The relationship between infertility and nutrition in women
Dietitian and nutritionist Dr. Toba Kian Taban stated that being overweight can cause infertility in women and provided important information about infertility and nutrition.
The ability to conceive can be greatly improved through weight management and behavior change through healthy nutrition. By maintaining the healthy weight required to prepare for pregnancy and increase fertility, a reliable, life-supporting environment is provided to both mother and baby for nine months.
Find out your healthy weight!
Maintaining a healthy weight increases your chances of getting pregnant. It has been proven that ovulation can be disrupted by the hormonal situation caused by being overweight. Even a 5% weight loss can increase fertility in women. On the other hand, women who are underweight, especially those with a body mass index (BMI) of less than 18.5 (the normal range is 19-24.9), have irregular menstrual bleeding or complete cessation of ovulation. Especially in women who exercise excessively, dance for long hours, and who follow a strict and restrictive diet, menstrual bleeding and irregular ovulation are observed due to rapid weight loss.
Rapid weight loss can disrupt the hormonal cycle!
Women's weight control especially with modern diets can lead to rapid weight loss, which can disrupt the hormonal cycle. during pregnancy, for weight loss or gain; Nutrients needed by the body should be used as a medical nutrition treatment in the presence of a dietitian.
Consume iron-rich foods
Studies have shown that the risk of ovulatory infertility decreases with an iron-rich diet (particularly in women who use a lot of vegetables and iron supplements). Foods such as eggs, red meat, liver, spinach, dried beans, lentils, oilseeds, iron-rich cereals, high-fiber foods, whole grains, and whole-grain rice are high in iron. Vitamin C is necessary to increase the absorption of iron from food. For this purpose, peppers, citrus fruits and purple fruits (such as blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries) should be consumed frequently. Researchers have published an infertility diet. It has been determined that the risk of uterine infertility is reduced in 66% of cases who follow this diet.
To reduce the risk of infertility:
Trans fats should be avoided. In particular, prepared foods such as fast food, fried foods, and trans fats should be removed from the diet. You should prefer olive oil, avocado oil, fish oil, flaxseed oil and hazelnut oil, which we describe as unsaturated fats.
Against the frequent consumption of proteins of animal origin, we must also add proteins of vegetable origin to our diet; Such as dry beans, chickpeas and lentils.
By following a low glycemic index diet and high fiber intake, we must control our weight and maintain the dynamism of the digestive system. You should eat fruits with a low glycemic index such as bulgur, oats, whole grains, apples, oranges, and kiwis.
You should eat foods that are high in iron.
Multivitamins may be used under the supervision of a doctor.
Foods that are high in fat such as mayonnaise, cream, and butter should be avoided.
Folic acid
During infertility treatment, folic acid should be taken to support reproductive health. In order to prevent the development of spine and neural tube defects, it is very important to eat a diet rich in folic acid and take nutritional supplements. It is very important to eat dark green leafy vegetables (such as spinach and chard) and to consume grains and legumes frequently. It is necessary to take at least 400 micrograms of a folic acid supplement daily.
Infertility and male nutrition
Finding the desired weight for men is very important because levels of testosterone and other hormones can drop in obese men. Eating an adequate and balanced diet and maintaining an age-appropriate body weight reduces the risk of infertility. Also, low sperm count and low motility are common in overweight and obese men.
Eating a diet rich in antioxidant vitamins and minerals, especially a diet rich in zinc, magnesium, vitamin A and vitamin C, eating omega-3s and olive oil and avoiding trans fats will increase sperm motility. In order to improve sperm quality, care should be taken to eat a diet that has a high glycemic index, contains good fats, and is rich in antioxidants and probiotics. In particular, he can eat foods like salmon, walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds, and flaxseeds frequently. Soy may have a sperm-reducing effect in men, as isoflavones act like estrogen. It is very important to read the associated tag information. In particular, it should be checked whether foods such as crackers or crackers contain soy.