Today we’re breaking down the importance of working one on one with a practitioner through your fertility journey. We’ll also outline some important nutrients that Holly recommends frequently for her clients.
1. INDIVIDUALISED support
Firstly, and most importantly, we’re here to be your cheerleader and advocate for you.
Individualised support is vital as there is no one size fits all approach.
Your life and priorities may differ drastically from the person sitting next to you, and this is no different when it comes to your health and fertility journey.
It can be a time of heightened stress in life so we’re here to nurture and support you, while you’re nurturing and supporting bub.
This is why we go through an extensive case taking process to collect all relevant information and direct treatment to the root cause.
2. Cutting through the BS and fear mongering with all the information on the internet
We practice on evidence-based grounds and therefore we take the stress away from you having to decipher what is the right thing to do for you. With the overwhelming amount of information readily available on the internet it can become difficult to feel confident in what you’re doing. For example, pregnant women are strongly discouraged from eating eggs, whereas the risks of food borne illness is quite small especially when cooked (Tam et al., 2010). When considering the choline content of eggs for example, which is vital for brain and spinal cord development and prevention of neural tube defects, the risk outweighs the benefit in most cases (Korsmo et al., 2019). We’re here to keep up to date with evidence so you don’t have to.
3. Topping you up on specific nutrients of good quality to support different functions
Lastly but of course not least, we’re here to make sure your nutrient levels are in sufficient ranges to support conception, pregnancy and post-partum. This is in order to support production and maturation of eggs and sperm aswell as implantation, and subsequently foetal growth and development which again is totally dependent on your individual picture.
Nutrition is essential to supporting pregnancy and a healthy baby, so here is some top fertility foods with our Clinical Nutritionist Holly
1. Eggs - Rich in protein, choline, B12 and vitamin E. As explained before, this increases egg quality and embryo development.
2. Avocado - Rich in vitamin E, folate, magnesium. The healthy fats avocado contains are important in regulating hormones, while also being rich in phytonutrients which protect cells from damage.
3. Fatty Fish (Salmon, herring, mackerel, and sardines) - Rich in CoQ10 which is an essential antioxidant for egg quality, sperm production and general energy production.
4. Berries (Blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, strawberries) - They are rich in antioxidants including vitamin C and polyphenols from their rich colour, which are anti-inflammatory.
5. Nuts and seeds - They are also rich in essential fatty acids, selenium, zinc, magnesium, vitamin B6, vitamin E and folate. These nutrients all support progesterone levels, egg quality and sperm count.
6. Dark leafy greens - Rich in folate, iron, calcium and vitamin C. Strengthening and maintaining egg quality and uterine health aswell as supporting liver function and hormonal balance.
Book in with either Holly or Monica here to support you on your journey.
Kaptured Nutrition
References
Korsmo, H. W., Jiang, X., & Caudill, M. A. (2019). Choline: Exploring the Growing Science on Its Benefits for Moms and Babies. Nutrients, 11(8), 1823. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu11081823
Milajerdi, A., Tehrani, H., Haghighatdoost, F., Larijani, B., Surkan, P. J., & Azadbakht, L. (2018). Associations between higher egg consumption during pregnancy with lowered risks of high blood pressure and gestational diabetes mellitus. International journal for vitamin and nutrition research. Internationale Zeitschrift fur Vitamin- und Ernahrungsforschung. Journal international de vitaminologie et de nutrition, 88(3-4), 166–175. https://doi.org/10.1024/0300-9831/a000505
Tam, C., Erebara, A., & Einarson, A. (2010). Food-borne illnesses during pregnancy: prevention and treatment. Canadian family physician Medecin de famille canadien, 56(4), 341–343.
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