Hey there, readers! I needed a wee break & now I am back with the second part of my Optimum Fertility series.
As I discussed in my previous post, both environment and nutrition play a huge part in optimum fertility. Today I will talk about the dietary ingredients for an ideal fertility diet. Again hormonal balance is key! We also need some specific ingredients to produce healthy eggs and sperm.
The manufacture of hormones require certain nutrients. A key nutrient is Vitamin D3, which is not a vitamin actually, but a hormone precursor that our bodies manufacture from sun exposure. Many of us are deficient in D and a previous blog post covers the essentials.
Magnesium and Vitamins A & K work in concert with Vitamin D, so it is important to make sure your diet includes these co-factors. Nuts & dark chocolate are good sources of Magnesium, though many will want to supplement because it can be challenging to get enough through diet without eating too many calories! Vitamins A & K are high in liver, egg yolks, and hard cheese.
We also need healthy fats to build hormones. Saturated fat from free-range animals, organic dairy, wild-caught fatty fish, free-range eggs, avocados and nuts are all good sources of fat to promote fertility. Fatty fish like wild-caught salmon is also a good sources of Omega 3s, which we also need for hormonal balance.
Zinc aids in protein utilization and is required to build healthy eggs and sperm. Red meat, eggs and shellfish are good sources, with oysters being the best source. Iron is essential for good blood quality and an oxygen-rich uterine lining.
And of course B vitamins, including folate, which is also essential for good egg & sperm quality!
An ideal fertility diet would emphasize these nutrient-dense foods:
- Grass-fed beef and/or lamb and/or fatty fish like wild-caught salmon & mackerel
- Organ meats, especially liver–chicken liver is ideal & has a milder taste than beef liver & is a super food that has Vitamin A, folate and Iron!
- Free-range eggs
- Full-fat dairy (if tolerated) from 100% grass-fed cows/goats/sheep , preferably fermented in the form of kefir, yoghurt, cheese. Also butter.
- Dark Leafy Greens & colorful vegetables
- Starchy tubers/fruits like sweet potatoes, potatoes, plantains, bananas
- Colorful fruits like berries
Foods to limit because they can inhibit absorption of minerals & other nutrients:
- grains, especially gluten grains like wheat, barley & rye
- legumes
- excessive nuts & seeds
If you are celiac or gluten-sensitive, it is especially important to completely avoid gluten grains to keep your gut healthy. Fermented foods and probiotics can help you to ensure good gut health so that you will absorb all the great food you are eating. All the good nutrition in the world won’t make a difference if you aren’t able to absorb the nutrients. If you have any digestive problems, this is something to address right away!
Excessive caffeine should be avoided. Try substituting tea for coffee. Avoid more than a cup or two of green tea, as it can inhibit folate utilisation.
Food nourishes our souls as well as our bodies, so don’t forget the dark chocolate and/or your favorite treat!
A good fertility diet is a great pregnancy diet! And allowing this way of eating to become a lifestyle change, rather than just “diet” will make it easier to choose good foods during your pregnancy and of course, positively influence the tastes of your child.
I love supporting new parents in their journey to conception. Please feel free to contact me if I can help you fine-tune your fertility nutrition.
Hi Sondra – lovely to see you back writing. Thanks for the good nutritional scoop that I can pass along to several younger friends who are pregnant. Hugs from chilly PT!
Thanks, Frances! The next post may be interesting to YOU! Look for it next week. Smiles from sunny Santa Fe!
Love this article! I am only 4 weeks pregnant & just started eating hard boiled free-range egg yolks (I am allergic to egg whites). Also, I’ve been drawn to eating more grass fed dairy + nuts than ever before…. I wonder if it’s the fat that my body wants? Still trying to keep up with the liver, beef, veggies that I was eating prior to getting pregnant.
Congrats on your pregnancy, Sara!
Fat builds your babies brain & nervous system, so it makes a lot of sense to me that you are drawn to those foods.
I have large fibroids and a very small budget. Conventional chicken livers and leg quarters are pretty inexpensive, but I am afraid of eating the conventional meats because of possible hormone issues. I’m trying to lose weight using paleo type diet, but I am also afraid if my only paleo protein source is eggs and canned salmon (and not much of that) that i won’t get enough protein and it will cause other problems. So what i want to know is how big of a problem are the hormones in meats, and what are the least damaging compromises i can make?
Hi Channah~
From what I have read, no steroid hormones are approved for growth purposes in pigs or poultry, so they may be safer conventional meat sources for you. (They are not antibiotic free, but that is a different issue!)
Here’s a link with some info for you on the effect of hormones in meat: http://envirocancer.cornell.edu/Factsheet/Diet/fs37.hormones.cfm
Hello,
My husband and I are trying to have a baby. I get my periods every two weeks and have been this way for many years. I have very serious anemia because of it. All the doctors I have seen want to put me on birth control, which I am firmly against.
I think my messed up hormones are the reason we have not been able to conceive.
Do you think this diet alone will help regulate my hormones?
Thank you.
Hi Heather~
My clients have had good experiences with fertility once they have their diets dialed in. Personally, I have eliminated all my peri-menopausal symptoms with diet.
Hormonal balance with diet can take 3-6 months (or more) to see results, so patience is key.
Read some of my other posts on nutrition, especially the Vitamin D posts and let me know if I can assist you with nutrition coaching.
hi sandra
I will need your assistance in nutrition coaching. diagnosed with submcosal fibroid and no ovulation, irregular cycles etc and I want to have a baby by the grace of God this year. thanks.
Hi Pheela,
Sorry for the delay in replying! My comment notification isn’t working. I will email you.