Fertility Diets

[waldohood]

I am reading the Infertility Diet right now by Fern Reiss. It makes a lot of sense. I will eat ANYTHING if I think that it will help me to get pregnant and stay pregnant. That said, I miss milk, bananas, chocolate, to name a very few. Is anyone familiar with foods that are good to eat- or bad to eat when trying to get pregnant? Is anyone familiar with this book? I have always believed the "everything in moderation" rule-- but this book does shoot some holes in that theory. Like I said, if I think it will help, I will keep on doing what I am doing, but if I am depriving myself of foods that I love needlessly, than I want to know that, too. Wisdom is appreciated!

[Laurel]

We are just discussing this subject on another list I'm on. Someone said that they read "The Infertility Diet" and hated it. She is pretty mainstream, though, so I took her comment with a grain of salt. Her complaint was that the author presents so many things as facts without giving any evidence to back up those claims. I searched for nutrition/fertility books on amazon, and "The Infertility Diet" did not have as good reviews as others. I just got "Healthy Parents, Better Babies" by Francesca Naish and Janette Roberts, and so far, I am very impressed with this book. It is very thorough. It's holistic in its perspective. I like it because it focuses on general health and nutrition, which is what I need. After 7 years of infertility (I'm a mom through adoption), I'm trying to just overhaul my health (with emphasis on reproductive health) without getting too caught up in getting pg. I have to admit, I'd also be a little wary of anything promising me that I'll get pg if I eat some certain food. I guess I've just been down this path so long that I'm pretty cynical. I'd rather focus on a more balanced nutritional approach, get my overall health in as top shape as possible, and then see what to do about ttc. "Healthy Parents..." focuses alot on eating organic, cutting out refined sugars/white flour/processed foods, getting the right vitamins and minerals, detoxifying your system of heavy metals, reducing your exposure to environmental pollution, etc.

I'm also waiting on another book, "Fertilty, Cycles, and Nutrition" and will be interested in what that has to say. I do believe that what we eat has a great impact on how our body functions, but I would tend to agree with the idea of moderation and balance.

I would sure love to hear people's ideas too, because this is an area I'm intensely interested in right now. My New Years' resolution is to improve my reproductive health.

[naturegirl]

What's this about milk, bananas and chocolate? : These are all things I eat almost daily! I love bananas. The only thing better than banans covered in chocolate may be strawberries covered in chocolate! Do I need to stop eating these?

[waldohood]

Tell me about it. The books says that fruits without seeds should be avoided, but fruits with seeds are ok; milk can cause a magnesium deficiency, and chocolate contains caffeine-- it also says that potatoes should be avoided, but that yams a very good in the first half of the cycle. Peas are detrimental to fertility, wheat germ is excellent, and soy, broccoli, cauliflower, nuts are very good. dh thinks it is a bit extreme-- and I tend to agree, but I will go to extreme measures if need be-- IF it is really going to help. If I am saying no to foods I love for nothing, I will be one sad woman!!!!

[naturegirl]

I'll miss my bananas...

[Laurel]

I've been thinking about this thread. Maybe it's a good idea to read several books on the subject of food and fertility. That way, if you're going to have to cut foods, at least you can choose foods that several authors agree on, instead of going by only one person's opinion. These other two books I've been reading both mention cutting caffeine (which would mean chocolate), and that makes alot of sense to me. But neither of them says a word about bananas, and they're both pretty thorough.

[naturegirl]

I am actually going to make a trip to the library today for that reason exactly. I sure hope it doesn't get too complicated:

(BTW: Yah Bananas! )

[waldohood]

That is a REALLY good point-- please keep me posted, and I will do research, too.

[Laurel]

OK, here's tidbit #1 and it's pretty easy: both the books I've been reading say that we should be drinking only purified water to avoid all the garbage that comes through in tap water. That I can do; I just have to remember to do it. I think I'm going to put a little sign over my kitchen sink reminding me about the purified water in the fridge. I guess there are a few places where you can send hair samples for trace mineral analysis to see if your body has an excess of heavy metals; then you can use natural means to detoxify yourself.

Waldohood, do you have a specific diagnosis for your inf or m/c's? My books have sections devoted to specific problems. My inf is unexplained.

[waldohood]

OUr first miscarrige (Nov, '01) was due to a septate uterus-- the bbay was implanted right on it. We lost that bbay at 13 weeks. After, we were told that the septum was actually small and the chance of having another implantation there were slim to none. So we got pregnant again and miscarried at 5 weeks in Fe, '02. In April, we had the spetum removed, and once cleared, got pregnant again. We miscarried again at 5 weeks in July, '02. Basically, they think our second loss may also have been septal related, but we do not know about the third. My husband and I have both had our chromosomes checked, and I've been tested for everything from lupus to antiphopholipid anitibody, hypothyroidism, etc etc etc etc etc. I have had a hystosalpinogram and an sonohystogram. The closest answer thay have is that my hormone levels are at the low end of average. The only thing I have not had done that I wonder if I should have is an endomitrial biopsy. We have not had any problems getting pregnant, conceiving each time on our first month of trying. Other than that, we do not have many answers. I will be open to hear anything that you have to offer!

[nomadic]

Hi Waldohood,

I'm so sorry for your losses, I've been pg 3 times too in the last couple of years and lost all three (2 were ectopic, one a chemical pregnancy).

I read The Infertility Diet too, when we first started ttc. I think that's the one which talks about how bad cottonseed oil is?
I started reading labels and it's in a lot of processed food - no more chips for me! (my only vice )

I hope you don't mind my asking.. what did they mean by "low end of average" for your hormone levels? Do they mean your post-ovulation progesterone? or your day 3 hormones: FSH, LH, E2?

[waldohood]

Thank you-- and I am sorry for your losses, too.

A few months ago, I had a progesterone draw-- 7 days post the LH surge (as per OPK), and it came back 14.8. That is why I went on the Clomiphine. Just Monday I had another draw--- but I started a new thread for that one.

[Laurel]

Hey, I was just curious to see what things we've all been learning and what you're doing as far as diet.

I have gone through all my cookbooks and indexed appealing recipes featuring the foods I'm trying to incorporate. Mostly, these include dry beans, brown rice, whole grains, dark green veggies, yellow and orange veggies, etc. I've had a terrible diet in general, so this is a huge overhaul for me. I'm gradually replacing things in my pantry: natural peanut butter for processed, butter for margarine, baking powder with no aluminum. I'm still trying to remember to drink purified water, and I'm doing pretty well at swearing off chocolate and refined sugar (considering where I've been at!) I'm also trying to eliminate as many processed foods as possible.

Yesterday, I made a blank menu on my computer, where I've broken down each meal of the day into the food groups I want to include. So, my next goal is to plan about six weeks worth of menus.

I'm taking a vitamin supplement that also includes "female" herbs: Dong Quai, Chasteberry, Black Cohosh, and others. I'm keeping close to the amounts recommended in the books I'm reading. I also hope to supplement with more zinc and to begin taking flax oil daily.

I think after getting food, vitamins, and some herbs going, my next task will be to read up on and implement some detoxification procedures into my life.

What's everyone else doing?

Oh, check out this website if you're interested in using a naturopath to get pg: www.infertilitysolutions.com

I know this man from another email list, and I got to meet his wife IRL a few weeks ago. He comes to the US all the time.

[Laurel]

Oops, that's definitely not the right website. I'll have to find it, because I was sure that was the right address.