For many couples we are approaching the time of year when “after Christmas” it’s time to get your dreams of starting or growing your family on the go!
Most people know that if they are hoping to fall pregnant then drinking alcohol is to be avoided, hence why people chose to let the Christmas season pass before they get cracking. As an acupuncturist who supports a lot of individuals and couples of all types with their fertility, think of me as your friendly Christmas elf giving you some pointers to make your Christmas wishes more likely to come true.
Here we go… it takes approximately 90 days to make sperm, so what you eat and drink and do in the 90 days prior to sperm being released has a direct impact on the number of healthy sperm available. So if Christmas is a very boozy time for you, you might want to go on a health kick and use the first few months of the year to focus on your health! Alcohol and healthy sperm don’t go together at all. Also affecting sperm health, vaping, cannabis and steroids!
And it’s not just the fellas affected by booze. Alcohol messes with ovulation, reduces ovarian reserve and mucks up your hormone regualtion. It also creates systemic inflammation. It can also impact embryo implanation, as can vaping (and smoking really doesn't help either).
Eat your sprouts! Brussel sprouts are choc full of folate, which is essential for sperm health but also for hormone health. Crucially, it's really important in the earliest tages of embryo development, to help form a healthy neural tube and brain stem, so you need to have decent levels of it in you as the important stage occurs before you've even tested positive. That's why women hoping to conceive are advised to take a pre-conception vitamin containing folic acid even before they fall pregnant. Personally I prefer it when women take the non-synthetic form, methyl folate, as some women can't convert folic acid into the usable form so easily.
Get some winter sun! Or at least get your vitamin D levels checked and get them up to the right levels! Vitamin D is critical for sperm motility and morphology, also for avoiding gestational diabetes, and a lack of it also makes PCOS, endometriosis and fibroids worse. Vitamin D levels at time of conception and birth also has an impact on the future health of the child.
Enjoy your turkey! Turkey is a fantastic source of lean protein, which you need to support egg and sperm quality. Other sources include eggs, oily fish and other lean meats, and nuts. Bonus points if your diet is high in Omega 3 as it's anti-inflammatory.
Hit the nuts! Walnuts are especially good for sperm health! And brazil nuts are supportive of the thyroid, a poorly functioning thyroid messes with fertility.
And above all, enjoy yourselves, relax and hav
e fun, especially wtih your significant other. Creating a strong intimate bond with the person you want to start a family with is essential, especially if your journey to baby turns out not to be so easy. Tension between couples also reduces libido and stress messes with everyone's fertility, so really take the time this Christmas to just enjoy each other's company a little more.
If you'd like to know more about how acupuncture can support you on your fertility journey, or if things are already not going as you'd hoped, then do reach out to see how Marianne can support you on info@mariannekillick.co.uk
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