When the time arrives to finally start trying to get pregnant, who doesn’t worry about the possibility of facing infertility or difficulties conceiving? As many couples are delaying pregnancy until later in life which can reduce ones chances of successful conception, for most women the question is bound to arise – “Can I get pregnant?” While some couples will confront serious reproductive issues that require complex and costly fertility treatments, for others it might simply be a matter of cultivating fertility-friendly lifestyle choices to support their efforts to have children. The starting point is to become aware of fertility enhancing and fertility diminishing behaviors.

Take a Time Out: De-stress to Conceive
Stress is an “equal opportunity” fertility barrier on many levels. When it comes to the impact stress has on the production of hormones women and men are affected similarly. For men under pressure, overall sperm volume is reduced and the percentage of abnormal sperm is increased. For women, chronic stress leads to hormone imbalance including suppressing the production of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH), which triggers a cycle of hormone-related changes that can prevent ovulation. Finding healthy ways to diminish and cope with stress is essential to boosting fertility. Couples who are trying to get pregnant will greatly benefit from creating space in their lives, individually and as a couple, for adequate rest, relaxation and participating in stress-relieving activities. As future parents, cultivating the habit of reconnecting with oneself and partner will be essential to healthy parenting and partnership. Start your R&R rituals early on. 

Pleasure for Pleasure’s Sake: Orgasm Improves Your Chances
When couples are too focused on the outcome, lovemaking not only becomes less fulfilling but a stressful task – an approach which could potentially diminish their chances of getting pregnant. We all know what doesn’t happen when we try too hard or allow distracting thoughts to dominate our minds during sex. We forget to enjoy the moment. Contractions during orgasm actually function to increase your chances for getting pregnant by moving the sperm towards the cervix and closer to the egg awaiting fertilization. Climaxing simultaneously is even better. Conceiving a child can be an effort of love, joy and tremendous passion. Discover ways to boost libido and enhance sexual pleasure to keep it fun and pleasurable and productive.  

Not too Fat, Not too Thin: Weight Issues and Hormones
Maintaining a healthy weight positively influences hormonal balance which is important for both partners. Men who are underweight often test for lower testosterone levels, while men who are overweight frequently exhibit lower sperm concentration and count. Equally so, women who are underweight are often cease to ovulate. Women who are overweight are often subject to fertility-adverse disorders including PCOS. Couples who are trying to conceive benefit from adopting a nutritious diet of fertility enhancing natural and organic foods and getting regular and moderate exercise. Balancing hormones with fertility boosters for women and male fertility supplements for men can also be beneficial.

Limit Your Vices: Tobacco and Alcohol Use Diminish Fertility
It isn’t news to anyone that smoking and drinking have negative health consequences in general, but did you know that these two vices are particularly detrimental to female and male fertility? For women, smoking impacts hormone production and reduces estrogen levels, decreases the blood supply to reproductive organs and can actually harm fallopian tubes, destroys a woman’s egg supply, and reduces an embryo’s chances of successful implantation. Men who smoke risk producing less sperm, sperm with defects or chromosomal damage. Nicotine in the body can also dramatically reduce sperms ability to swim towards and meet the ovum, thus successful conception is less likely. Smokers have a higher risk for impotency due to constricted blood supply to the genitals and frequently experience a much lower sex drive than non-smoking counterparts. Alcohol performs like a toxin in the testicles and limits healthy sperm production. In women, excessive drinking can cause hormonal imbalances that impair fertility. Enjoying the occasional glass of wine is acceptable, but the goal should be to keep alcohol intake to the minimum.

The Age Factor
Whether it fits our schedule or not, our bodies are designed to produce offspring relatively early in life but our culture and lifestyles often require we delay starting families until our mid-thirties or early forties. Age is significant factor for both women and men, however, women are more seriously affected in terms of biology. A woman’s most fertile period is from 18 to 28 and by the time she hits her 30’s her supply of viable eggs is significantly depleted. Although men do have the physical capability of fathering children much later in life, the risk of chromosomal abnormalities in those children increases dramatically. While we can’t turn back the clock, we can hold this reality of age and fertility within our awareness and adopt fertility-friendly lifestyles in advance to maintain healthy bodies and optimal fertility. As the window of fertility narrows with age, using a fertility monitor like Lady-Comp to track ovulation is even more important.