I love helping couples conceive healthy, happy little ones. There is so much that is overlooked in mainstream medicine when it comes to pregnancy. Couples struggle to get pregnant, and they often get disappointing answers from their doctors.
There is hope. This is why I wanted to put this article series together.
This is the 2nd article in a 3 part series: Finding your fertility – how to naturally conceive a healthy, happy, baby.
You can find part 1 here:
3 things to avoid if you’re trying to conceive a healthy, happy baby
In part 1 I talked about how toxicity can affect the sex organs, the sex hormones and the DNA.
I didn’t specifically talk about how the hormones are disrupted because it’s actually not relevant at this stage. I think it is more important to get to the root cause.
This article will discuss the 2nd reason (root cause) why couples can have trouble conceiving: poor nutrition.
The body has checks and balances in place. If the mom’s body doesn’t have enough of specific nutrients and calories it will often terminate the pregnancy. Of course this is not true all the time. But generally the woman’s body needs an environment that is perfectly suited to incubating a new life.
Here are three ways to combat poor nutrition you can conceive a healthy, happy baby.
And I will note that this takes TWO adequately nutrient rich bodies. Future dads need this advice too.
1. Consume Fish oil:
Containing potent anti-inflammatory molecules, that can balance hormones, decrease stress, and improve the body’s ability to detoxify. Choose oil that comes from small fish such as herring, mackerel, sardines, etc. (Remember toxins and metals concentrate up the food chain.) Aim for 3 grams per day of of the two essential fatty acids EPA and DHA.
2. Eat dark leafy greens:
I could talk for days about how beneficial this food group is. The molecules in the dark green leafies, allow the liver to process toxins including xenoestrogens, and toxic hormones. They also provide important minerals like calcium and iron. Side note: iron deficiency in pregnant women can increase the chances of postpartum depression. We want healthy, happy, babies AND moms! Aim for 6 cups of dark green leafies per day. If you’re curious how, check out: 11 ways to eat more veggies than you thought humanly possible.
3. Eat ample protein:
I think a variety of protein sources is good: meats, nuts, seeds, legumes. Choose animal meats that have been raised in a healthy way (grass-fed or wild, without antibiotics or hormones.) The amino acids in protein help the body detoxify (yep that again), and provide the building blocks for baby building. Meats also contain iron (yep that again.) Aim for 1 gram of protein for every kilogram of body weight per day.
I get my patients (future moms and dads) to do this for 4 months before attempting conception. I know that seems like a long time to wait when you wanted to get pregnant yesterday, but it’s important to set the DNA, sex cells, hormones, and bodies up for success. This takes time, and also honours the amount of time it takes to create sperm and eggs that are ready to conceive.
We’ve talked about 3 things to avoid if you’re trying to conceive a healthy, happy baby and 3 things to consume if you want a healthy, happy baby. Next I’ll cover the 3rd thing we need to consider for preparing the body and mind for a healthy, happy baby.
Here are the other two part of this series:
Part 1: 3 things to avoid if you’re trying to conceive a healthy, happy baby
Part 3: preparing the body and mind for a healthy, happy baby.
Please be sure to share this with your friends. Infertility is a devastating roller coaster for couples, and I want people to know there is hope out there. Often people don’t talk about their fertility challenges because they are so painful. So please spread it far and wide, because you never know who might benefit.
Here’s to your delightful, thriving, baby-making life,
Dr. Tonia
