Trying to conceive can be a task fraught with anticipation and frustration for couples having difficulties. But even if a couple is perfectly healthy and fertile, the process can take a while, according to Hollister obstetrician Dr. Aslam Barra.
Trying to conceive can be a task fraught with anticipation and frustration for couples having difficulties. But even if a couple is perfectly healthy and fertile, the process can take a while, according to Hollister obstetrician Dr. Aslam Barra.
On average, even a very healthy couple has only a 15 to 20 percent chance of conception in any given monthly cycle, but these pairs can maximize their chances for getting a bun in the oven by getting prepared for the pregnancy, starting with diet, exercise and overall nutrition, according to Barra.
A well-balanced diet with plenty of healthy choices, like iron-rich, dark green, leafy vegetables and foods rich in B vitamins, is key to creating a healthy balance of nutrients for mom and baby, according to Certified Nurse Midwife Melanie Jordan, a Morgan Hill resident and a member of the Cedar OB/Gyn practice at O’Connor Hospital in San Jose.
“Whether she eats everything or she’s vegetarian or vegan, basically the idea is to introduce the mom to variety,” said Jordan. “We use the food pyramid as the guideline, and we break it down into how much she should have of each group.”
Protein is a key ingredient pregnant or pre-pregnant women should look for in their diet choices, as well as the B vitamins already mentioned, according to Jordan. These vitamins are very important to the development of the baby’s nervous system, the foundation of the child’s body, she said.
Another vitamin to be keenly aware of pre-pregnancy is one called folic acid, a nutrient known to reduce the incidence of spina bifida and other birth defects, according to Barra. This, and other helpful vitamins, will be present in almost any prenatal vitamin, but hopeful partners don’t need to wait until pregnancy is confirmed before taking them, he said.
The presence of folic acid and other vital nutrients will simply be a boon for the baby when a couple does conceive, said Barra, just like quitting smoking, drug use and excessive alcohol intake prior to conception. But a few things can stand in the way of pregnancy. In one of the fattest nations on earth, weight is a major issue in developing healthy pregnancies, and as the average age of birth mothers has climbed, so have issues with fertility.
Physicians used to worry about mothers who were underweight or anemic – a woman needs a certain amount of fat reserve built up in order to be capable of carrying a pregnancy to term – but today doctors worry about another problem entirely, according to Barra. Too many patients are overweight.
“Thirty percent of estrogen comes from fat cells, so if you have too much fat or too little fat it can affect your ability to get pregnant,” said Theresa Monsour, owner of Inner Balance Pilates Studio in Gilroy. “Losing a bit of weight before getting pregnant could help with getting pregnant for women who are overweight, and it would lead to a healthier pregnancy.”
Monsour recommends a moderate level of exercise combined with regular eating habits. Too often, women who play competitive sports or who are simply very body-conscious engage in dieting that is unsafe for both mom and baby. Instead, she recommends a healthy, low-fat diet coupled with 30 minutes of exercise a day.
“Right now my daughter is six months pregnant, and I tell her walk, walk and use those muscles,” said Monsour.
But one of the biggest keys to getting pregnant and carrying through all three trimesters healthily is age, according to Barra. Women in their 20’s have only a three to five percent chance of having difficulty in conception, but the number jumps to 15 percent by age 35 and 32 percent by age 40, according to the online parenting guide BabyCenter.com.
“My best advice to people would be, if your circumstances allow, have your children as soon as you can,” said Barra. “Any time after 30 or 35, your fertility rate drops. Don’t wait until you’re 39. By then, if it doesn’t work out very quickly, you’re desperate.”
In couples where the woman is younger than 35, prospective parents should try for conception with regularity for at least a year before consulting a fertility specialist. That time frame can be cut in half for women over 35, according to BabyCenter.com.
Those who do experience trouble may find a variety of issues hindering their progress toward parenthood. Both men and women can have fertility issues, and the problems are usually spread evenly, according to Barra.
Testing a man’s fertility is the easiest option, since it basically requires simply analyzing his sperm under a microscope. If sperm count, structure and motility, or movement, are all right, there could be an issue with the potential mother’s uterine health, said Barra.
“The most common problem is when the ovaries are not releasing the eggs,” said Barra. “Some degree of problem with ovulation is probably most common.”
The irregularities in hormone balances, which would lead to the egg not being released, are suspected most frequently when women are prone to irregular periods, said Barra.
The second most common barrier to normal conception is a blockage of the fallopian tubes, generally caused by sexually transmitted diseases or previous infections, according to Barra. Endometriosis, a painful condition that affects the peritoneum, and genetic abnormalities can also negatively affect fertility, he said.
However, for women who do have trouble conceiving, there are many treatment options available today. Treatments like hormone therapy, in vitro fertilization, and intracervical or intrauterine fertilization have revolutionized the baby-making business, but they are not guarantees of healthy pregnancy, and the emotional attachment to the process can be both exhausting and heartbreaking.
“It’s not that women are having eight or 10 babies these days, so with every pregnancy, you have a lot more emotional as well as physical or monetary attachment,” said Barra.
Prospective parents, should not only seek medical attention when having fertility issues, but should focus on relaxation and stress reduction as well, according to Monsour. Women undergoing fertility treatments can suffer from higher stress levels than those facing cancer and other life-threatening conditions, she added.
“You have to learn to let go of that stress somehow,” said Monsour. “It robs your body of nutrients, it weakens your immune system, and it can lead to depression and anxiety. Those are not conducive to conception.”
Add to your chances
Prospective parents may be hoping to get in plenty of “practice” before jumping to preparing for the arrival of a new member in the household, but pregnancy isn’t guaranteed just because you’ve decided parenthood is for you. Timing and chance are both keys to pregnancy, so why not stack the deck in your favor?
Couples trying for a baby stand the best chance of conception during days 10 to 17 in a woman’s menstrual cycle. This is the window in which ovulation generally takes place and, thus, you’re most likely to have an egg available to fertilize.
If the window isn’t working out, get specific. One of the best ways of monitoring a woman’s fertility is simple and free, according to Dr. Aslam Barra, a Hollister-based obstetrician.
“For women, their body temperature is actually biphasic,” said Barra. “It’s slightly higher in the second half of their cycle than it is in the first half, so if they can take their temperature every morning and chart it on a graph, they can tell when their window of fertility is about to peak.”
To confirm this window, there are also a variety of over-the-counter tests available to test luteinizing hormones, an indicator of ovulation.
During fertile periods, hopeful couples “don’t have to have intercourse every single day, but every other day is important, without making it too mechanical,” said Barra.
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