Naturopathy and Fertility
Unfortunately, couples are having more and more trouble conceiving in this modern age. Once upon a time most of the blame lay with the woman, however it is currently believed that 40% rest with the male, 40% rests with the female, 10% is with both and 10% is unknown.
Common causes for infertility;
- Medication
- Subnormal semen analysis results
- Infection
- Hormonal imbalances
- Stress
- Cigarettes, alcohol and recreational drugs
- Toxicity
- Aging
- Thyroid abnormalities
- PCOS, endometriosis, fibroids
- Obesity and low BMI
How can Naturopathy help with fertility?
Your naturopath will take a very thorough case history as well as review any medical tests that you have, so please bring these all with you. We will then suggest dietary and lifestyle changes, as well as necessary medicinal herbs and nutritional supplements. Ideally, it is beneficial to be on a 3 month pre conception plan, as this will give your bodies the best chance for conception and prevention of miscarriage.
Can I use natural therapies in conjunction with IVF?
Yes naturopathy can be very complementary to IVF and works well with couples who are taking this route due to medical reasons.
Can a Naturopath help with both male and female infertility?
Yes we can help both male and female infertility. It is very important that the male’s health is considered and addressed, as 50% DNA will come from the male.
Interesting facts about fertility.
A woman ovulates only 12-24 hours of her monthly cycle, the window of opportunity is small, however luckily the sperm are persistent and can survive 4-5 days
A woman’s basal temperature will rise the day after ovulation due to a spike in progesterone levels, this will stay high until menstruation where progesterone levels drop off, or stay high if implantation is successful and progesterone levels continue to rise
Approximately 200-500 million sperm cells are released during ejaculation, most of these die immediately, and the remainder make their difficult journey to the newly released egg. At this point there are roughly 200 sperm remaining