Fertility and Health
When couples come to the Isis Fertility Centre they have usually been trying to conceive for some time. However, before rushing into fertility treatment, there are a few general health issues which may help you to conceive without our help, or might increase the chances of success with treatment.
Research has shown that smoking, caffeine consumption, and poor dietary habits, may have an adverse effect on the outcome of fertility treatment. A thorough preconception health check for couples who have not yet started trying for a baby can be arranged with any of our consultants and we can refer you on to specialists in the field if necessary. Advice and information is also available from The National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE). http://www.nice.org.uk/download.aspx?o=cg011NICEguideline
Weight
It is well known that women who are over or under-weight have more difficulty in conceiving, and those who do conceive may miscarry. If you are too heavy or too light, your periods may become erratic, and you may not ovulate regularly. This is usually readily corrected once you get back to an appropriate weight.
Your ‘body mass index’ (BMI) is a measure of body size that takes into account your height (in meters) and weight (in kilograms) and can be calculated using a BMI chart. http://www.bdaweightwise.com/lose/lose_bmi.aspx
Isis Fertility Centre is able to offer you advice regarding a healthy diet and exercise which may improve your chances of conception naturally or with the aid of assisted conception techniques.
Smoking
Women:
Cigarette smoking makes you less likely to conceive and more likely to miscarry. It increases the rate at which eggs are ‘lost’ from the ovary, resulting in an earlier menopause and a worse response to the hormonal treatment used for IVF. Cigarette smoke contains over 3000 toxic substances. Some of the most carcinogenic compounds in tobacco have been identified in the ovary and are known to cause DNA damage there, resulting in poorer quality eggs. If you do conceive and carry on smoking, the risk of the baby being born early and being too small is much higher, as is the risk of cot death and allergies in toddlers. The good news is that stopping or reducing your smoking can significantly reduce the chance of most of these problems.
Men:
Cigarette smoking is also a problem for men. Men who smoke have a 15% lower sperm count than non-smokers, and the sperm tend not to swim so well. In addition, smoking is associated with having a lower libido, and can result in impotence in later life. It is advisable to stop smoking as it can make a crucial difference, particularly if we are dealing with a borderline male sperm count.
http://www.givingupsmoking.co.uk/
Alcohol
Recent research suggests that women consuming more than 5 units of alcohol per week have a lower chance of conceiving than those who don't drink. We don’t ask that you give up altogether, but you should keep within the guidelines.
Excessive alcohol intake is also associated with decreased sperm count and motility, and impotence, so men should ideally limit their intake to the recommended government intake of 21 units per week or less, and it is best to spread these out over the week rather than have them all on a Saturday night!
Exercise
Gentle exercise is good for you, but don't go mad. Modest exercise combined with good healthy living, plenty of rest and sleep, whilst keeping stress to a minimum will improve your chances of conception.
Diet
If you are trying to conceive it is advisable to eat a balanced diet with regular meals and lots of fresh fruit and vegetables. Also it is worthwhile ensuring that you are taking folic acid supplements, as this may decrease your chances of having a baby with spina bifida. Other vitamin supplements may also increase your fertility and sperm count, especially if your lifestyle is particularly stressful, but it is worth paying a little more attention to eating a balanced diet with regular meals and lots of fresh fruit and vegetables.
If you drink more than 4 cups of tea or coffee per day, then cutting down on your caffeine intake may improve your fertility. A high caffeine intake has been linked to an increase in the time it takes a couple to conceive, and an increased risk of miscarriage.
Rubella
Most women who went to school in the UK and are now of an age where fertility is an issue would have been immunised against rubella as teenagers. However, sometimes the immunity does not last. It is worthwhile checking whether you are still immune to rubella through a simple blood test.
If you are not immune, and you are exposed to the virus during pregnancy, it could have disastrous consequences for your baby, such as blindness, heart conditions and intellectual impairment. Your Doctor will recommend that you have a single MMR vaccine to protect you (in accordance with national guidelines for all post natal women in the UK), one month before you start trying for pregnancy, or before your fertility treatment starts. The old style rubella vaccine is no longer manufactured in this country, but the MMR which also protects against measles and mumps, has no significant side effects in adulthood.
Smear Test
Whilst you are thinking about your health, it is a good idea to have a cervical smear test done. This will ensure any minor abnormalities are identified and treated.
If you have had treatment to your cervix in the past, it is important that you tell the fertility specialist. Sometimes cervical treatments can lead to narrowing of the canal that leads into the womb. Although this is not usually a problem it may impede the passage of the catheter used to perform intrauterine insemination or embryo transfer.