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What is going on in the world with fertility?

According to the NHS:

• Around 1 in 7 couples may have difficulty conceiving.

• About 84% of couples will conceive naturally within a year if they have regular unprotected sex every 2 or 3 days. But who wants to burn out their sex drive doing it for purpose rather than for fun.

• For couples who have been trying to conceive for more than 3 years without success, the likelihood of getting pregnant naturally within the next year is 1 in 4, or less.

• GPs will only start fertility checks after a year of trying to conceive. This is considered to be when infertility is “diagnosed”.

Studies show the average age of a woman getting pregnant in England and Wales is 30.

Scientists are associating age-related decrease in the number of eggs contained in the ovaries with fertility issues. I knew we were born with all our eggs, and these mature and then are released at ovulation. But what I didn’t realise is that although we may have a million eggs at birth, these decline to around 300,000 by the time we hit puberty, dropping again to around 25,000 by 37 and down to 1,000 by 51. This decrease is an unexplained natural degeneration to the point that we only have 300-400 eggs that can become a baby. Considering the age women, or girls, start their periods, and the frequency of them, going off my calculations I have potentially used 228 of my potential baby eggs.  But, that isn’t the only cause of infertility. Life experiences, such as stress, exposure to radiation or toxic chemicals, even before birth, can determine the number of eggs we have in our ovaries.

Quantity isn’t the only factor in female fertility. As women age the quality of the chromosomes and DNA within the egg also declines. There is a certain amount of abnormality in eggs for most age ranges, a quarter in the 20s, 40% for women between 30-35,and this increases by 0.5% per month from then on. This doesn’t mean that a woman is infertile. It means that the egg released during ovulation may be less likely to implant or can cause very early miscarriage if it does implant, usually between 5-8 weeks.

It’s not all about the woman!

Male fertility has also declined by 50% in Western countries over the last 50 years, which could be down to lifestyle changes or additional stresses.

As with women and the quality of chromosomes declining with age, some studies show that male sperm quality starts declining from as early as in their 20s, with sperm mobility declining 0.7% every year, and more mutations in DNA as males get older too.

Although there may not be much we can do about water. Let’s look at what can be done to optimise health, physically, mentally and emotionally, to ensure ovulation, fertilisation and implantation, ready for a baby. 

It’s time to reflect on lifestyle choices and see if you are in the best place for conception, physically.

- Have you checked any medication you're on is suitable for conception and fertility? If not, you may want to read those tiny encyclopaedias that come in the box. Still unsure? You can always ask your GP.

- Are you doing too much exercise? Believe me that is a thing! High impact exercise like running, going to the gym or cycling can effect males’ testosterone and sperm, and females menstrual cycles and ovulation.

- Are you making the best diet choices?

Although there is no definitive conclusion on the impact of caffeine on fertility for either males or females, caffeine is a stimulant and will increase activity in the brain and nervous system. There are various suggestions on how much caffeine to have daily for both men and women. Particularly for females, there are recommendations to have less than 100-200mg caffeinated drinks per day. But depending on where you get your caffeine may depend on how strong it is and therefore how many you can have. Definitely worth a quick google and start recording them in a diary so you can see whether there is a need to reduce or not. But if you do find, from your diary, that you are maybe taking on too much caffeine, start reducing this by a third each week for three weeks, and yes that includes chocolate! There can be as much as 20mg of caffeine in a 100g bar of milk chocolate, and this increases to 43mg in dark chocolate. There have also been studies to suggest that caffeine mixed with sugar has a greater impact than caffeine on its own. Therefore, it may be worth focusing on caffeinated soft drinks and energy drinks if these are part of your daily routine and reducing them over the course of 3 weeks.

Alcohol is a depressant, which slows down parts of the brain and nervous system. It can impact males by decreasing libido, lowering testosterone, FSH and LH and increasing oestrogen, all of which has an impact on reducing sperm production, including shrinking testes and increasing the chances of early or decreased ejaculation. It can also impact on the shape, size and movement of healthy sperm. For women, alcohol can interrupt the menstrual cycle and ovulation by changing the levels of testosterone, estradiol, LH and prolactin. If you don’t want to cut out alcohol completely try avoiding sulphites. These occur naturally in beer, and are found in wines and ciders to keep them fresher for longer. Alcohol doesn’t always say when it does include sulphites, so your best checking the label. But a good red wine is usually ok.

When it comes to smoking, do I need I say more than quit? Do I need to tell you about all the chemicals and toxins in cigarettes? Do I need to tell you how harmful they are to your body? Do I need to tell you about the increase risk in miscarriage, obstetric complications, uterus growth restriction? Do I need to tell you that smoking ages ovaries and depletes eggs prematurely? Remember, unlike men and sperm, women are born with all their eggs, women don’t produce more as you get older, they just mature and get released from the ovary. And the same goes for vaping, as the liquid still includes nicotine.

I’m not a nutritionist and cannot advise on what to eat and what supplements to take for conception, pregnancy and beyond. But you can check out the free health questionnaire to get additional support at: cytoplan.co.uk/

I’ve mentioned this before but it is important to get those 6-8 glasses of water per day. Water helps thicken up the lining of the uterus as well as shed the lining during menstruation.

Too much stress has a damaging effect on the body with the increase amount of cortisol coursing through the blood. For males that can be a reduction in testosterone release and erections, and for females can decrease ovulation and impair maturation of the uterus wall for egg implantation. Consider, what stress do you have in your life or when do you feel stressed? Where is that stress coming from? How can you reduce that stress? Who can you speak to about it?

We also need to consider the mind body link and the law of attraction. I am a big believer in this law as I, and one gynaecologist I was referred to back in the late 2000s, flagged that by me thinking about getting sick made it come true. Believe it or not, I used to worry about getting UTIs, and sure enough every time I worried about it, I got one! It took me about 10 years to stop that worry and I’ve not had a UTI since! This is the law of attraction at its finest. I visualised something and so it manifested. By making time for yourself to visualise finding out you are pregnant, the journey of being pregnant, and having a baby in the house, you will be attracting that positivity into your life and your future.

What is fertility reflexology?

How can fertility reflexology help?

According to a small study by the Association of Reproductive Reflexologists, out of 180 clients receiving reproductive reflexology whilst trying to conceive, 100 women conceived naturally with an average of 11 treatments. Compared to data about assisted reproductive technologies, this study is very positive in reflexology’s favour. However, I must point out that the study by the ARR is not backed by “science”. Although there are many doctors and nurses out there who promote holistic therapies, there is still a stigma that unless it is scientifically proven then it is not real.

It takes 90 days for semen to mature, therefore if changes are started today, in 3 months time your sperm will see a benefit. After this time, if you wish to get a semen analysis test done, they can be booked privately, and please ask for a copy of your results, which we can then look at together.

For those undergoing assisted conception, I would like to start working with you 3 months before starting any medical intervention to support with balancing hormones, regulating menstrual cycles, reducing stress. However I understand your may already have started your journey. So, wherever you find yourself, I’d love to help in any way I can. If you can bring along your protocol to the initial consultation this will help me to create an individualised treatment plan for you.

The main thing is to take each day and cycle as it comes knowing progress and change is being made.

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In the summertime, when the weather is fine - MASCED

With longer days, more sunshine, and the summer holidays coming up, I want to reflect on the importance of SPF and highlight some information about preventable skin cancers.