The Importance of Preconception Care

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If you’re thinking of falling pregnant in the future, the optimal time to start preparing your body is at least 6 months before conception to provide the best health outcomes for both mother and baby. The healthier you are, the healthier all of the cells in your body will be – and this applies to the egg and sperm that will form the basis for your baby’s entire life. Working with a naturopath or nutritionist during the preconception period can help to identify any nutrient deficiencies and allows time to correct those deficiencies and build your nutrient stores to sufficient levels. If you’re interested in working with a naturopath in the preconception period, I’d love to help you.

Optimise fertility and health outcomes for your baby

A 2018 study by The Lancet found that a woman who is healthy at the time of conception is more likely to have a successful pregnancy and healthy child. I believe this should also apply to the male partner. After all, conception requires two cells – one egg and one sperm. The health of both of these cells at the time of conception determines the health of the future baby for their entire life.

From a naturopathic perspective, preconception care focuses not only on increasing the chances of conception, but also supporting a healthy pregnancy, and ensuring the best possible long-term health outcomes for both the baby and mother.

The preconception period is an important time to focus on making dietary and lifestyle changes to correct any nutrient deficiencies, support hormonal balance, reduce stress and optimise your general health. Studies have found strong links between health before pregnancy, and maternal and child health outcomes, including reducing risk of infertility, improving the chances of a healthy, full-term pregnancy, reduces need for birth interventions, supports the healthy growth and development of the child, and reduces risk of metabolic disease in children long-term. 

Factors affecting fertility

Infertility is defined as the inability to conceive after 12 months or more of regular unprotected intercourse with the same partner. A sperm cell must meet with an egg cell in order for pregnancy to occur. There are two cells involved, therefore, it is important to remember that infertility is not just a female issue. 30% of infertility cases are male related, 30% of cases are female related, 30% due to a combination of male and female factors, and 10% of cases are due to unknown cause.

Some factors that can affect both male and female fertility include (but not limited to):

·         Exposure to environmental toxins, such as pesticides, radiation, chemicals,

·         Nutritional deficiencies

·         Stress

·         Poor immune system

·         Age – it is more common these days that couples are delaying having children until later in life

·         Oxidative stress

·         Hormone imbalances (both male and female)

·         Infection

·         Smoking, alcohol or recreational drug use

·         Thyroid disease

·         Genetic conditions

For women, factors such as absence of ovulation, poor egg quality or ovarian function, PCOS, endometriosis, tubal factors – such as fallopian tube obstruction, fibroids, or pelvic inflammatory disease are additional considerations that your naturopath may investigate.

For men, low sperm counts, poor sperm motility, sperm DNA fragmentation, or low testosterone are potential considerations.

Lifecycle of the sperm and the egg

It takes 100 days for the egg to mature, and 116 days for sperm to form, so ideally, preconception care would start a minimum of 4 to 6 months prior to conception to ensure those cells are as healthy as possible. 

The growth of your baby during pregnancy and breastfeeding takes an immense amount of resources and nutrients, and the mother’s body will preferentially allocate nutrients to the growing baby. If you’re starting your pregnancy journey in a nutritionally depleted state, pregnancy will only further deplete your nutrient stores. 

Lifestyle changes in the preconception period

A good rule of thumb during the preconception period, is for both partners to treat this time as though you are already pregnant. It’s best not to wait until you have fallen pregnant to start improving your diet, reducing your stress, and reducing exposure to environmental toxins.

Some lifestyle changes for both parents to consider in the preconception period:

Alcohol: For the best long term outcomes for your baby, it’s best to avoid alcohol altogether. Alcohol negatively affects both male and female fertility, reduces chances of conception, and may have negative long-term health alterations for the child.

Caffeine: Caffeine consumption is associated with an increased time to conception. It also places additional stress on the adrenal glands, and may deplete certain nutrients, in particular the B vitamins. It’s best to avoid caffeine completely, or limit to just one per day.  

Environmental toxins: Reduce exposure to endocrine disrupting chemicals – plastic, dioxins, phthalates, pesticides, and BPAs in particular are known endocrine disruptors, as they can displace natural hormones.   As much as possible, avoid exposure to paints, air-fresheners, perfumes, hair sprays, plastic containers heated in microwaves, new furniture or carpet.

For men: avoid keeping your mobile phone in your pocket – the radiation and electromagnetic wave exposure can affect sperm count, quality and motility. Avoid using your laptop on your lap, as the heat can affect your sperm.

Lubricants: have been associated with reducing sperm motility and ability to penetrate the cervical mucous.

Acupuncture: has been well established for its benefit in improving fertility outcomes, as it can help with correcting hormonal imbalances or simply reducing stress.

Nutrition for the preconception period

When planning for pregnancy, women should ideally stop using hormonal contraceptives (such as an IUD or the oral contraceptive pill) 3-6 months before conception occurs. The pill is known to interfere with the metabolism of a number of nutrients, including folate, B vitamins, zinc and magnesium – these nutrients are all critical to your baby’s growth and development. During the preconception period, supplementation may be required to rebalance the nutritional status of these nutrients. A naturopath can work with you to identify and correct any potential nutrient deficiencies.

Aim to minimise consumption of foods high in sugar, trans- or saturated fats, and ultra-processed foods (such as store-bought cakes and biscuits, processed meats, fake meats, soft drinks, fast foods etc).

A whole-food diet rich in plant-foods, focusing on fresh and seasonal produce (where possible) is ideal – as these foods contain the greatest nutrient density. Eat a rainbow, and include a wide range of colourful fruits and vegetables which are high in antioxidants and polyphenols.

Mediterranean-style diets have been well-researched for role in improving fertility, and have been shown to increase chances of having a successful pregnancy. Mediterranean-style diets are focused on fruits and vegetables, minimal amounts of processed foods, and lots of wholegrains, legumes, and nuts. 

Getting support

There are a lot of factors to consider when looking to optimise preconception wellbeing. As a naturopath, the advice I give you is considered within the context of you and your partner’s unique health needs, as everyone’s path to maximising their preconception health is different. 

Remember if you’re thinking of falling pregnant in the future, the optimal time to start preparing your body is at least 6 months before conception to provide the best health outcomes for both mother and baby, but if you haven’t got 6 months or if you’re already pregnant the best time to start is today!

If you’re ready to get started, I’d love the opportunity to work with you to support your family’s wellbeing.

Emily May (BHSc Nat)
Naturopath

To book an naturopathy appointment with Emily, click here.

Sources:

Chasse, J. (2014). Preconception care priming women for a healthy pregnancy. Retrieved from: https://ndnr.com/womens-health/preconception-care-priming-women-for-a-healthy-pregnancy/

Lang, A.Y., Harrison, C.L., Barrett, G., Hall, J.A., Moran, L.J., Boyle, J.A.. Opportunities for enhancing pregnancy planning and preconception health behaviours of Australian women. Women Birth. 2021 Mar;34(2):e153-e161. doi: 10.1016/j.wombi.2020.02.022. Epub 2020 Apr 17. PMID: 32312651.

Lang, A. Y., Boyle, J. A., Fitzgerald, G. L., Teede, H., Mazza, D., Moran, L. J., & Harrison, C. (2018). Optimizing preconception health in women of reproductive age. Minerva Obstetrics and Gynecology, 70(1). doi:10.23736/s0026-4784.17.04140-5 

Stephenson, J., Heslehurst, N., Hall, J., Schoenaker, D. A. J. M., Hutchinson, J., Cade, J. E., … Mishra, G. D. (2018). Before the beginning: nutrition and lifestyle in the preconception period and its importance for future health. The Lancet, 391(10132), 1830–1841. doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(18)30311-8 

Zhu, J., Arsovska, B., Kozovska, K. Acupuncture Treatment for Fertility. Open Access Macedonian Journal of Medical Sciences. 2018 Sep 19;6(9):1685-1687. doi: 10.3889/oamjms.2018.379. PMID: 30337989; PMCID: PMC6182526.