possibly before you know that you’re pregnant. Pregnant women are 20 times more likely to get sick from Listeria as compared to other adults.
Follow these tips to avoid Listeriosis:
Wash your hands, knives, countertops, and cutting boards after handling and preparing uncooked foods. Always rinse produce thoroughly under running tap water
Stay away from raw (unpasteurized) milk, as well as foods that have unpasteurized milk in them.
Cook raw meats, poultry, and seafood thoroughly to a safe internal temperatures
Wash hands, knives, countertops, and cutting boards after handling and preparing uncooked foods.
Consume perishable and ready-to-eat foods as soon as possible.
Always heat hot dogs, cold cuts, and deli meats until steaming before eating them.
Make sure that your partner is maximizing his fertility as well. If you are having trouble conceiving, get him to lay off alcohol. He should also be taking a daily multivitamin for at least 3 months prior to conceiving—this will help with healthy sperm development. Make sure that the multivitamin contains 90 mg vitamin C (Vitamin C helps to prevent perm defects and also increase sperm motility), 11 mg of Zinc (Zinc deficiencies can lead to decreased sperm count), 400 mcg folic acid, 100 mg calcium and 400-1000IUs vitamin D. Overweight men tend to have a lower sperm count and a higher numbers of sperm with DNA damage, therefore, it is important that your partner works towards reaching a healthy weight, especially if you're having trouble conceiving.
If you have found this helpful, you may also want to read about the Six Most Important Nutrients For Pregnancy and the Nutrition Dos and Don'ts For A Healthy Pregnancy
I often post nutrition tips and resources for pregnant women and new moms over on my Facebook page, so feel free to check it out!
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