If you have been trying to get pregnant but have been unsuccessful, there are a number of things that can be done to increase your chances if conception. While it takes most women an average of 6 months to 1 year to become pregnant, female fertility may be enhanced by simply living a healthier lifestyle.

1. No more caffeine. Studies have shown that women who drink excessive amounts of caffeine have delayed conception. In one study, women who drank more than one cup of coffee per day had a 50% reduction in fertility compared to those who did not consume coffee.
2. Stop smoking. It is common knowledge that smoking is bad for your health, but studies have also shown that women who smoke are less fertile than those who do not. Also, women whose mothers smoked during their pregnancies are less likely to conceive.
3. Reduce alcohol intake. Drinking alcohol, even in moderation, can decrease fertility.  The results of once study show a greater than 50% reduction in the probability of conception when the participants consumed alcohol.

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Tags : Conception, fertility

(CNN) — The average American woman can live long enough to celebrate her 80th birthday, so if a woman is able to become pregnant using in vitro fertilization with a donor egg at 56, she could still watch her child grow into an adult. But just because it’s possible, does that mean she should?

Some feel that having children after 45 is unfair because the parents might not live to see the kids become adults.

The death of 69-year-old Maria del Carmen Bousada of Spain, who used in vitro fertilization with a donor egg to have twin boys at 66, has the fertility treatment community bracing for a backlash. It could rival the fallout from octuplet mom Nadya Suleman — and it seems to have already started.

In a national online survey about fertility conducted in May by Johnson & Johnson’s Babycenter.com, 7 out of 10 moms who responded wanted tougher regulation laws for IVF treatments, and half of the 1,095 respondents thought it was bad for the children if a parent conceived past 45.

Fertility specialists understand those concerns, but they say it’s not that simple. Although it’s rare for anyone older than 55 to get the go-ahead for IVF, that guideline is peer-enforced rather than mandated, and decisions typically are made on a case-by-case basis.

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Tags : Conception, ivf

ROCHESTER, Minn. (AP) ?After packing their bags, Nicole Brueck and her husband, Aaron, waited for the phone call that they hoped would bring them closer to their dream.

For nearly a year, the Rochester couple had been working to adopt a child from Guatemala. And in preparing for that event, they had spent hours learning about the country’s culture and history, taking lessons in Spanish and preparing a home for the child they had yet to meet. They had also spent $10,000.

But when the call came, it brought not the news that they had been waiting for, but grief and despair. The country had shutdown its adoption program. The Brueck’s money, hopes and plans of nearly a year in the making had been dashed virtually in an instant.

Yet despite the emotional devastation the news brought her — “I was literally a pile, just a lump on my floor for two days” — Nicole wasn’t done in her efforts to adopt a child internationally. She and her husband would try again.

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Tags : adoption, infertility

You have probably heard that wearing boxer shorts can improve semen quality. This may help in a way as elevated body temperature can affect sperm count, but relying on the use of boxers to enhance sperm health is not really a very promising idea. Improving male fertility is actually a bit more complex, and it definitely needs more than just a change in undergarments.

Eat fruits and vegetables regularly. Studies have shown that men who ate more fruits and vegetables have better sperm quality compared to men who don’t. This has been attributed to the high antioxidant content of fruits and vegetables, which can reduce oxidative stress and consequently improve sperm count and motility.

Get regular exercise. Adopt a moderate-intensity fitness regimen to keep your body in healthy shape. While it is good to push yourself to exercise daily, it is not also advisable to go all the way with too intense workouts.

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Tags : fertility, male, sperm

EMD Serono is partnering with Men’s Health Network on a patient education campaign aimed at raising awareness of male infertility.

The effort, dubbed “In The Know: What No One Tells You About Male Fertility,” is launching this week, which is Men’s Health Week. The campaign features a 20-page booklet written in conjunction with the Society for the Study of Male Reproduction, a website (www.FertilityLifeLines.com/intheknow) and a PR campaign by Baer Consulting. It’s being supported by a satellite media tour, and aimed at reaching couples through health titles and local news outlets.

FertilityLifeLines.com is EMD Serono’s fertility awareness site, and includes branding for Gonal-f, a hormone treatment indicated for both male and female infertility. Patients can get the booklet by registering at the site or by calling a toll-free number. EMD Serono reps are advising physicians of the booklet’s availability.

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Tags : education, fertility, male

Tight briefs, red meat, varicose veins or stress? Which has been shown to actually reduce a man’s sperm count and lead to infertility?

Boxers or briefs? Many believe that the wrong answer to this question can lead to an increased risk of low sperm count or infertility. But are they right?

(Getty Images)

Low sperm count is an uncomfortable subject for some men to discuss, which may be why so many urban legends have sprung up about its causes.

While many grow up hearing that drinking Mountain Dew or shunning boxers can create barriers to fatherhood later on, studies haven’t backed up those claims.

Meanwhile, a lesser-known condition that needs a doctor’s diagnosis often goes overlooked.

“The most common treatable cause of male factor infertility is called varicocele,” said Dr. Dan Williams, director of male reproductive medicine and surgery at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.

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Tags : infertility, male, myths

Have you ever found yourself talking to a friend about your fertility struggle, when a blank, horrified look begins to crawl across her face? She’s probably blissfully ignorant about all a person can go through to conceive. Except for those of us who’ve been forced to learn firsthand about things like stimming, egg retrieval, male factor infertility, and reproductive endocrinology, these terms may as well be Greek to most people. For a “fertile”, the concept of getting pregnant is usually something to the effect of get frisky;sperm meets egg; buy home pregnancy test; have baby.

But a new study out of the UK suggests that this ignorance may not be all that blissful, after all. According to Medical News Today, two out of three British women between the ages of 25-40 “don’t know there is only a small window of opportunity (two ‘peak’ fertile days) in which they can conceive each month…which could be costing some women months or in worst cases years of unnecessary frustration, because they could be trying to conceive at the wrong time.”

Okay, stop laughing. I know that for most of you reading this article, pinpointing the exact moment your egg drops each month is as intuitive as getting dressed each morning, but let’s think about this for a minute.

There is a lot of poor information out there - before you discovered your infertility, did you have any inkling of just how hard it might be to get pregnant? I don’t know about you, but I spent many years trying NOT to see that little blue plus sign. All my knowledge was focused on NOT getting pregnant. Maybe if we were made more aware of our fertility earlier on, some of us would’ve been spared some pain and frustration?

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Tags : fertility, infertility

Clinic matches infertile couples with donated embryos

By Kristi L. Nelson (Contact)
Thursday, June 11, 2009

Debbie and Steve Berner had always talked about having a family — after they reached a point in their lives and careers when the timing was right.

But when that time came, the Troutman, N.C., couple faced an unexpected hurdle: infertility.

The Berners tried for three years to conceive. They became disillusioned with in vitro fertilization, which Debbie Berner said was exhausting and expensive. They became discouraged with traditional adoption, also expensive and a difficult process.

Then Berner read on the Internet about the National Embryo Donation Center in Knoxville, which will celebrate its 100th birth with a celebration Saturday.

The center serves as a repository for frozen embryos conceived when couples go through fertility treatments. Couples who have completed their families can donate the leftover embryos to be “adopted” by others unable to have their own — an alternative to paying to store the embryos indefinitely, or to having them destroyed.

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Tags : Conception, egg donations

Trying to get pregnant can be a very stressful time for couples.

Many worry about infertility issues, and wonder about urban legends to increase their chances.

The author of the new book, “What to Expect Before You’re Expecting”, Heidi Murkoff, recently stopped by our studios to talk about common myths about fertility.

Myth: The longer it takes to get pregnant, the more likely you will have a boy.

Murkoff: This is actually true, and kind of ironic, because they always say that girls keep you waiting. But in fact it’s the boys that keep you waiting. And that’s because the longer it takes you to conceive the thicker your cervical mucus is, and boy sperm swim more effectively in those conditions than little girl sperm do.

Myth: Saliva is a fertility friendly lubricant.

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Tags : Conception, infertility, myths

Press Release:

Sippy Downs, Qld, June 04, 2009 — The number of couples who want to choose the gender of their unborn baby is ever increasing. According to a recent study in USA a third of couples would look to determine baby gender. There are a number of methods available - these range from very costly treatments to pregnancy old wives tales.

The costly include IVF method, PGD and ericcson method. PGD can cost upto $20,000 and is very invasive. As with all IVF the chances of getting pregnant are not 100% but if you do get pregnant the desired gender is guaranteed 100%. This method also carries the risk of multiple pregnancies.

Ericsson method filters the male sperm from the female sperm. The sperm of the desired gender is inseminated. To conceive a boy the success rate is 70-75% and to conceive a girl 70-72%.

There is also the Shettles method for predicting baby gender which is mainly down to timing. This proves difficult for women unable to pinpoint ovulation and can take months of charting etc.

Some other methods to predict baby gender include looking at whether there is a full moon, diet and even sexual positions!

There is however another method that is not costly or invasive and is also backed by a 100% money back guarantee:
http://www.thebabypredictor.com/

visit below for baby gender quiz and more information on choosing baby gender and the baby gender test:
http://determiningbabygender.blogspot.com/ or squidoo lense for more on baby gender and answers to baby gender
quiz: http://www.squidoo.com/babygenderpredictors

contact
Hayley Hewitt
Blossom
22 James Cook Drive
Sippy Downs, Qld 4556
Australia
0407-171-805
hayley-buster@bigpond.com
http://www.thebabypredictor.com

Tags : Conception, infertility, ivf, research