Fertility Issues

“Conception is a fragile miracle.” -Dr. Jorge E. Chavarro, Harvard School of Public Health

Infertility, or subfertility, is defined as the inability to conceive or carry a baby to term after one year of regular intercourse without birth control. For women over 35, experts are now suggesting they seek help after 6 months of trying without success. While couples generally consider medical conditions such as PCOS or low sperm count as causes of infertility, lifestyle and environmental factors are often overlooked. Nutritional deficiencies, body weight, emotional distress, cigarettes and alcohol as well as environmental pollutants all have an effect on your ability to conceive and carry a baby to term. Harvard researchers have found a clear link between diet/ lifestyle habits and fertility.[1] Experts are now linking toxic chemicals with a variety of different illnesses and conditions including infertility.[2] Chemicals found in the air, household cleaners, laundry detergents and pesticides can potentially be harmful to our bodies and increased exposure to these toxins may be affecting your chances of becoming pregnant.

The University of Surrey, led by Dr. Neil Ward, followed the progress of 367 couples that had followed a health improvement program.[3] The program included use of appropriate supplements, removal of heavy metals, improvement of diet with increased organic food as well as correction of infections and lifestyle issues. By the end of the study 89% of the couples had given birth. Within the group 37% had been having a history of “infertility” – and of those 81% had born a healthy child through following the natural health program. Of the study group, 38% had past miscarriage – of these 83% had given birth and none had miscarried.

Following these encouraging results, Dr. Yik has helped many couples get pregnant successfully through customized natural fertility enhancement. She understands that it takes two to become pregnant, so treatment is aimed at assisting both the female and the male to be at their optimal health. As each couple is different, Dr. Yik takes the time to listen and assess in order to prescribe the appropriate course of treatment for you.

For couples who come in for natural fertility enhancement, Dr. Yik takes the following into consideration:

A series of tests and screening: fertility health check questionnaire, hormone profiles (blood tests), heavy metal status, nutrient absorption status (as needed)
Nutritional counseling, and addition of appropriate supplements as needed to ensure adequate nutrients to support conception and pregnancy
Detoxification (prior to attempts to conceive) by:
- Reducing heavy metal toxicity if tests reveal high levels of heavy metals
- Reducing environmental toxic exposure through education
- Supporting your body’s detoxification mechanisms
Traditional Chinese Medicine and Western botanical medicine to address hormone imbalances (thyroid, estrogen dominance/ progesterone deficiency, etc.), ovulatory disorders, and other factors contributing to difficulties conceiving
Lifestyle counseling (addresses fertility awareness, smoking, alcohol, exercise, weight, stress management, emotional/ psychological factors, etc.).

If you are considering assisted reproductive technologies such as IVF (in-vitro fertilization) or IUI (intra-uterine insemination), naturopathic medicine may help improve the success of these procedures through correcting nutrition, tonifying the reproductive system, removing heavy metals, etc.

While there is no magic pill out there that works for all couples, planning parents do need to ensure that all the necessary buildings blocks for a healthy pregnancy are in place. They also need to address any underlying issues contributing to infertility or miscarriages. Whether you have a medical condition or the cause of your infertility or miscarriage(s) is “unexplained”, Dr. Yik is dedicated to helping you to improve your chances of becoming pregnant naturally and carrying a healthy baby to term by using tried and tested natural fertility enhancement methods.

Click here to learn more about Dr. Yik’s Natural Fertility Enhancement Program. Click here to learn more about Dr. Yik and how she can help you.

References:

[1] Jorge E. Chavarro, Janet W. Rich-Edwards, Bernard A. Rosner, and Walter C. Willett. Diet and Lifestyle in the Prevention of Ovulatory Disorder Infertility. Obstetrics & Gynecology (2007) Vol. 110, No. 5

[2] Toft G, Hagmar L, Giwercman A, Bonde JP. Epidemiological evidence on reproductive effects of persistent organochlorines in humans. Reprod Toxicol (2004) 19:5–26.

[3]Ward, Neil. Journal of Nutritional & Environmental Medicine (1995) 5, 205-208

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