Little known causes (and answers) for infertility

Arguably there is no more frustrating and complex health issue than infertility.

Defined as the inability to conceive a child after 12 months of unprotected intercourse, infertility affects about one out of six couples.

Infertility can be a mystery, because, in the absence of any anatomical disorders such as ovulation problems, fallopian tube damage, endometriosis, or uterine issues, it’s difficult to pinpoint what may be going on.

Here are several little-known underlying factors that you should consider that can significantly impact fertility, as well as ways you can overcome each and increase your chances of pregnancy success!

Having a low-fat diet
In addition to being crucial to brain and nervous system health, fats are needed by your body to make sex hormones, so if you severely restrict fats in your diet, you are selling your body short in terms of hormone resources…and that can impact your fertility.

About 30 percent of your daily calorie intake should be fats, being sure to include saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats.

Healthy sources of fats include real butter, extra virgin olive oil, lard, coconut oil, avocado, meats, poultry, fish, eggs, cheese, and nuts.

If you’re concerned about weight gain, don’t be.  Fats help fill you up and keep you satisfied, so you’re less likely to snack or overeat—and that’s a recipe for weight LOSS!

Environmental toxins
The more toxic you are, the less likely your body will be able to function as it’s designed to, and that includes fertility—so it’s time to detox!

Start with your diet—eliminate the processed junk and stick to real foods.  If you look at a food label and have no earthly clue what an ingredient is, trust me, neither does your body—and it will have to be detoxed out of you like a poison.  Closer to Nature is always best.

Strive to go organic as much as you can to avoid herbicides and pesticides.  If you can’t go 100 percent organic, here’s a good rule of thumb:  If you are going to be eating the entire food including the skin if any (like apples, berries, cucumbers, lettuce, grapes or peppers), buy organic.  If you’re going to be peeling the food (such as with bananas, avocado, potatoes or oranges), conventional produce is acceptable.

Seek out natural household cleaners and detergents without harmful chemicals (Mrs. Meyers is an excellent choice) and organic personal care products.

And although this should be obvious, if you smoke, please quit, and avoid excessive alcohol intake.

Stress
Pregnenolone is your “molding clay” for hormones, and your body allocates its Pregnenolone resources to wherever they’re needed.

But stress hormones trump all others—so when you’re under stress, your body directs ALL of its Pregnenolone to making stress hormones…and that leaves none for other hormones, including sex hormones.

Find ways to lower your stress level and get help if you need it.

Statin use
Here’s something you won’t read on a Crestor box—cholesterol is needed to make sex hormones, so if you’re on statins to reduce cholesterol, you may, in turn, be impacting your fertility.

There are other safer ways to encourage a healthy cholesterol level:

• Fish oil supplements—fish oil has been medically proven to reduce cholesterol.
• Better digestion—your liver eliminates old worn out cholesterol through the GI tract, but if you’re prone to constipation, your old cholesterol may instead be getting reabsorbed into circulation from the intestinal tract.  For better digestion, keep your meals simpler and avoid combining animal proteins and starches in the same meal, as this combination is very taxing on your stomach.  Enzyme supplements can also help boost the digestive process.  
• Probiotics—probiotics produce acids that counter cholesterol production, they also “eat” excess cholesterol and they encourage more regular BMs (and ease constipation).

Talk to your doctor about safer alternatives.

Nutrient deficiencies
Vitamin D, folic acid, and zinc deficiency have all been linked to female infertility.

In addition to a healthy diet of real foods, a high-quality multi-vitamin, and mineral formula can help ensure your essential nutrient bases are covered.

Over or underactive thyroid
Both over and underactive thyroid can affect the ability to conceive, so if you haven’t had your thyroid tested lately, now is the time.  Although the typical standard for testing thyroid function is the TSH test, many times the TSH misses cases of hypothyroidism because it's more of a measure of pituitary function--not thyroid health.

The best option for assessing thyroid function is a TRH Stimulation (or TRH Challenge) test.

If your doctor is not familiar with the TRH Stimulation test (and many mainstream doctors are not), at least ask him to do these tests in addition to the TSH:

• Total T4 and T3
• Free T4 and T3
• T3 Uptake
• Reverse T3
• Thyroid Antibodies 

Get to the bottom of what may be contributing to infertility and increase your chances of a successful pregnancy!