When you feel ready to start a family but find that getting pregnant isn’t happening right away, it’s natural to search for suggestions on how to increase fertility in women. Some reasons for infertility may be beyond your control, but there are some lifestyle changes that may help improve your chances of getting pregnant. The experts at the Center for Reproductive Health can provide comprehensive information on things you can do to improve your chances of attaining a healthy pregnancy.

Strive to Attain a Health Weight

The amount of fat stored in your body can have an impact on hormone levels. If you’re either overweight or underweight, it can affect your menstrual cycle which in turn affects the balance of your hormones. Working toward attaining a healthy weight with diet and exercise can improve menstrual regularity as well as your overall health. If you’re overweight, losing 5 to 10 percent of your current weight can have a positive impact on fertility.

Exercise is one of the most beneficial things you can do for your health and a sedentary lifestyle can greatly decrease your chances of getting pregnant. Talk to your doctor to find out what type of exercise would be best for you and how to gradually increase the amount of time you spend exercising. It’s important not to overdo it because over-exercising can also impact fertility.

Consume a Health Diet 

There’s no magic food that will automatically increase your fertility but following healthy diet patterns may help. Some things that should be part of your diet include:

• Fish
• High fiber foods such as whole grains and cereals
• Fresh vegetables and fruits
• Healthy fats such as olive oil
• Legumes, seeds and nuts

Include small amounts of dairy and lean poultry such as chicken or turkey. Limit the amount of foods that are highly processed or loaded with refined flour or sugar. Limit caffeine and avoid alcohol. Including foods rich in antioxidants can help to reduce free radicals that can damage your egg cells. Examples include nuts, berries, kale and cabbage. 

Reduce Stress

The more stress you’re under, the harder it is to get pregnant. Frustration over not getting pregnant can add to your feelings of anxiousness. Infertility is probably not the only stressor you’re dealing with. You may also be trying to manage stress involving your career or family. Whenever stress levels rise, there’s a good chance it may impact your ability to get pregnant.

Learning to better manage stress may have a positive impact on fertility. Make it a point to spend some time relaxing every day. Think about what makes you feel relaxed and do more of it, such as going for a walk in nature, meditating, getting a massage or listening to music.

Work With Fertility Specialists

Before giving up your dream of getting pregnant, it’s a good idea to meet with fertility specialists for more information on how to increase fertility. The team at the Center for Reproductive Health understands the wide range of emotions you may be experiencing. They’re available to answer your questions and provide guidance on methods of increasing fertility. Call today.

Infertility is a more common problem than many people realize. If you and your partner are struggling with infertility, there are many possible causes. In some cases, the problem is with male fertility. Some causes of male fertility problems include hormone levels or the quality or motility of sperm cells. If you and your partner are affected by this, it’s beneficial to learn as much as you can about how to increase male fertility.

While not all causes of male infertility are treatable, in many cases there are ways to be proactive about working toward improving sperm health. 

Healthy Habits for Healthier Sperm

The health of your sperm is often related to your overall health. To help improve your health and the health of your sperm, some things to do include:

• Get active. Regular exercise is an important component of overall health. Aim for 30 minutes of exercise a day five days a week to help improve your metabolism and your sperm production. If you haven’t been exercising, consult your doctor before beginning a new exercise routine.
• Eat nutritious foods. Trying to get by on fast food or food with little nutritional value can be harmful to the health of your sperm. Be sure to include healthy foods in your diet, especially a variety of fruits and vegetables along with lean proteins such as fish and poultry.
• Get plenty of sleep. When you don’t get enough sleep, your body has difficulty recharging, which can impact the production of healthy sperm. Taking care to get enough sleep may help increase male fertility and may help you to better cope with stress.

Your body mass index (BMI) helps to determine if you’re at a healthy weight. If you’re overweight or underweight, it may have a negative impact on sperm count. Work on getting to a healthy weight if you’re not already there.

Things to Avoid

If you’re hoping to increase male fertility, there are some things you need to avoid. One of the biggest ones is smoking because smoking can cause problems such as reduced sperm count, poor sperm motility, and male impotence.

Consuming too much alcohol can also affect the health of your sperm. Cutting down on alcohol consumption or avoiding it altogether may help to improve your ability to conceive a healthy baby. For better sperm quality, other things to avoid include excessive amounts of saturated fats, processed meats, and caffeine.

Sperm health can also be negatively affected by overheating the testicles. It’s a good idea to avoid saunas or hot tubs for optimal sperm health. If you work in a hot environment, try to take regular breaks, and avoid sitting in the same position for long periods of time.

For more tips on increasing male fertility, reach out to the experts at the Center for Reproductive Health. Our team of compassionate and knowledgeable experts in the field of assisted reproductive technologies will help create a treatment plan that gives you the best chance of attaining a successful pregnancy. Schedule a consultation today.

Many women give little thought about how to maintain good reproductive health, but it’s important to be proactive about taking care of this complex system. Many couples encounter challenges when trying to conceive, and may not realize that unhealthy lifestyle choices can have a negative effect on reproductive health.
The experts at the California Center for Reproductive Health help people learn about what they can do to be proactive about their reproductive health. What do you need to do to take care of your body, including your reproductive system?

Prevent or Treat STDs

Preventive care is an important part of taking care of your reproductive health. Having a regular gynecological examination is the best way to be sure routine screenings are done to ensure early detection of infections and illnesses.
Untreated sexually transmitted diseases can cause permanent damage to your fallopian tubes and uterus. Since STDs like gonorrhea and chlamydia may not cause symptoms and are a leading cause of infertility, taking care of your reproductive health means doing whatever you can to prevent contracting them.
Condoms reduce the risk of contracting an infection but don’t offer total protection, so sexual activity should be limited to a committed relationship with a partner who isn’t infected. If you do contract an STD, treatment should be started immediately.

Healthy Lifestyle Choices

Lifestyle choices have a big impact on your overall health, including your reproductive health. One of the first places to look is at the foods you’re consuming. Be sure to include healthy, nutritious foods such as fruits, vegetables, and whole grains along with protein from lean meats or plant-based protein sources such as quinoa, tofu, or lentils. Limit caffeine and processed foods.
Work on being at a healthy weight since being either underweight or overweight can affect ovulation. It’s important to include physical activity in your life. Exercise can increase your strength and relieve stress, but don’t overdo it since over-exercising may inhibit ovulation.
Smoking is one of the most harmful things you can do to your body. Don’t smoke and if you’re a smoker, make it a priority to quit. Limit your consumption of alcohol or other substances and avoid exposure to toxins. Sleep can have a big impact on your overall health, so also try to get on a regular sleep schedule.
Know your own body and pay attention to signals your body may give you that something isn’t quite right. Talk to your doctor about signs that concern you such as fatigue, loss of appetite, or changes in your menstrual cycle

Reproductive Health and Infertility

Your reproductive health is important, whether you’re trying to get pregnant now or sometime in the future. When you do decide to get pregnant, you may find that getting pregnant isn’t always easy. Infertility is a very common problem, and there are many reasons couples struggle with being unable to conceive. While there are some factors that are beyond your control, there are some things you can do to make sure your reproductive system is as healthy as possible. Contact our office to work with our experts on developing and maintaining good reproductive health today.

The inability to get pregnant can be frustrating and stressful. The good news is that there are more options for treating infertility than ever before using assisted reproductive technology (ART). Options in fertility treatment include medication, surgery, and lifestyle changes. The team at the Center for Reproductive Health provides guidance and support throughout the process of seeking a solution to infertility challenges. So, which fertility treatment is most effective?

Diagnosing the Cause of Infertility

Before recommending options in fertility treatments, it’s important to look into the cause. When a couple is struggling to get pregnant, the cause could be female, male, or the couple together. The first step is a comprehensive evaluation which includes a physical exam, medical history, and bloodwork to identify hormone abnormalities. The health and motility of the sperm are analyzed as well as the health of the uterus and fallopian tubes.

In Vitro Fertilization (IVF)

If no issues are found with the sperm or the female reproductive system, the most effective fertility treatment is often in vitro fertilization (IVF), which is the fertilization of the egg and sperm outside the body. Before trying IVF, some women respond to taking oral medication that’s prescribed to stimulate ovulation and are able to get pregnant just from taking this medication. A more effective form of fertility treatment is to combine fertility medication with IVF.
Fertility treatment with IVF may be an option for couples with a variety of challenges such as:
– Uterine fibroids
– Polycystic ovary syndrome
– Endometriosis
– Low sperm count
– Blocked fallopian tubes

If IVF is determined to be the best option, injectable hormones are given to induce several eggs to grow. An outpatient procedure is done under anesthesia to remove these eggs. IVF can also be done using eggs or embryos from an anonymous donor.
The eggs are fertilized with sperm provided by the patient’s partner or by a sperm donor in a lab environment. Once the eggs have been fertilized, they remain in the lab for a few days and are incubated as they develop into embryos. One or more embryos are then placed back into the woman’s uterus in a short outpatient surgery that doesn’t usually require anesthesia. Embryos that aren’t implanted can be frozen to be used in the future. Pregnancy happens if one or more embryos successfully implant inside the uterus.

How Effective is IVF?

While IVF is the most effective fertility treatment, it doesn’t work for everyone. Some couples are able to successfully attain pregnancy after one cycle of IVF. More than one cycle of IVF may be needed before pregnancy is attained in other couples. Women who are over 40 may have more difficulty attaining pregnancy than younger women, and using donor eggs may help increase the chance of success. Poor lifestyle choices can reduce a woman’s chance of success with IVF. Examples include smoking and excessive use of alcohol and caffeine.
Working closely with the fertility experts at the Center for Reproductive Health is the best way to find out whether you’re a good candidate for IVF or if a different form of fertility treatment would be better for you. Contact us today to schedule an appointment.

The first frozen embryo transfer occurred in the 1980s, and since then the procedure has improved in its ability to successfully result in pregnancy. In fact, research shows the success rate of a frozen embryo resulting in a live birth is between 57% and 63%.

Here at California Center for Reproductive Health — with offices in Encino, Valencia, and West Hollywood, California — our reproductive specialists use precision and experience to successfully conduct frozen embryo transfers as part of many in vitro fertilization procedures.

Here’s why you might choose to freeze embryos and what happens during the process.

Why would I consider a frozen embryo transfer?

When you undergo in vitro fertilization, it can result in multiple viable embryos. You might choose to freeze any that are not used during a current cycle for future IVF cycles.

Freezing embryos also gives our specialists more time to make sure the woman’s uterus is prepared to successfully accept an embryo for implantation. We may use hormones or monitor her natural cycle to optimize the uterus.

When embryos are frozen, there’s less pressure to get the uterus ready on a specific calendar. The embryos are thawed when the woman’s system is ready to accept them. In some cases, this may mean months or years after the freezing process.

Embryos are often frozen when you decide to undergo PGT, which is preimplantation genetic testing, because it can take several days and up to a week to get the results. PGT helps you determine whether an embryo is viable, healthy, and free of genetic mutations.

Embryo freezing also helps a family preserve their future fertility. In couples in which one partner is undergoing cancer treatment, hormone therapy, or gender affirmation surgery, embryo freezing gives them a chance for a pregnancy that better fits their timeline.

What happens during a frozen embryo transfer?

An embryo is an egg that’s been fertilized in a lab and is ready to implant in the uterus. Freezing it halts the embryo’s developmental process.

Not all embryos are frozen at the same time. Some may be frozen the day after fertilization (Day 1), at cleavage stage (Day 3), or when they become blastocysts (Day 5). We determine when to freeze embryos, how many embryos to freeze at once, and when to thaw them based on several factors, including your age and general embryo health.

The time when we thaw the embryos for transfer depends on when and how your embryos were frozen. Some may need more time to grow in the lab before being placed in your uterus.

Prior to receiving the frozen embryo, we make sure the woman’s menstrual cycle is at a point that best supports a pregnancy. Often we give hormones that help to optimize the endometrium, or lining of the uterus. Blood tests and ultrasounds help us monitor how the woman’s body responds so we can pick just the right time for implantation.

We take careful consideration when transferring embryos to a woman’s uterus. The reproductive specialists want to transfer a number that gives you the highest chance of achieving a successful pregnancy but the lowest chance of pregnancy with multiples.

How successful is frozen embryo transfer?

Remember that no assisted reproductive technology (ART) can 100% guarantee a pregnancy or result in delivery of a healthy, full-term newborn.

The success of frozen embryo transfer depends on the quality of the embryos. Women younger than 35 tend to produce higher quality embryos, but if these embryos are implanted when a woman is older, they still have a high chance of successful implantation. If you choose to freeze your embryos after the age of 35, the chance of having lower-quality embryos increases.

At California Center for Reproductive Health, we want to do everything possible to help you achieve the family you desire. Please reach out to learn more about frozen embryo transfer, in vitro fertilization, and other ART.