Infertility - a common problem usually badly treated

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[UPDATED JUNE 2023]

Preface

This is a HUGE topic. What follows is a brief overview and guide to help you know what to look for, in general terms, and what to do, also in general terms.

For the Full Monty on this topic, please see Our Book Green Mother - families fit for the future

What one needs

This is an extremely common problem and it is now estimated that about one in ten couples are sub-fertile. Infertility is defined by the medical profession as inability to conceive after 2 years of trying. I must say I would want to investigate if there was no result after 6 months! I am always shocked by the lack of logical thinking which goes into the treatment of infertility because the mechanics of conceiving are very simple and straightforward. Quite simply one needs

  • a healthy egg
  • a healthy sperm (actually at least 20 million of them! It takes 20 million males to do the job that one female can do!)
  • which must come together
  • in the right environment for implantation and then stay there for 9 months

A healthy egg

A regular period is a good sign that a healthy egg is being produced on a regular basis. Indeed, the US National Research Council, in its report "Biological Markers in Reproductive Toxicology" concluded that

"menstrual cycles constitute the most accessible and non-invasive biological markers of female reproductive function in humans. Any aspect that disrupts normal cyclic menstrual function may be described as causing reproductive toxicity."

Amazon.co.uk Link for "Biological Markers in Reproductive Toxicology"

If the nutrition is not right, the hormones will not be right.

If you are not seeing a regular period then this should be investigated from the nutritional point of view and a careful look should be taken at the diet with respect to:

  • protein and calorie content - are you eating enough good quality food - see section 3 below
  • and, most importantly, micro-nutrient status - see section 3 below

Healthy sperm

It is not good enough just to do a sperm count. There must be enough normal sperm (a high percentage may be abnormal), they must be able to move normally and they must be able to release their genetic material (sperm decondensation) at the right time.

If there are any abnormalities in this department, then consider: [see below]

  • nutritional status - see section 3 below
  • heavy metals poisoning - see section 3 below

Must come together

The sperm must arrive in the right place and the cervical mucus must be receptive to sperm. This can be tested for by doing a post-coital test, in which a sample of cervical mucus is examined microscopically 6-20 hours after intercourse at mid-cycle. The number of sperms, migration rate, decondensation of chromatin, abnormal behaviour of sperms can all be observed.

Anti-sperm antibodies in the woman may destroy the sperm.

If the sperms arrive in the right place and function normally then one has to ask the question: are the tubes patent? This needs a hystero-salpingogram, which is a hospital procedure where some dye is placed into the uterine cavity to see if the tube between the ovary and the womb is open. Blockages are commonly caused by infections. See Our Book Green Mother - families fit for the future

In the right environment for implantation

In order for the fertilised egg to implant there must be a receptive environment in the womb. The commonest problem here is low grade infection of the womb and mineral imbalances. See section 3 below and Our Book Green Mother - families fit for the future

Nutritional deficiencies may take several months to correct depending on how severe they are. They should be checked before attempting conception. This is because improving nutrition may create an environment which is good enough to conceive but not good enough to maintain a pregnancy or guarantee a perfect baby.

Recurrent miscarriage may be caused by Hugh's syndrome. See Antiphospholipid Syndrome - NHS webpage. This occurs when there is an increased tendency to clot due to abnormal antibodies being present. This can be tested for with the anti-phospholipid antibody test.

Ensuring healthy eggs and sperm

  • Micro-nutrients: (vitamins, minerals, essential fatty acids) status - micronutrients are the raw materials necessary for growth and repair. These cannot be made in the body, they have to be consumed. They are the basic building blocks. Without these the body cannot make healthy babies. Micronutrient deficiencies are extremely common in Western society in people who do not take micronutrient supplements regularly. Nowadays I usually don't bother to test levels because I know they will be deficient. Take my Basic Package - see Nutritional Supplements - what everybody should be taking all the time even if nothing is wrong
  • Toxic stress - alcohol, caffeine, tobacco, drugs of addiction and prescription drugs are all toxic to the egg and sperm and should be avoided. Urine testing for heavy metal poisoning can be helpful to identify issues - see Comprehensive Urine element Profile

What not to do

Be very wary about going in for sex hormone treatments before the nutritional side has been sorted out completely (in fact the hormone treatments should not be necessary once the nutrition is right). If the nutrition is inadequate, the hormones will be inadequate. By "forcing" the issue through using hormones, one is forcing a conception which Nature does not approve of. This increases the risk of malformations in the baby (something the infertility clinics do not tell you). Furthermore the hormones used are extremely powerful chemical messengers which may have direct effects on the baby. The example I always use is that of stilboestrol. This was a synthetic oestrogen widely used during pregnancy post 2nd World War which caused vaginal cancer in the female babies which did not appear until their teenage years. See:

And also -

DES daughters have about 40 times the risk of developing clear cell adenocarcinoma of the lower genital tract as unexposed women (women who were not exposed to DES prenatally). 
DES daughters may have a slightly increased risk of breast cancer after age 40
A 2021 study found that DES daughters had about two times the risk of pancreatic cancer as women in the general population 
Studies show that DES daughters were about 2 times more likely to have high-grade cell changes in the cervix than females not exposed to DES in utero. 

See also The serious complications of taking the Pill and HRT

If hormones are to be used, then it is doubly important that nutritional supplements are taken as well. Good nutrition is highly protective against toxic stress.

You can easily test female hormones using Female hormone profile (Oestrogen, progesterone and testosterone levels in saliva)

And then stay there for 9 months

Miscarriage can be a problem. Common causes include poor nutrition, infection, anti-phospholipid antibodies, cervical incompetence. See Stat Pearls - Cervical Insuffiency

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