My name is Dr Emma Gray, and this is the sixth video in the YouTube fertility series: How
to Get Pregnant Fast.
And in this video, I'm going to share with you some lifestyle tips to help you to boost
your fertility.
I'm going to give you the key facts in this video, but if you'd like more information,
you can buy the book, 'How to Get Pregnant Fast', that accompanies this series—and
that's available on Amazon.
Okay.
Moderation is key here.
Anything too extreme can upset the natural balance in your hormones and have a negative
impact on your fertility.
So, let's start with a good work-life balance.
A lack of equilibrium here can lead to all sorts of problems: physical and mental health
problems—anxiety, depression, anger, and physical health problems; and all of these
things can have a negative impact on your fertility.
So, what you want to do is you want to look at the balance between those things in your
life that you need to do, and those things that you want to do.
Quite a good way of doing this is to depict your time commitments in a pie chart, and
then look at it and see whether you like what you see—and if you don't, make some changes.
Weight's the next thing that we need to look at.
Now, many people who are either overweight or underweight may have no problem at all
getting pregnant.
However, having a BMI outside of the normal range—the normal range being between 19
and 26—can disrupt your hormones, which will have a negative impact on your fertility,
so this is something to think about.
If your BMI is either less than 18, or more than 29, it's quite a good idea to get both
some nutritional and psychological support to help you to get your weight back into that
normal range because this is likely to be quite tough.
Okay, the next thing we're going to look at is exercise.
Moderation is, again, key here.
Regular exercise can be really good for your fertility; it can boost your fertility.
However, too much exercise can have a negative impact on your fertility.
Now, there aren't any controlled studies here, so, in the UK, experts tend to recommend that
you follow the Department of Health's recommendations for exercise.
So, these are to do at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise every
week—so, moderate-intensity would be cycling or fast walking—in addition to this, at
least two days of muscle strengthening exercise.
Now, what's important here is, when you're trying to conceive, this is not a good time
to start a rigorous exercising programme—even if your weight stays the same, it can still
have a negative impact on your fertility, if your body isn't used to it.
There are three exceptions to the moderation rule; they are alcohol, smoking, and sleep.
So, let's start with alcohol.
The studies are mixed here; there's a lot more information in the book, but, a general
finding is that more than six units of alcohol a week will have a negative impact on women's
fertility.
And the Department of Health in the UK recommend that you either, if you're trying to get pregnant,
avoid alcohol completely, or if you choose to drink, you don't drink more than one to
two units once or twice per week.
And for men, the research suggests that more than three to four units in one sitting can
damage your sperm.
In terms of smoking, I mean, across the board the research suggests that smokers take longer
to get pregnant and experience more fertility problems.
So, the general advice would be: stop smoking.
The good news is that all of the negative effects of smoking have disappeared one year
after stopping.
Finally, sleep.
Adequate sleep is really important if the balance of your hormones is going to be good.
To protect your fertility, it's recommended that you have at least seven hours of sleep
per night.
To boost your fertility, aim for eight to nine hours per night.
Okay, I hope this was helpful.
If it was, please subscribe, and I'll see you soon.
Good luck with your fertility journey.