You (and your baby) Are What You Eat - Fertility Superfoods Part II

Welcome back! Here's more food for thought regarding fertility superfoods if you're about to undergo an IVF procedure, egg donation or just simply looking for ways to give you and your partner's fertilities an edge.

Vitamin C

Your vitamin C intake has a symbiotic relationship with your iron intake as it helps your body in iron absorption. For women, vitamin C boosts progesterone levels, which in turn help to regulate their menstrual cycle and thicken the uterus lining.[1] In men, Vitamin C helps to improve sperm count and according to a study, helps the sperm to better navigate towards an unfertilized egg.[2]

It is recommended to consume around 75mg of vitamin C a day and you can achieve this by adding citrus fruit to your diet:

• an average orange contains around 70mg of vitamin C
• an average grapefruit contains  around 50g of vitamin C
• an average lemon contains around 40g of vitamin C[3]

If citrus foods aren't your cup of tea, try kiwis instead - a serving of two kiwis contains an astonishing 137.2mg of vitamin C, and if you keep the skin on (it's edible), you also increase your intake of antioxidants.[4]

Do you like a bit of spice and heat in your diet? Good news! Red, yellow and green peppers are abundant in vitamin C!

• Yellow peppers contain around 341mg of vitamin C
• Red peppers contain around 209mg of vitamin C
• Green peppers contain around 132mg of vitamin C[5]

Peppers are a versatile ingredient and can easily be added into your morning omelet, lunch quiche or evening salad.

Bone Broth

Bone broth has been prescribed for both pregnant women and women looking to get pregnant by many different cultures for centuries. It is primarily made by boiling the bones of healthy animals along with an assortment of vegetables, spices and herbs.[6] There is a South American proverb that suggests how consuming bone broth will decrease childbirth pain while the Jewish community nickname this food "Jewish penicillin" aka it cures everything.[7]

So what is it about bone broth that helps boost fertility? Well, it contains minerals in a form that allows your body to easily absorb and put to use - magnesium, calcium, glucosamine and phosphorous silicon.[8] These minerals are beneficial in creating a healthy life. Bone broth also contains amino acids, which assist in hormone production and liver detoxification.[9]

Bone broth also improves the health of your gut, which is linked to your hormone health. bone broth helps to heal and seal a leaky gut, allowing your body to properly absorb the necessary nutrients and minerals for your body and baby.[10]

Fermented Foods

Lacto-fermentation is an ancient food preservation technique that spans back centuries. It not only helps to preserve food but also comes with a nifty benefit of increasing the food's nutrients.[11] Fermented foods is linked with gut health, which is linked with hormone health - fermented foods contain good bacteria, enzymes and lauric acid, which contribute to a clean and healthy digestive tract.[12] These bacteria, enzymes and acids also boosts your immune system and helps to balance the pH levels in a woman's vagina, which is important for conception.

Some really healthy fermented foods include the following:

• Kefir - an enzyme and probiotics-rich fermented milk drink that originated in the Caucasus Mountains.[13]
• Natto - a traditional Japanese food made with fermented soybeans, usually eaten with rice.[14]
• Kimchi - a staple Korean side dish made from salted and fermented vegetables, usually cabbage and radishes, and a variety of seasonings including chili powder, garlic, ginger and scallions.[15]

If the above foods sound too exotic, are not to your taste or are not widely available in your local town or city, other healthy fermented foods you can incorporate into your fertility diet include sauerkraut, pickles, unsweetened coconut yogurt, pickled ginger or cucumbers and kombucha.[16]

In conclusion, where you're about to conceive or thinking about conceiving, it's never too early to start thinking about what to eat in regards to your fertility and potential pregnancy. It doesn’t matter if you’re a medical traveler and getting IVF in Prague or IVF with egg donation in Czech Republic, or conceiving from your hometown, don't hesitate to talk to your local physician or nutrients to help you come up with a fertility diet that will boost your chances of pregnancy.  If you require a consult, a second opinion or simply want to explore your options, check out Medical Travel Czech’s website for more details. Happy eating!