Are you trying to Conceive? Here are the best tips to increase your chances
A woman trying to conceive typically has a low probability of getting pregnant each month. However, the majority of women become pregnant within the first year of trying, and others may require medical assistance.
Mentioned below are some of the best tips, techniques and other factors that can help improve your chances of getting pregnant.
Track your menstrual cycle
A woman who wants to become pregnant should keep track of the time between her cycles to see if it is regular—that is, if the first day of her period usually occurs the same number of days apart each month.
If your periods are regular, you will ovulate about two weeks before your next period. This indicates that you will have a fertile window of seven days prior to your anticipated ovulation. If your periods are irregular, it could be a little trickier to anticipate when you’ll ovulate and what your fertile window will be.
However, you can try a variety of methods to determine your ovulation and fertile window like:
- Ovulation predictor kit: Ovulation predictor kit can be easily used at home. However, it may have some false negative results.
- Follicular monitoring: Follicular monitoring documents follicle but you have to go to the clinic for this.
Take a Preconception Checkup
Get a checkup before you start trying to conceive. Being in good general health is important for both partners before trying for pregnancy. Visit your primary care physician for a checkup to make sure you don’t have any hidden health problems that might cause problems in your pregnancy. Females over the age of 35 years should get themselves checked as the chances of getting pregnant decreases with age.
Take a prenatal vitamin
One of the simplest ways to help in conception is by taking a prenatal vitamin every day. It can also be a standard multivitamin as long as it contains essential components like folic acid. Prenatal vitamins with a high folic acid content can aid in embryo development and lowers the risk of neurological birth abnormalities. Your partner can either consume a male fertility supplement free of additions to testosterone or daily multivitamin and a supplement containing Coenzyme Q-10.
Maintain a healthy body weight
Being overweight or underweight may lower a woman’s chances of getting pregnant. Body Mass Index (BMI) is a useful measure that can help you determine what weight is healthy for your height, but it’s not perfect because it loses accuracy when it accounts for factors like muscle mass or those who are very tall or short. When you begin attempting to conceive, try to be within 15% of your ideal body weight.
Have sex at the right time
Make sure you have intercourse during the fertile window, which is five days prior to ovulation, on the day of ovulation and a day after ovulation when you are most likely to become pregnant. By having intercourse during these days, you increase the likelihood that sperm will be present in your body when your egg is released, giving you the highest chance of becoming pregnant.
Quit your smoking habits
Both men and women who smoke can experience issues with conception. Nicotine and carbon monoxide, two substances present in cigarette smoke, have effects on both eggs and sperm. However, exposure to passive smoke has also been related to an increase in pregnancy problems. Similarly, research suggests that marijuana use may have a deleterious effect on female fertility.
Quit alcohol consumption
When a woman is trying to get pregnant, it is best for her to completely avoid alcohol. If a woman decides to stop using birth control because she wants to get pregnant, she should also give up drinking. According to some research, having just two drinks per day can cause a 60% reduction in fertility. Alcohol is also associated with birth defects of the baby.
Limit your caffeine intake
According to some research, drinking more than 500 mg of caffeine per day, or roughly five cups of coffee, has a bad impact on fertility. Limit your daily caffeine intake to 200 milligrammes or roughly two cups of coffee. Also keep in mind that foods like soda, tea, energy drinks, chocolate, and supplements may also contain caffeine which is why you should carefully read your labels.
Eat healthy food
There isn’t one special food that will help you get pregnant. You should prioritize consuming a range of fruits, vegetables, complex carbs, and lean proteins. There are also certain foods that you must avoid while trying to get pregnant like refined carbs, processed meats like hot dogs, too many carbohydrates, and fish that are high in mercury including canned tuna, frozen swordfish, tilefish, and shark.
Exercise
Exercise or yoga can lift your mood, tone your muscles and skin, support heart health, and also raise your chances of getting pregnant. Even making the effort to walk rather than drive or use public transportation, taking stairs instead of using the lift will help if you don’t have time for the gym. While exercising is said to be good for a woman trying to conceive, however, excessive exercise can also harm fertility.
Takeaway
The most important factors while trying to conceive are knowing your cycle, having a healthy lifestyle and observing your most fertile days. When you don’t get pregnant right away, it can be difficult, but try not to be stressed and follow the tips mentioned above.
However, if you don’t get pregnant after 1 year of trying, you should consult a fertility specialist to identify the cause and for treatment of individualized guidance to increase your chances of getting pregnant.