sperm balloons

Do you need to save up sperm for fertility?

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Zita says…

“We now know that up to 50 per cent of all cases of infertility are associated with a male factor. That figure surprises many, because through generations we’ve been lead to believe fertility is all about women but of course this is the case, it does take two to make a baby!

Many men discount the need for getting checked out via semen analysis mainly, I believe, out of fear. But burying your head in the sand will not make the problem go away, and it’s far better to be proactive.

One question I’m asked all the time is whether you need to ‘save up’ sperm for fertility, but the idea of this is a myth as it will die after a few days. Research shows that the more fresh the sperm, the better the quality.

Some couples try to ‘save up’ sperm for the ovulation period, and then barely have any sex at all through the month. Whilst it’s true that you’re most fertile during this time, you should still try to conceive every two or three days regularly throughout the month to maximise your chances. In fact, the fresher the sperm the healthier it is! The key thing for fertility is to make sure there is a good supply of fresh, healthy sperm at the ready.”

IVF client story

A client story – pregnant after failed cycles elsewhere…

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Some of our client’s stories can be heartbreaking, and it means so much to us when we can help them become pregnant after many failed cycles. Here we share one of our client’s journeys…

4 years, 14 miscarriages, 3 rounds of IVF

“I’m a mum to 6 month old twins. After 4 years of trying and an agonising 14 miscarriages, I can finally say those words that I started to fear I may never have the privilege of saying: “I’m a mum.” Three simple words but life-changing to me. Becoming pregnant after failed cycles elsewhere is down to the Zita West clinic. My partner and I started trying when I was 35, so pretty late by fertility standards. I was fairly blasé when we had our first three miscarriages, each two months apart, pleased that at least I could get pregnant. But that early optimism was misplaced and soon the notion of a successful pregnancy became an ever more distant dream. And over the years the worst happened, we began to lose hope. Hope was the sustenance that had kept us going and with an ever-diminishing amount of that, we were beginning to despair. All women who have gone on this journey will know all too well the physical, mental and emotional toll it can have on us and our partner too but the loss of hope is a bit of a game changer. We underwent two rounds of IVF at another London fertility clinic, both times we saw a heartbeat, both times we lost the pregnancy.

Dream team

The team at Zita West, George Ndukwe in particular, gave us back our hope but most importantly gave us our babies too. For that I will be eternally grateful. George is kind, gentle and knowledgeable but he really listens and he hears you. His attentiveness meant that we had a successful live pregnancy with twins. He understood what I needed medically and emotionally and, in addition to a fairly comprehensive medical load, George worked flexibly to offer new medication and explore alternative avenues. As our previous fertility clinic kept us on a standard protocol, this approach from George again provided hope as it wasn’t just the same old, same old. Importantly, this gave us a timely lift when we were running low on stamina and resilience.

Holistic approach

In addition, I had a session with a nutritionist and had acupuncture from Zita and her team, the overall sense being that of a family taking a holistic approach at looking after every aspect of your health and well-being and I really did feel looked after and nurtured. Psychologically this approach really worked for me, as it was comforting and I felt safe. Every time I went to the ZW clinic, from the receptionists to the medical team, I felt welcomed and cared for, people always knew my name and knew what stage of treatment I was at and asked me about it and how I was doing. When it came to the egg collection, this took place a few streets away with Care London. My previous experience of egg collection was three silent men down at the business end waiting for the embryos to be brought in, my partner clutching my hand, me in stirrups sweating lots. At Care, there was more the atmosphere of a spa day, interestingly all women, but chatting about my nail varnish colour, flitting around and enjoying their job it seemed, they put me right at ease. Honestly, it was fun. One nurse called Sarah was so emotional when she rang to tell me the good news about my positive pregnancy test that I felt like I was on the phone to my sister, because she sounded like she was so emotionally invested in it all. Probably she was. I’ve shed a few tears writing this, remembering the tough bits, but I can honestly say that I really wouldn’t change a moment of it. And I do absolutely credit the team at Zita West for getting us here, the four of us. Again, for that I’ll be eternally grateful.”
boosting serotonin

Boosting serotonin for fertility

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Your body is a wonderful cocktail of neurotransmitters and hormones, all of them telling you how to behave and how to feel. While your life circumstances have a profound influence on the levels of these messengers in your system, what you eat affects them too. Boosting serotonin for fertility can help
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Natural boost⠀

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While some foods contain a little serotonin, studies suggest it is difficult to raise your levels in the brain simply by eating more of these foods partly because it is difficult for serotonin to cross the blood-brain barrier. However, one way we can naturally boost levels is to consume more foods rich in the amino acid tryptophan, which is the building block for the production of serotonin.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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These foods include:⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
– eggs⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
– walnuts⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
– plums⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
– bananas⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
– kiwis⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
– tomatoes⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
– cheese⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
– beans⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
– turkey⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
– seafood ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

In order to properly process tryptophan, though, and to turn it into serotonin, the body needs a helping hand in the form of carbohydrate. This helps the amino acids to cross the blood–brain barrier. Consuming a little slow releasing carbohydrate, for example oats, with a tryptophan-rich food, for example banana and nut butter, may be more effective. There’s more on the best type of carbohydrates to consume generally on pages 000–000.

Another way to increase levels of serotonin is to supplement your diet with 5-HTP. 5-HTP is the immediate precursor in the production of serotonin from tryptophan. Supplements of 5-HTP cross the blood–brain barrier more easily and can be an effective way of increasing levels of serotonin.

Other good mood nutrients

As well as 5-HTP and tryptophan, try to increase the following nutrients in your diet in a bid to keep your mood positive:

B-complex vitamins, especially vitamins B1 (thiamine), B6, B9 (folic acid) and B12, low levels of which have been linked to depression and low mood. The conversion of tryptophan to 5-HTP can be inhibited by a deficiency of vitamin B6 or insufficient magnesium, so make sure you are getting enough of these nutrients.

Zinc is also needed for the production of feel-good neurotransmitters so include plenty of zinc-rich foods like pumpkin seeds, seafood, fish and lean meat in your diet.

Omega-3 fatty acids have a role in the synthesis of serotonin and research suggests they can be helpful in boosting mood. They also help lower inflammation. Pro-inflammatory chemicals in the body cause greater production of enzymes that deplete tryptophan in the blood, which can result in serotonin deficiency in the brain and low mood.

A vitamin D insufficiency may contribute to general depression so make sure your levels are optimal.

Iron, which in low levels can lead to feelings of fatigue, poor cognitive function, apathy, irritability and sadness.

Check your thyroid function – low thyroid function has been linked to depression and low mood.

It’s important to say that we still need much more research on the delicate balance of macro- and micronutrients in the body and their effects on mood. So, while it’s important to boost all those tryptophan-rich foods and to make sure you’re eating plenty of carbohydrates, there’s certainly no need to become carbohydrate-rich, protein-poor. Instead focus on eating a balanced diet.

Zita West Fertility Detox

The Zita West Five Day Fertility Detox

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The benefits of a fertility cleanse

It’s good to get rid of bad habits when preparing for a pregnancy and building up your nutritional reserves. Nourish yourself as best you can, and doing a five day fertility detox together can be a great way to start. This is taken from my book, Eat Yourself Pregnant.

The cleanse will support your body’s natural detoxification processes by providing nutrient-dense foods and drinks that support the liver in its role as your body’s detoxifier.

Every day your body produces an array of compounds and internal waste products that it needs to dispose of safely. The food, drink and medications you consume, hidden environmental chemicals in bodycare and household products, electromagnetic radiation and environmental pollutants all add to this toxic load, placing a burden on your liver and its detox supporters – your kidneys and digestive system.

The five-day detox is intended for both of you to do together. Exposure to environmental toxins has been shown to affect male and female fertility. Many environmental toxins are endocrine disruptors, which means they interfere with your body’s hormones, potentially resulting in decreased sperm quality, disrupted reproductive cycles and ovarian dysfunction.

Preparing for your fertility detox

The first stage of the cleanse is to remove all foods and toxins that may be placing additional burden on your digestive system and liver function. I suggest you cut out all alcohol, sugar and caffeine from your diet two or three days before you begin. If you don’t already eat organic, switching to organic produce can also help reduce your toxic load.

Plan your detox for days when you have sufficient time to rest and can avoid social functions, meals out and parties. If you can, schedule in some time every day to undertake gentle exercise such as swimming, Pilates, yoga or walking. Some people prefer to follow the plan around a weekend – I recommend beginning on a Thursday – but others like to complete it during the week. Choose what works best for you.

For the first two days you will eat three meals with the option of a healthy snack to eat mid-morning or mid-afternoon if you are really hungry. It is important to keep your blood-sugar levels balanced throughout the detox to avoid placing additional pressure on your adrenal glands. For this reason the cleanse includes protein-rich foods.

The following two days comprise a liquid-only diet with a range of smoothies, soups and juices throughout the day. Then, you complete the detox with a further day of three light meals and optional snacks. In order to support detoxification it is important to maintain the right acid–alkaline balance.

The detox foods include lots of ingredients that support and maintain your body’s natural alkalinity. Allocate time to shop for all the ingredients before you begin and follow the meal planner every day. Drink plenty of fluids – aim for 1 litre (35fl oz) of filtered water daily and also include a variety of herbal teas. Each day of the detox starts with a glass of hot water with a little lemon or lime juice added. This combination is very alkalizing and supports liver cleansing. You can also try adding ½ teaspoon of super-green powders to juices and smoothies daily.

Finishing the detox

At the end of Day 5 you should feel lighter, clearer and much more energized. Capitalise on your good work and immediately begin using the recipes in the rest of the book so that you don’t have time to slip back into any bad habits. You are now on a path to a baby-ready body!

The inevitable don’ts

Try to steer clear of the following as they will hinder your attempts to detoxify:

  • red meat, dairy foods, eggs, gluten grains (rye, barley and wheat), large fish (tuna, marlin, shark and swordfish) and shellfish
  • sugary foods, charred foods, processed foods, deep-fried foods and foods high in trans fats and hydrogenated fats, and takeaways
  • any foods wrapped in cling film or tin foil
  • non-stick, aluminium or stainless steel cookware
  • smoking or any recreational drugs

You can download this guide for FREE by going to here. Don’t forget to share your pictures with the hashtag #zitawesteatyourselfpregnant!

Anxious Man

How to deal with performance anxiety

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No pressure

I sit with couples every day who are trying for a baby, but the thing that I see more and more is that when you do start trying for a baby it is exciting, but then when you have been trying for a few months it is not uncommon for your sex life to become mechanical. The big thing that I see between couples and where their relationship suffers is the pressure that is put on – particularly to the man around the time of ovulation.

Don’t panic

This additional pressure can cause performance anxiety but rest assured that it is a perfectly normal and natural feeling. The way in which some women constantly track and monitor their fertility can put pressure on their partner, especially around the time of ovulation. The woman focuses on her fertile time, her anxiety goes up, she tells her partner to ‘come home immediately’, his anxiety goes up, and so on. Sound familiar? As I said, this is common and understandable, but can unfortunately cause a lot of upset, frustration and arguments within the couple.

Top tips

Here are my top 5 tips to help if trying to conceive is giving you performance anxiety:

  1. Focus on the sperm not the egg, because the egg lasts for 24 hours and the sperm lasts for 3-5 days.
  2. Don’t feel like you need to tell your man every little detail about your cycle – at the end of the day, it’s a passion killer!
  3. Take the pressure off one another! Try talking to each other properly about how you can get past this hurdle together.
  4. For a man to be able to perform, he needs passion, and scheduling your sex life and giving him specific times when he needs to be home can ruin that. Try to come up with a plan together on how to keep this time fun and romantic.
  5. For many men with performance anxiety, it’s present for a short period of time such as during the time that you are trying for a baby. But for others, it can be a sign of something underlying. Don’t be afraid to go to your GP, just to make sure everything is okay.

It is really important that if trying to conceive is negatively affecting your sex life that you communicate with one another and you work out how you can get some passion and fun back not only into your sex life, but into your life generally as well.

acupuncture model

Acupuncture for fertility

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The process of trying to conceive can be lengthy, intricate and emotional for many couples.

While media attention often focuses on women delaying conception until their late thirties and forties as the cause of complications with fertility, this is not the only issue at play with sub fertility. Other causes for infertility include; lifestyle factors such as being over or under weight, smoking, heavy drinking and stress. Contributing conditions include blocked fallopian tubes, endometriosis, Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) and compromised sperm quality.  In recent years more complex tests have been developed to assess genetic problems and immunological disorders that may interfere with potential pregnancy by preventing implantation or causing early miscarriage. However, many couples are only offered investigations after years of trying for a baby. Often these investigations are delayed and protracted and can contribute to any pre-existing stress.

The Fertile Ground of Acupuncture

For many, acupuncture offers a positive and beneficial treatment either to enhance the chances of natural conception or to support in the process of assisted conception. There have been several studies in recent years suggesting acupuncture can benefit fertility outcomes by:

  • Lowering stress hormones and regulating FSH
  • Improving blood flow to the pelvic area, ovaries and uterus
  • Reducing contractions of the uterus
  • Regulating the immune system

The research

While the West has tended not to engage with as many clinical trials on acupuncture for natural fertility, there is positive evidence to establish plausible explanations as to how acupuncture may benefit fertility (Gerhard 1992 and Stener-Victorin 2000, 2008, 2010).

Firstly, it has been shown that acupuncture regulates fertility hormones. Stress and other factors can disrupt the function of the Hypothalamic Pituitary-Ovarian Axis (HPOA), causing hormonal imbalances that can negatively impact fertility. Acupuncture has been shown to affect hormone levels by promoting the release of beta-endorphin in the brain, which affects the flow of the gonadotrophin-releasing hormone by the hypothalamus, the follicle stimulating hormone from the pituitary gland, and the oestrogen and progesterone levels from the ovary (Ng 2008, Huang 2008, Lim 2010, Stener-Victorin 2010).

Secondly, acupuncture has been shown to increase blood flow to the reproductive organs. While stress has the negative effect of constricting the ovarian arteries, acupuncture inhibits this sympathetic activity, improving blood flow to the ovaries (Stener-Victorin 2006, Lim 2010), enhancing the environment in which ovarian follicles develop. Furthermore, acupuncture also increases blood flow to the uterus (Stener-Victorin 1996, Huang 2008), improving the thickness of the endometrial lining and increasing the chances of embryo implantation.

Thirdly, evidence illustrates that acupuncture counteracts one of the most common causes of female infertility, Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS). By reducing sympathetic nerve activity and balancing hormone levels, acupuncture has been shown to reduce the number of ovarian cysts, stimulate ovulation, enhance blastocyst implantation and regulate the menstrual cycle in women with PCOS (Stener-Victorin 2000, 2008, 2009, Zhang 2009). It may also help to control secondary effects such as obesity and anorexia (Lim 2010).

Acupuncture for IVF

While acupuncture has been shown to enhance natural fertility, it is also used successfully in the preparation for, and during IVF cycles, in order to optimise the uterine environment and enhance egg quality during treatment.

It is suggested that acupuncture treatments should start three months prior to IVF, scheduled weekly throughout the cycle up to the time of egg retrieval. However, a published study has also reported the positive effects of acupuncture on the day of embryo transfer (Acupuncture and assisted conception (Review), The Cochrane Collaboration, 2009). Informal feedback from gynecologists confirms that acupuncture has a hugely calming effect on patients, something which is vital both immediately before and after embryo transfer.

Traditionally trained acupuncturists make a diagnosis according to the principles of Chinese medicine. Those of us who have extensive experience of working with fertility issues offer an integral approach whereby we bring together our knowledge and experience both from an Eastern and Western perspective. This enables us to offer advice and suggestions about lifestyle and diet that complement the treatment and address the imbalances specific to each individual.

The holistic approach of Chinese medicine, which has treated gynecological conditions for centuries, aims to restore the balance of the body back to normal functioning in order to help, where possible, for women to conceive naturally. This move towards homeostasis can be translated in Western terms into better hormonal balance. Using the language of Qi (energy flow) and Blood, acupuncture reestablishes the proper flow of these two substances to enable the organs to function at their optimum. As acupuncturists we are thus particularly interested in the details of your menstrual cycle and other signs and symptoms, which help us to assess where particular imbalances lie; hence the importance of detailed case taking at the initial consultation. Each of the organs and their associated meridians have a physical and emotional influence and, by offering specific and targeted treatment, acupuncture has positive results on both.

We have an expert team of acupuncturists here at the clinic, and if you live outside of London take a look at our affiliated network to find someone near you, personally trained by Zita West.