1.Finding your most fertile days
Finding your most fertile days Finding your most fertile days Finding your most fertile days Your highest chance to get pregnant is around your ovulation. Your most fertile period starts about 4 days before ovulation, and ends about 24-48 hours after your ovulation.
You have several options to find out your personal ovulation date:
1.The basal body temperature method:
During the first half of your monthly cycle (the follicular phase), the hormone Estrogen helps your ovaries to produce the egg. After your ovulation, the hormone Progesterone dominates.
The higher levels of Progesterone after ovulation increase your basal body temperature. Given this fact, an increase in body temperature indicates that your ovulation has started.
For this method to work, you need to take your body temperature every day and chart the patterns of the temperature change.
After ovulation, you should notice a rise in your body temperature (normally about 0.4 to 1.5 degrees). When charting your temperature over some months, you should start seeing a pattern. You can then estimate the date your ovulation starts.
2.Counting the days:
Counting the days is an easy, but less secure, method.
Ovulation starts approximately 14 days before your next period begins. To find out when your ovulation starts, you just have to count the days backwards. E.g. if you are on a 28-day monthly cycle, your ovulation should start on the 14thth day of your period. If you are on a 30-day cycle, your ovulation should start on the 16thth day.
3.Checking your cervical mucus:
During ovulation, your cervical mucus increases in volume and changes its texture. The mucus becomes slippery and clear, a little bit like raw egg white.
To check your mucus, insert a finger in your vagina and collect some mucus. Remember to wash your hands before inserting a finger to avoid transmitting bacteria.
2.Body weight
Body weight Body weight I’m sure you have heard of the overall negative effects of being overweight. This is also true when it comes to women’s fertility.
An index called the Body Mass Index (BMI) is used to categorize the overweight a person has.
You can calculate your BMI by using this formula:
or
A BMI of 19-25 is considered normal and healthy, while a BMI of 26-29 indicates overweight. Women with a BMI over 30 are called obese. A BMI of 40+ indicates extreme obese.
Studies have shown that women with a BMI higher than 32 have lower conception rates.
Fertility doctors often advise women who are obese, to consider losing some weight before undergoing fertility treatments.
Underweight, on the other side, can cause infertility, too.
A healthy return to normal weight will often restore fertility.
3.Smoking
A study by the British Medical Association found out that smoking causes impotence in 120,000 men aged 30-50.
You should be aware of the fact, that smoking reduces the chance to conceive by up to 40% per cycle.
Another study looked at success rates from 569 women aged around 29 who were trying to conceive. This study included smokers, ex-smokers and non-smokers. The results showed that women who continued to smoke, waited almost two months longer to success-fully conceive than women who stopped smoking.
If you are seriously trying for a baby, you should definitely consider quitting smoking.
If you try to conceive, you should also bear in mind the harmful effects smoking has to your baby when you get pregnant.
A baby in your belly gets everything from you. The fetus will not only get exposed to the toxins in tobacco smoke, the toxins will also damage your placental functions.
Babies who get exposed to toxins in your belly…
●have a birth-weight of approximately 7oz less than other babies.
●have organs that are smaller than usual.
●twice as likely die from cot death.
●have a poorer lung function.
●have an increased risk to become smokers themselves.
4.Alcohol
The negative effects of chronic alcoholism on the reproductive system are well known, but recent studies have shown that even moderate alcohol use has adverse effects on fertility.
If you are trying to get pregnant, you should learn the range of adverse effects alcohol use can have:
●Infertility
●Impaired fetal growth and development
●Increased risk for spontaneous abortion
Alcoholism or alcohol abuse can also be associated with:
●anovulation (the absence of ovulation)
●hypothalmic-pituitary-ovarian dysfunction resulting in amenorrhea (absence of menses)
●luteal phase dysfunction (abnormal development of the endometrial lining)
●hyperprolactinemia (presence of abnormally high levels of prolactin in the blood)
You should note that one beer, a glass of wine, or a mixed drink contains about one half ounce (15g) of alcohol.
We are talking about alcohol abuse if the daily consumption reaches four to six drinks or two or three ounces of alcohol (60 to 90g).
When trying to get pregnant, you should consider not drinking alcohol at all.
5.Vitamins
Studies have shown that vitamins can have a beneficial effect on both male and female fertility.
Some beneficial vitamins are:
●Vitamin A: You should be careful about taking Vitamin A before or during pregnancy. Many doctors advise against taking Vitamin A during pregnancy. Be sure to speak to your doctor as no general advice can be given.
●Vitamin C: Studies have shown that Vitamin C can protect the sperm and its DNA from damage. Vitamin C is also able to enhance the sperm quality.
●Vitamin E is required for a balanced hormone production. It is also a powerful antioxidant, that increases both male and female fertility. Fertilization rates of men who got Vitamin E, have increased from 19 to 29 percent.
●Folic Acid: Women who take folic acid supplements every day have a better chance of getting pregnant.
A study involving more than 18,000 women showed that women who took folic acid supplements regularly had a 40% lower risk of suffering problems producing eggs.
Thanks for taking the time to read through all of this.
Courtesy: Melinda Stevens, www.pregnancy-online.info
