Many women who are having trouble getting pregnant have been told by their doctors that their eggs are not “healthy” or that their eggs are old. The options given for getting pregnant are usually using an egg donor, IVF, or adoption. But what most women don’t know is that there are things you can do to help support the health of the ovaries and eggs, but their is one caveat, these steps MUST be done for 90 days or longer to see results.
During the 90 day period before an egg reaches full maturation, the eggs are changing and preparing for ovulation. At this time, they are affected by both healthy or unhealthy influences.
Contribution factors to egg health are-
- Proper Nutrition
- Stress
- Proper Oxygenation
- Blood flow
- Hormone balance
Proper Nutrition
Proper nutrition and intentional eating for fertility are the first topics I ALWAYS start with when I start with a new client. These are the cornerstones of all things fertility. What you eat or don’t eat can positively or negatively affect your ability to conceive, the choice is yours.
The types of nutrients your eggs depend on are found in a diet dense in nutrition. For a full meal plan check out my cookbook- The Complete Hormone Puzzle Cookbook. This book is packed full of delicious, nutritious, fertility boosting super foods. Get your copy here- https://www.amazon.com/dp/1686847068.
Here are a few quick suggestions to support egg health.
- Royal Jelly
- Maca
- Broccoli
- Berries
- Dark Leafy Green Vegetables
- Halibut
- Salmon
- Pumpkin Seeds
- Sesame Seeds
- Turmeric
- Ginger
What you don’t eat also plays a huge role in how healthy your eggs are.
Dietary and lifestyle habits that damage your eggs are:
- Cigarettes
- Caffeine
- Alcohol
- Sugar
- Non- organic meat and dairy
- Soda
- Low fat foods
- Processed foods
- Trans fats
- GMO foods
- Gluten
Staying away from these foods is just as important as adding the foods from the first list.
Stress
Stress is the second leading cause of poor egg health. Stress affects so many things when it comes to getting pregnant and overall well being. When your body is stressed it goes into fight or flight mode where the last thing it will do is initiate or create life.
When your body is constantly in a stressed state, you start to make cortisol which is a poison to your body. When your body is in a constant stressed state it shuts down all processes including the signals that it is time to produce a baby. It shuts down digestion, brain function, your immune system is compromised and more. Living in a state of constant stress is the opposite of what you want to do to conceive a healthy baby.
The other piece of this is that your body can’t determine what is perceived stress and what is actual stress so whether you are being chased by a lion or your boss is yelling at you or you are worried about not being able to conceive, it is all stress to your body.
Until you are able to release that and relax it will be very hard to get pregnant.
Since stress is so terrible for your egg health. Learning to manage and eliminate stress will be the difference between conception or not.
Proper Oxygenation and blood flow.
Good blood flow to the ovaries is essential for good egg health. The blood must be oxygen rich to do its job of oxygenating and vascularizing the embryo which in turn will lead to the highest potential for implantation. Blood flow can decrease from lack of exercise, dehydration and thick blood.
To increase blood flow to the ovaries, follow these suggestions–
– Drink at least 8-10 glasses of pure water per day (filtered is best and not bottled in plastic)
– Movement/Exercise- Find something you love to do that will move your body. Something that is pleasurable and you will be consistent at. This will increase blood flow in the body and brings in fresh, oxygenated blood to all cells.
– Do abdominal or fertility massage daily. You can learn to do this yourself or find a fertility masseuse in your area. This is best done first thing in the morning starting the day after your period has ended and continue all month long until ovulation. Try to do it 4 times a week or more.
Hormone Balance
Hormones are your bodies chemical messengers that tell it what to do and having balanced hormones will greatly increase your egg health. These little power houses control everything in your body from how you look to how you feel to how your body functions which includes how healthy and abundant your eggs are. When they are out of alignment they can cause your body to work against you instead of for you.
Since ovulation is directly tied to your hormones being in balance this plays a huge role in your egg health.
Roughly the size of a pea, the pituitary gland plays a vital role in fertility by releasing two hormones directly responsible for ovulation (release of a woman’s egg): Follicle stimulating hormone (FSH): Stimulates the growth of eggs during your menstrual cycle. This process is called ovulation. During ovulation a mature egg is released from the ovary. The egg then moves down the fallopian tube where it can be fertilized. If sperm are in the fallopian tube when the egg is released, there is a good chance that the egg will be fertilized, creating an embryo, which can grow into a baby. Having abundant and healthy eggs is vital to your success in becoming pregnant.
Easy ways to balance your hormones –
- Do a fertility cleanse. I always start my clients here.
- Take the super food maca as I reference above.
- Limit your exposure to toxic chemicals and beauty products as I discuss here https://www.kelahealthcoach.com/post/how-cutting-toxins-can-improve-your-chances-of-getting-pregnant
- Eat a balanced diet free from the avoid foods list and full of balanced nutrition focusing on Protein, Fiber and Fat.
Step-By-Step Guide to Supporting Your Egg Health
Since the cycle of an egg and our window of opportunity is 90 days this guide is laid out in a 90-day cycle.
Month One
- Fertility cleanse
- Take Multivitamin (whole food)
- Take Antioxidants and CoQ10
- Royal Jelly, Maca, FertiliGreens
- Eat the Fertility Diet
- Apply Fertility Massage (Don’t do while menstruating)
- Implement a Stress Reduction Plan
Month Two
- Take Multivitamin
- Take Antioxidants and CoQ10
- Royal Jelly, Maca, FertiliGreens
- Eat the Fertility Diet
- Apply Fertility Massage (Don’t do while menstruating)
- Exercise
- Practice Your Stress Reduction Plan
Month Three
- Take Multivitamin
- Take Antioxidants and CoQ10
- Royal Jelly, Maca, FertiliGreens
- Eat the Fertility Diet
- Apply Fertility Massage (Don’t do while menstruating)
- Exercise
- Practice Your Stress Reduction Plan
You should continue all of the supplements until you are pregnant. Once pregnant, only take a Prenatal Multivitamin. (info taken from natural fertility.com)
In Summary
Supporting egg health is important for every woman who is preparing for conception, especially as we get older. There are many things you can do to help support and protect your egg health, but they must done consistently on a daily basis for at least 90 days to have the best effect.
Here is a quick summary of how to support and protect egg health:
- Increase ovulation through fertility massage, exercise and drinking water.
- Encourage hormone balance.
- Eat a nutrient dense diet and use supporting supplements such as antioxidants, a multivitamin, L-arginine and fertility superfoods.
- Create a ‘stress support system’ to help you reduce stress and have a healthier response when stressful situations happen.
If you are confused by any of these steps or just need an expert fertility and hormones practitioner and coach, I highly encourage you to reach out to me for a consultation. In this consultation we will talk about where you are and how my program can get you to where you want to be. I have thousands of success stories with my protocol, The Hormone Puzzle Method and I can’t wait for you to be my next one. Schedule a free call here – www.calendly.com/kelahealthcoach or check out my hormone site www.hormonepuzzle.com
Love and Health,
Coach Kela
