The big fertility discussion is often about enhancing egg quality to improve pregnancy rates, however, there is much less said about the other major aspect of being able to conceive and that’s the health of the endometrium and getting the embryo to stick. If the soil isn’t right the seed won’t grow and in this podcast we’re going to discuss things you can take control of to create a health endometrium and improve implantation success. Take heart in knowing that the endometrium regenerates every four weeks so by making some small changes today you’ll have an impact on your next menstrual cycle.
As usual the discussion is with acupuncturist Joanne Sharkey and naturopath Gina Fox and today to bring her knowledge to this topic is another Fertile Ground naturopath, Rhiannon Hardingham.
What inspired you to become an acupuncturist and Chinese Herbalist, with a special interest in fertility and pregnancy?
Fertility, pregnancy and women’s health conditions are some of the most interesting and complex to treat, for this reason it has always drawn me – there are so many interesting aspects to consider, such as hormonal and emotional factors.
I love the challenges fertility issues present, and in particular the joy of hard-fought successes such as conceiving a baby after years of trying. I also enjoy then treating patients up until they give birth – there is a real sense of completion and connection with the patient.
I first experienced the benefits of Chinese Medicine when my infant son did not gain weight and was diagnosed with ‘failure to thrive’, and was very unsettled. Several pediatricians were unable to provide a reason or a solution. Chinese Medicine, however, provided some notable improvements, and I was hooked.
What do you see as the strengths that acupuncture and Chinese Medicine (CM) have to offer in terms of fertility and reproductive support?
Fertility and pregnancy treatments are a major area of strength in Chinese Medicine as it fills a gap in conventional Western Medicine. This makes it a wonderful adjunct to medical treatments such as IVF. If a pathology is not visible (eg in scans/to the eye) or does not show up in testing such as blood tests, Chinese Medicine excels. This is why Chinese Medicine can be effective with diagnoses such as ‘unexplained’ infertility, or for older patients. Traditional Chinese Medicine has a different diagnostic system and we can find a diagnosis (and therefore help treat) even when there is none in Western Medicine.
Chinese Medicine practitioners treat the individual, not the disease, and aim to strengthen underlying issues in the body. The treatments are more patient- centred.
Also, Chinese Medicine is a holistic approach, supporting the OVERALL health and vitality of the body, as well as treating health issues directly. The principle aim of Chinese Medicine and acupuncture is to recover the equilibrium between the physical and emotional aspects of an individual, by treating the whole person. This is why we also provide lifestyle and dietary advice, and consider the emotional state of patients.
Patients often report they feel less stressed and more able to cope following acupuncture treatments, and we see this as a vital part of the treatment.
In your work you assist a lot of women on their journey to becoming pregnant, do you recommend they continue to see you after they have fallen pregnant? What does acupuncture and Chinese medicine have to offer during pregnancy?
Chinese Medicine is very useful throughout pregnancy. It offers a gentle approach to treatment without side-effects. It can help treat conditions such as nausea in early pregnancy, and any pain throughout the pregnancy. In late pregnancy, acupuncture can be used to prepare the patient for an on-time labour.
The benefits of treatment also extend to post-partum for issues such as poor milk supply and for a boost in energy when exhausted.
Your week tends to be very busy, what sort of self-care do you do to recharge outside of seeing patients?
I get lots of benefit from connecting with special friends, and possibly combining this with a walk. Also a regular yoga practice. I find that any practice that nourishes you emotionally as well as physically, has more far-reaching benefits. Whenever time permits, I also enjoy acupuncture, kinesiology or massage treatments throughout the year.
I enjoy massage treatments primarily for stress relief, and acupuncture or kinesiology when I have a more acute condition that needs addressing such as pain. I personally really enjoy kinesiology – it’s an eclectic mix of treatment approaches (and even incorporates some Chinese Medicine channel theory).
What are your top five tips for others to help maintain a healthy lifestyle?
Eat a nutritious diet with primarily fresh fruit and vegetables (no need to eat low fat foods) and get daily exercise (doesn’t need to be strenuous).
Make time for fun and nurture the special relationships in your life. Particularly important when going through challenging times such as when trying to conceive or with a new baby.
Find Gratitude – notice things in your life daily that you are grateful for
Get plenty of sleep, ideally within the hours of 11pm – 6.00am.
And of course have regular therapeutic treatments such as acupuncture, massage, naturopathy, kinesiology, to maintain health – after all, prevention is better than cure! CM is great as a preventative to help keep you in peak heath and manage stress.
The use of acupuncture treatment to support IVF has fast become a popular treatment. When considering the use of Acupuncture to support IVF and other ART there are a few key components of treatment to consider.
Some people undertake only the minimum pre-transfer and post-transfer appointments to support the embryo transfer. Most embark on a more holistic program of treatment aiming to treat the whole person and underlying issues that may be affecting fertility.
At Fertile Ground Health Group, it is our preference to treat more holistically, and we would usually see patients weekly in the lead up to egg collection and transfer. We also have an excellent system that allows us to cater to short term patients, however most current research suggests just doing embryo transfer (ET) acupuncture does not appear to benefit IVF outcomes when compared to any controls; but may improve outcomes when compared to no treatment.
What does the research tell us?
Acupuncture is associated with more live births when administered at a larger dose (9-12 visits prior to ET). At FGHG we recommend regular weekly treatments with women and couples trying to conceive and undergoing IVF. Working weekly enables us to address underlying health issues that may be affecting fertility, as well as working across a cycle to maximise hormone balancing and cycle regulation, follicular and endometrial development, stress as well as addressing any side effects from medications.
Acupuncture is proposed to aid fertility in three ways:
By inhibiting central sympathetic nerve activity to promote vasodilation and increase blood flow to ovaries and uterus.
Inducing neurotransmitters, which activate hormonal activity in the pituitary gland, increasing ovulation, menstrual regularity, and overall fertility.
Increase the ‘feel good hormones’ mitigating adverse stress response.
When should I start acupuncture in relation to my IVF or ART cycle?
We suggest starting acupuncture as many as three cycles prior to starting IVF or any ART, this suggestion is based on the whole systems TCM approach. The Whole systems approach has shown significantly more benefits compared with just doing protocol acupuncture for embryo transfer.
In any Acupuncture treatment, it is also important to note that the treatment is always designed in relation to what a woman needs constitutionally and specifically at the time of treatment. Based on the principles of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) your practitioner will assess your health and address any concerns presenting on the day. For example if a patient has a headache, or pain remaining from egg collection, point selection takes this into account.
A follow up treatment one week after the transfer is also recommended in support of possible implantation. This is also a time when many women find their stress levels and anxiety start to peak. The relaxing effects of Acupuncture as well as the chance to talk to their practitioner about how they are feeling during this waiting period is highly advantageous. Treatment aims are similar to the post transfer treatment – settling everything down, supporting implantation and circulation to the uterus, etc.
Prior to starting any IVF cycles, Acupuncture treatment for approximately three months prior for both partners is advisable. Acupuncture is recognised by the World Health Organisation as a treatment for infertility and is used to help the couple to optimise their health and maximise their chances of success. However even without this, the research into the effects of Acupuncture on the outcomes of IVF cycles by just focusing on the pre- and post-transfer treatments is more than favourable.
I want to know more
In 2008 the British Medical Journal published a world first meta-analysis by highly respected Cochrane Review researchers and scientists. The meta-analysis assessed the main research from around the world pertaining to acupuncture and IVF. The results clearly showed a positive association between the use of acupuncture and increased success rates with IVF. For more information on the Cochrane Review and the meta-analysis, see:
Trying to conceive takes time and once you’ve made the decision to have a baby frustration, impatience and sadness are just three of the emotions that can grow with each menstrual cycle that passes. It’s worth reminding ourselves that we have a 20% chance of conceiving in any one cycle and that 80% of couples will be pregnant within 12 months. Having that longer term view and doing things to improve your chances of conceiving can be a good focus while you wait.
This impatience for results and lack of understanding about timing is one of the reasons why many couples embark on IVF treatment before they really need to. We find that many couples benefit from focusing on some key basics they do have control of. Addressing these things increases the chance of conception within a reasonable time frame and allows women to exert some control over their ability to fall pregnant.
Here are 5 steps to take before IVF:
Have sex at the right time of the month
Know when your fertile window is so that you have sex on a day when you increase your chances of conception. You only have at the very outside 6 days in your cycle that you may be able to become pregnant and that’s if the sperm lives for 5 days and the egg for 1 day. The most likely days you will conceive are 2 days prior to ovulation and the day of ovulation. If you have sex on one of these days then your chances of becoming pregnant in that cycle dramatically increases to 27-33%.
The funny thing is that although 70% of women in a recent Australian study thought they knew when they were ovulating, only 13% accurately estimated their day of ovulation.
If you are relying on an app for this they can be grossly inaccurate. It’s much more accurate is to keep track of your vaginal mucus changes and recognise when your mucus is wetter and more stretchy. Ovulation predictor kits can also help to more accurately pinpoint your fertile window. For more information on this go to Your fertility website and watch the video by Kerry Hampton on pinpointing your ovulation (http://yourfertility.org.au/for-women/timing-and-conception/).
Check that your weight is in a healthy range
If you are overweight then you can improve your chances of conceiving by committing to healthy eating and exercising and reducing weight even by a little. A common measure of whether you are over or under weight is the BMI calculator which you will easily find on line and by putting your height and weight into the calculator it will work out if you fall in the 18.5-25 healthy BMI range.
For women who are overweight and have PCOS reducing weight by as little as 5 % can significantly improve regular ovulation and your chance of conception.
Being underweight can also affect hormones and reduce fertility. Underweight women may be twice as likely to take over a year to conceive compared with healthy weight women. A man’s weight is also a factor, so father’s-to-be also need to trim down to improve fertility.
Three tips to start off a healthy weight plan:
– swap soft drinks and alcohol for water;
– make half you plate vegetables or salad at lunch and dinner with a palm size of lean protein such as meat, fish, eggs or pulses;
– get moving more by standing every 40 minutes from your desk, walking rather than taking the car to the shops and taking the stairs.
Have you stopped smoking and drinking?
Smoking affects egg and sperm development and can damage the DNA in both eggs and sperm. Smoking not only reduces your chances of getting pregnant but also puts you and your baby at risk of pregnancy and birth complications and birth defects.
Even if a woman has never smoked, her partners smoking makes her up to 30% more likely to miscarry.
It’s much easier to quit smoking with your partner so make a plan to do it together and seek help from a counsellor or acupuncturist to give you extra support.
It’s known that drinking alcohol in large quantities reduces your chance of conceiving but low and moderate drinking may also have an impact. For men alcohol can cause impotence, reduce libido and also reduces sperm quality and so reduces fertility. Because of the known toxic effects on a baby’s development the National Health and Medical Research Council recommend that not drinking is the safest option for women who are planning to conceive or who are pregnant.
Clean up your environment
Reducing the levels of environmental toxins that have been shown to affect DNA cellular health can affect your Simple steps to take include:
increase your intake of organic food;
buy non chemical cleaners including laundry powder;
start to use natural face and body creams such as coconut or almond oil;
men keep your mobile phone away from the reproductive area by not carrying it in your trouser pocket and at night keep on flight mode if you have it by your bedside.
Optimum nutrition
Research shows that optimum nutrition in the pre-conception period three months prior to conception is associated with a lower rate of birth defects. If you eat well your eggs and sperm will benefit from all the nutrients required for healthy DNA. Eating for a healthy weight and to support the growth and development of sperm, eggs and healthy hormones we suggest referring to the Fertility Boosting Diet Summary on our Fertile Ground Health Group website (www.fertileground.com.au) and for more information and recipes read The Fertility Diet by Tasha Jennings and The Fertility Food Map by Petra Joly. Or if you feel like you could benefit from some more specific nutritional testing and advice, you could make an appointment with a Fertile Ground Health Group Naturopath.
By taking some control of your own health, most women and couples find they feel happier and healthier and regain a sense of control over their own fertility.
Of course expert help is not far away if you need further support to achieve your aims and make changes, or if you feel you have more complex issues to manage. For more information on support available for your fertility, explore our Trying to Conceive information and other related FGHG blog articles:
Gina Fox is a naturopath with over 15 years’ experience. She trained under Francesca Naish (author of Better Babies) and has a Masters in Reproductive Medicine. As well as being an experienced clinician she is a speaker, naturopathic lecturer and student clinic supervisor.
Gina is highly skilled in providing naturopathic care for women’s health issues, pre-conception health, infertility, IVF support, pregnancy care and through menopause. She treats a wide range of issues including recurrent miscarriage, thyroid, auto-immune antibodies and she has seen good results working with men to improve sperm quality.
One of the best things about working at Fertile Ground is all of the fabulous and inspiring people I get to meet. A recent example of this was the fabulous Julia Lette – naturopath, personal trainer and (importantly for us) raw food chef extraordinaire! She has just completed our naturopathic mentor program, and spoiled us rotten during this time! Julia introduced us to some very impressive healthy desserts, but most exciting to me was her simple but amazing seed crackers. Total GAME CHANGER for low carb eating! Not only does it allow you to quickly and easily make your own crackers, but they are packed with great nutrients- good fats, minerals, b vitamins and fibre. And they’re easy and delicious…. I promise. Give them a go and find out for yourself!
Ingredients
½ cup sunflower seeds
½ cup pumpkin seeds
¼ cup sesame seeds
½ cup Stoney Creek Flaxseed Meal (from your local health food shop, or pick some up next time you’re in at Fertile Ground).
¼ cup chia seeds
½ tsp salt
1 cup water
Method
Heat oven to 170 degrees Celsius. Place all the seeds and the salt in a bowl, pour in water and mix to combine. Leave for 15 minutes for the chia and flax seeds to soften and bind everything together.
Tip out on to a baking paper-lined oven tray and spread out as thin as possible (around 4mm thick) and sprinkle with some flaky sea salt (if desired). Bake for 30 minutes.
Remove from the oven and slice into crackers, then return to the oven to cook for another 20-30 minutes until crisp and golden. Remove to a rack to cool then store in an airtight container.
Do you really need to improve your sperm health and can acupuncture help? If your semen analysis results came back less-than-ideal you are not alone. Male fertility is a common reason people go to IVF with research showing that 40% of infertility cases are due to poor sperm quality. The good news is that research also shows there is a lot you can do about it. Even if your results came back in the okay range you can still improve your sperm-health even further, giving you the best chance of conceiving.
Do I need to improve my sperm?
The answer is that we all probably could! Since 1989, there has been a 30% decrease in sperm count in the general male population and about one in twenty men has a fertility issue, even if they live a seemingly healthy lifestyle. This may be due to the plethora of environmental toxins we are all exposed to that are known or suspected to impact sperm quality.
Like women, men’s fertility also declines with age:
A man’s sperm volume drops by 20% between ages of 30 and 50.
The sperm motility (i.e. “swimming power”) drops 3.1% for each advancing year, whereas the percentage of sperm who swim in a purposeful manner decrease by 5%.
The older the man, the longer the length of time for his female partner to conceive as well as an increased incidence of miscarriage, regardless of her age.
Many men present with borderline sperm counts that have been deemed ‘fine’. There are a number of considerations we would take into account when assessing the values attributed to sperm counts. Firstly, it is important to know that reference ranges account for normal values in a given population. If the whole population has low values, then normal will be somewhere within a range of overall low values. This is shown clearly when looking at research comparing changes in normal values in a population over time. We also see that overall sperm counts have declined rapidly in the years 1935 to the present.
Secondly, during IVF in particular, low sperm counts are not considered to be a problem due to technological advancements that allow doctors to ‘choose the best’ sperm and inject it directly into the egg (Intercytoplasmic Sperm Injection, or ICSI). From a natural medicine point of view, we would consider it important to improve the condition of the sperm overall to increase the likelihood of obtaining a healthy embryo when a healthy egg and sperm meet.
As an example of how sperm health affects embryo viability, consider that a non-smoking woman has been shown to have a 30% higher chance of miscarriage when her partner is a smoker than a couple who are both non-smokers. Studies have also shown that miscarriage and birth defect rates increase when fathers have lower sperm counts.
How is sperm evaluated for quality?
Sperm is evaluated according to four main parameters:
Volume (i.e. how much semen per ejaculation)
Density/concentration/count (i.e. how many million/ml)
Morphology (i.e. % of normal v. abnormal in shape)
Motility (i.e. % of moving/swimming sperm)
If any of these parameters are abnormal, fertility may be compromised.
Can Acupuncture improve sperm quality?
Acupuncture has been found to improve the motility of sperm by improving its zinc:cadmium ratio. Zinc improves sperm motility whereas cadmium causes thicker semen, thereby slowing the sperm. SOD, an antioxidant which increases both sperm count and motility is also positively influenced by acupuncture. Furthermore, acupuncture can increase levels of metenkephalin (an opioid which allows sperm to remain mobile for longer) in sperm. Therefore, acupuncture around the female’s ovulation may increase the chance of conception.
Acupuncture has been shown to increase the percentage of sperm with normal morphology. Sperm takes between 70 – 90 days to fully mature, with some studies showing positive results after only 5 weeks (bi-weekly treatments). Improving morphology with acupuncture has also been shown to improve the fertilisation rate using Intercytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI, an IVF procedure).
Where do the needles go?
Acupuncture points for improving sperm quality are not located on the genitals! Rather, points on the lower back, lower leg &/or abdomen are used. These points are generally painless and are used to increase a person’s strength and vitality, improve digestion, promote good-quality sleep and relieve stress. Any other health problems are simultaneously addressed during an acupuncture treatment, since we believe that your whole wellbeing is important to the health of your sperm. At Fertile Ground, we consider 10 weekly treatments to be optimal owing to sperm maturation time, although a minimum of 4-5 weekly treatments can still achieve positive results.
What else can help?
Diet and nutrition, lifestyle, weight, exercise, environmental toxins and smoking(including marijuana) also play a huge role in sperm health. We believe the most powerful approach is to make changes in these areas together with having acupuncture to really sky-rocket your fertility. This is were we see the best results. In fact, acupuncture can help with lifestyle changes such as quitting smoking and treatment can be tailored to address this along with improving sperm quality.
Research and references
Jensen, TK, Carlsen, E, Jørgensen, N, Berthelsen, JG, Keiding, N, Christensen, K, Petersen, JH, Knudsen, LB and Skakkebæk, NE. 2002. Poor semen quality may contribute to recent decline in fertility rates.Human Reproduction 17(6): 1437-1440.
Paulus WE, Zhang M, Strehler E, El-Danasouri I, Sterzik K. 2002. Influence of acupuncture on the pregnancy rate in patients who undergo assisted reproduction therapy.
Siterman S, Eltes F, Wolfson V, Zabludovsky N, Bartoov B. 1997. Effect of acupuncture on sperm parameters of males suffering from sub-fertility related to low sperm quality.
Gurfinkel E, Cedenho AP, Yamamura Y, Srougi M. 2003. Effects of acupuncture and moxa treatment in patients with semen abnormalities.
Pei J, Strehler E, Noss U, Abt M, Piomboni P, Baccetti B, Sterzik K. 2005. Quantitative evaluation of spermatozoa ultrastructure after acupuncture treatment for idiopathic male infertility.
Dong C, Chen SR, Jiang J, Xiao YH, Cai MX, Zhang YJ, Xu H, Deng LH, Li S. 2006.
Clinical observation and study of mechanisms of needle-picking therapy for primary infertility of abnormal sperm.
Fujisawa M, Kanzaki M, Okada H, Arakawas S & Kamidono S. 1996. Metenkephalin in seminal plasma of infertile men. International Journal of Urology 3(4): 297-300
Bensoussan A. 1990. The Vital Meridian.Churchill Livingstone: 112
Guzick DS, Overstreet JW, Factor-Litvak P. 2001. Sperm morphology, motility and concentration in fertile & infertile men. New England Journal of Medicine 345(19): 1388-1393.
Ford W, North K, Taylor H, Farrow A, Hull M, Golding J. 2000. Increasing paternal age is associated with delayed conception in large population of fertile couples: evidence for declining fecundity in older men.Human Reproduction 15(8): 1703-1708.
The most commonly used illicit drug amongst people of reproductive age, this one is worth discussing as it is linked to decreased fertility in both men and women, dramatically affecting the quality of sperm and impacting negatively on the health of developing babies during pregnancy.
In men, marijuana disrupts the complex THC (the active ingredient in marijuana) weakens sexual drive and reduces sperm production by interfering with the production of testosterone. Sperm party hard too – research has shown that they become hyperactive, swimming too hard too early and burning out before they reach the egg.1 Yes every cell in your body becomes “stoned” and if sperm don’t have the energy left by the time they reach the egg, they don’t have a chance of breaking through the outer casing of the egg for fertilisation to occur.
Women who smoke marijuana also secrete small amounts of THC in vaginal fluid and reproductive organs, and when the sperm come into contact with it, they go into party mode, becoming hyperactive and burn out too quickly. Marijuana can also harm a developing baby, especially in the first weeks when you may not even know you are pregnant.
Consequences of smoking marijuana on fertility
In Men: 1,2
reduces libido and sexual function
decreases fertility
reduces the number of sperm produced
reduces capacity of sperm to fertilise the egg
In Women:3
reduces chances of conception
reduces the number of eggs retrieved in IVF4
reduces chances of healthy pregnancy, associated with implantation failure, spontaneous miscarriage, foetal growth restriction, low birth weight babies and premature birth5
Of course some men who smoke marijuana do get women pregnant, but every man has a different fertile potential and it changes throughout his life. If your fertility is already compromised, smoking marijuana will make you infertile. Women who smoke can also conceive, but as for men, if your fertility is already compromised by any factor, or your man’s fertility is poor, smoking marijuana will make it very difficult to conceive, reducing your chance of having a healthy baby.
If you are trying to conceive we recommend that you don’t use marijuana in any form Aside from the above risks, marijuana may also be contaminated with problematic heavy metals (such as lead to increase its weight and sale value per gram) or more addictive illicit drugs, such as cocaine. It’s just not worth it.
Research is tricky to conduct on the singular impacts of marijuana on fertility specifically, as people who do smoke or consume it tend to higher rates of cigarette smoking, alcohol, caffeine and other illicit drug use before and during pregnancy, confounding results of any research as they are known to cause issues for fertility and pregnancy. Of course marijuana is often smoked in combination with tobacco and this has it’s own inherent fertility disasters too.
What about other drugs? Party drugs, street drugs, illicit drugs such as cocaine, speed, ecstasy, heroin and ice all have dramatic affects on fertility and of course your overall health. Men may suffer reduced libido, abnormally shaped sperm and low sperm count and women often suffer abnormal ovulation and irregular menstrual cycles as well as a reduction in ovarian reserve.1 Long-term use can lead to permanent problems for your fertility and your baby, but in many cases, any damage caused may start to reverse as soon as you quit your habit.
Results from research can be confusing, however, the growing body of evidence that suggests that to produce optimal outcomes for healthy pregnancy and baby, women and men should be encouraged to avoid all forms of substance use behaviour while trying to conceive and during pregnancy.
My future baby With the regular use of any addictive substance during pregnancy, your baby must suffer the withdrawal symptoms after birth that you are avoiding yourself. After getting your baby used to regular doses of these substances, even though some will cross to the breast milk, compared to being more directly attached to your blood supply there is a dramatic reduction in exposure. This means your baby suffers severe headaches, pains, shakiness, emotional turmoil – all of this while getting to know the feeling of life on the outside – what a difficult start to life (for all of you!). There is no better reason to give up now! Giving up now is not more stressful than the potential poor health outcomes you are creating for yourself and your baby.
But what if I am addicted? How can I give up? Stay motivated. Get support. Join a group. Be kind to yourself but stay on track. Remind yourself why you are doing it. Reward yourself regularly. Save up the money you don’t spend on these things and treat yourself to a massage – or even a holiday! Do the maths – most people don’t realise how much these habits are costing them! Literally put the money aside and use it to reward yourselves every week or month that you stay on track.
Support for detoxification with naturopathic work can help by improving elimination and reducing suffering experienced during withdrawal and reduce cravings. Acupuncture and hypnotherapy have both been shown to significantly reduce cravings.
With our patients we often find that emotional reasons underlie substance use. We try to duck and weave away from our feelings and fears by masking them or pushing them down with a cigarette/a drink/a shopping spree/a food binge … (or insert your special avoidance tactic here).
Counselling of some kind can be very useful to identify the ways in which we hide, what in fact we are hiding from and how we can show up to and resolve these issues without the need to dampen it down. You may have tried this in the past and didn’t find it worked for you – don’t give up! Try someone else, something else to give you the support you need to make the change.
You know the ways these things are harmful for you, your fertility and your baby. Now is the time to work on this and it will actually make the inevitable stresses of early parenting easier too. Let us know if you need a referral to a good practitioner.
Research cited:
Fronczak CM, Kim ED, Barqawi AB. The insults of illicit drug use on male fertility. J Androl. 2012;33(4):515-528. doi:10.2164/jandrol.110.011874
du Plessis SS, Agarwal A, Syriac A. Marijuana, phytocannabinoids, the endocannabinoid system, and male fertility. J Assist Reprod Genet. 2015;32(11):1575-1588. doi:10.1007/s10815-015-0553-8
Brents LK. Marijuana, the Endocannabinoid System and the Female Reproductive System. Yale J Biol Med. 2016;89(2):175-191. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27354844. Accessed April 18, 2018.
Klonoff-Cohen HS, Natarajan L, Victoria Chen R. A prospective study of the effects of female and male marijuana use on in vitro fertilization (IVF) and gamete intrafallopian transfer (GIFT) outcomes. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 2006;194(2):369-376. doi:10.1016/j.ajog.2005.08.020
Fergusson DM, Horwood LJ, Northstone K. Maternal use of cannabis and pregnancy outcome. BJOG An Int J Obstet Gynaecol. 2002;109(1):21-27. doi:10.1111/j.1471-0528.2002.01020.x
Charmaine Dennis is a naturopath, fertility and health expert, mentor, writer, mother, and businesswoman. She is the founding director of Fertile Ground Health Group, co-creator of the Be Fertile relaxation CD series and co-author ofThe Breakfast Project, among other health inspired projects. Her greatest gift and inspiration is making health, wellbeing, and passionate living accessible, inspiring and achievable for everyone. Charmaine’s naturopathic career has followed a special interest in working with couples with infertility requiring IVF support since 1999. She has assisted many in realising their dreams to conceive healthy, beautiful babies in collaboration with GPs and fertility specialists, acupuncturists and other health modalities.
Do you want to know exactly when you are fertile so that you can have the best chance of consciously concieving each cycle? Your body will give you all of the signs that you need to identify your fertile time of the month – your fertile window. Fertility charting is a highly accurate way to become aware that ovulation is imminent and often very easy to learn. You may find that you can easily interpret your signs and get started at timing your attempts to concieve with no trouble. If you have irregular cycles or have trouble clearly seeing the signs you may need extra guidance from one of our naturopaths or acupuncturists.
Where time permits, it is useful to check and record the signs and symptoms of your reproductive cycle for a few cycles before you try to conceive. Knowing your signs of ovulation and timing your sex with understanding of your cycle will give you an increased sense of confidence in your conscious conception. Marking secondary symptoms like headaches or fluid retention gives very useful information about your cycle and hormones to assist with providing the best treatment for your individual needs. Download your free chart here to get started.
CHECKING AND RECORDING YOUR CERVICAL MUCUS CHANGES
Check your mucus each time you go to the toilet (before urination) by wiping at the opening to your vagina and stretching it out between two fingers. Record the amount, colour, texture, and external sensation on your chart. Always record the most fertile mucus you noticed that day.
Your basic infertile pattern of mucus can vary from none/dry or damp, pasty, flaky, crumbly, thick, dense in the non-fertile phases. As ovulation approaches, the mucus pattern will change to creamy or milky and start to increase and become wetter. Your fertile mucus will be clear, wet, watery, slimy, slippery or stretchy at ovulation, more like raw egg white.
How does the outside of your vagina feel? Is it wet or dry, moist or damp? Is there a lot of it, a medium amount or very little. The wetter the sensation, the more fertile you are.
You are most fertile in the 2-3 days before and on the day of ovulation. This is your Fertile Window. This clear, egg white mucus will help the sperm to reach the egg.
Immediately after ovulation, there is a marked decrease in mucus production, with a quick return to your basic infertilepattern. You can confirm ovulation has occurred if you are charting your temperature as well (see below).
CHECKING AND RECORDING YOUR RESTING TEMPERATURE
You need a digital thermometer designed for under-the-tongue use (not an ear thermometer).
Have the thermometer beside your bed before you go to sleep. On waking, before getting out of bed or even talking, take your temperature by placing the thermometer under your tongue. It is important to make as little movement as possible whilst taking your temperature to get a true resting temperature. On your chart place a dot in the box that corresponds to your temperature and day of cycle.
Many thermometers keep the temperature displayed until you use it again, so you don’t have to record it straight away if it is still dark or you are trying not to wake your partner.
Your temperature needs to be taken ideally at the same time each morning after at least 5 hours consecutive sleep. Mark your regular waking time, and record any variation. When you sleep in, record the temperature and add a second mark 0.05 down (one box) for every ½ hour extra sleep. If you wake up early, adjust your temperature 0.05 up for every 1/2 hour.
Usually, there will be a “thermal shift” of about ½ a degree celsius that indicates ovulation has occurred. The temperature starts to shift after the egg is released – The rule is 3 over 5 – you need to see 3 mornings of higher temperatures than the last 5. This is why you can’t use temperature charts to time your conception attempts, as once the shift has occurred, ovulation is already over and you have missed your chance. You can however record any sex you have had and use your chart to see if you did indeed get the timing right in that cycle to know that you are in with a chance.
Conditions that may affect your temperature may include things like a late night, fever, a cold, sleeping in, broken sleep or alcohol. These may cause abnormally high or low temperatures, so it is important to record them for understanding your temperatures when looking back over time.
MAKING SENSE OF IT
Scan and email, or bring your charts to every appointment where possible. Your practitioner will help you to understand and interpret your chart with ease. It may seem confusing at first but with in a few cycles, it will become clear – a free and easy method to understand your cycle for your reproductive life.
Charmaine Dennis is a naturopath, fertility and health expert, mentor, writer, mother, and businesswoman. She is the founding director of Fertile Ground Health Group, co-creator of the Be Fertile relaxation CD series and co-author ofThe Breakfast Project, among other health inspired projects. Her greatest gift and inspiration is making health, wellbeing, and passionate living accessible, inspiring and achievable for everyone. Charmaine’s naturopathic career has followed a special interest in working with couples with infertility requiring IVF support since 1999. She has assisted many in realising their dreams to conceive healthy, beautiful babies in collaboration with GPs and fertility specialists, acupuncturists and other health modalities.
Toxic exposure is all around us but most people aren’t aware of how they are being impacted, even in their own home. Nicole Bijlsma has delved deeply into this, as she explains in her book Healthy Home Healthy Family:
“As I sifted through the research, three things became apparent: firstly, there was an incredible amount of information about the health hazards in the built environment that was documented in the scientific literature. Secondly, corporations with vested interests had a significant influence in the way exposure standards for chemicals and electromagnetic fields were established and regulated. Lastly, there were various governmental and non-governmental agencies in various countries around the world willing to tackle these issues; unfortunately, Australia was not one of them.”
So how can we avoid it when it’s right where we live? To help us not only become aware of the hazards but also do something about them Nicole has kindly shared her top 10 tips on how to avoid toxins in the home that impact your family’s health.
Nicole’s Top 10 Steps to a Healthy Home
Take your shoes off before you enter the home as this will reduce toxicants like pesticides and traffic-related air pollutants being tracked onto carpets
Get rid of the clutter, because it restricts air flow, increases the dust load and encourages house dust mites and pests
Use a vacuum cleaner fitted with a HEPA filter and motorised head to reduce the allergen load (house dust mites, mould, pet and pest dander) in the home.
Dust your home with a slightly damp microfibre cloth followed by a clean, dry tea towel.
Reduce the chemical load in your home. Air fresheners, perfume, pesticides, solvents, paints, cleaning and personal care products contribute to poor indoor air quality.
Use the sun to air pillows and mattresses, pet bedding, chopping boards and soft toys.
Store food and beverages in glass, stainless steel and lead-free ceramics. Avoid plastics, pewter, highly coloured ceramics, ceramics with a corroded glaze and leaded crystal.
Ensure electrical appliances are at least 1 metre away from your bed, favourite couch and any other areas where you spend time in order to reduce your exposure to electromagnetic fields.
Chlorine and fluoride in drinking water are associated with health risks. Use a water filter.
Mould is caused by dampness and moisture. Find the moisture first and then remove the mould with a damp microfibre cloth.
Inspired by her own fertility health issues, Nicole Bijlsma has spent the past 15 years researching health hazards in the home. She has become a building biology expert and she shares her knowledge in her best selling book, Healthy Home Healthy Family. But Nicole is not just stopping there. She’s on a mission to help millions of people by developing a Healthy Home Tool as part of her current PhD. You can help her by buying a copy of her book or donating.
Petra Joly, author of The Fertility Food Map recipe book talks about her passion for educating and motivating others to eat better to optimise their fertility, plus a bonus recipe from the book for you to try. Enjoy!
“ONE MUST FIRST PREPARE THE SOIL BEFORE PLANTING THE SEED”
(Petra proverb)
I am Petra Joly and I am the principal Acupuncturist and owner of Newtown Natural Fertility & IVF Support Centre in Newtown. From my very first day at College 16 years ago now, I knew fertility & gynaecology was the specialised field of health I would work in. My dream was to create a space for couples to share their hopes, fears and desires to create a family. Why was that? Because I always had this underlying fear that I wouldn’t be able to conceive myself, and I may need someone to support me one day. I had no clinical reason to suspect I would have difficulty, but the fear was there just the same and became my driving force to create my business.
I have always understood that to want a child and create a family is one of life’s most basic of desires, one of the most innate and driving desires one will ever experience. It is something that many people tend to assume will happen for them, we can feel it is ‘right’ and ‘normal’. However, with the harsh reality of statistics being 1 in 3 couples, over the age of 35, in Australia and New Zealand are infertile, we must be doing something seriously wrong. I am a concerned and passionate health care practitioner, but also a concerned and passionate member of our community. If we can’t procreate, we don’t survive as a race. Which is exactly why I felt compelled to create this book: to aid you in some way towards creating a more fertile life for yourself and your children. Knowledge is power, something we can pass on to those we love.
I have been urged by many patients over the years to create an easy, affordable, balanced, delicious and nutritious eating plan. Well here it is. Information out there can be so varied and confusing. What I find some ‘nutrition plans’ lack is an explanation as to why that particular food is good for me. “If we don’t know why we are doing something, then we lose desire and motivation to do so”.
There is so much talk about quinoa, why? Because it is grain-free so less inflammatory and easier to digest, it is a complete protein (containing all 9 essential amino acids) which is a building block for cells and blood, it is packed with nutrients such as Iron, Lysine, Magnesium, Vit B2 and Manganese; which are all necessary for cell development and follicular (eggs in our ovaries) development and will help thicken the lining of our uterus for the embryo to attach to. Now that means something. It gives us clear reasons as to why quinoa is a great fertility food yes?
I am not the most qualified nutritionist, I am not a food scientist, I am certainly not a celebrity chef or celebrity personal trainer. I am however, a very passionate and caring health-care provider that wants to help couples be able to realise their dream of becoming parents. I am also an advocate for better nutrition across the board. We all have a responsibility to create a better world for these children we create. If I can impart any wisdom that will create healthier, more educated people, then my job is done and I am content.
Petra Joly, acupuncturist and owner of Newtown Natural Fertility & IVF Support Centre
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
2 to 3 tablespoons honey, depending how sweet you want it
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
4 snapper fillets (or any mild-tasting fish)
DIRECTIONS
1. Whisk the vinegar, honey, oil, and garlic in a bowl. Arrane snapper in a baking dish. Pour marinade over the fish, coating it completely. Cover and refrigerate at least 30 minsutes and up to 4hrs.
2. Preheat the grill (or BBQ) to medium. Line the bottowm and sides of a baking tray with foil. Sprinkle the foil with olive oil. Remove fish from marinade, reserving marinade, and pour the marinade into a heavy small saucepan.
3. Arrange the fillets atop the baking tray. Cook the fillets until they are just cooked through and caramelized on top, about 12 minutes.
4. Meanwhile bring the marinade to a boil and simmer until it thickens slightly and becomes syrupy, whisking often, about 15 minutes. Spoon off any excess oil from the sauce, if desired.
5. Transfer the fillets to plates. Spoon the sauce over and around the fillets, and serve with basmati rice (or quinoa) and Asian greens and snowpeas.
Charmaine Dennis
