Joining us this afternoon is nutritionist Yvonne Bishop-Weston. Last time she hosted a Babyexpert webchat, Yvonne had some great advice about how your diet can influence your fertility. Here's your chance to put more questions to her today. Please start posting now and Yvonne will join us when she has logged in.

Hi

Looking forward to your questions

Thanks

Yvonne

HI Yvonne,
Any thoughts on whether I can try and avoid pre-eclampsia for a second time by amending my diet?
Thnaks.

Hi,

I did post the below but it seems to have gone awol (apologies if it comes up twice)

My husband recently had results of his semen analysis back and it showed up as low on all 3 counts. We are not sure but we are thinking that part of this poor result could be attributed to him being vegetarian and not supplementing his diet over the years.
He has recently started to take Wellman vitamins as well as a vit c + zinc supplement, but diet wise I have read that vegetarians can often lack zinc as even a diet consisting of zinc rich food is not as well absorbed by a plant based diet, as it is with a meat based diet.

We do eat a fair amount of fruit and vegetables, as well as wholegrain rice, cereals and pasta, but we probably don't meet our 5-a-day quota on some days.

So, basically do you recommend any particular foods that are high in zinc and other essential minerals and vitamins which he may be lacking as a vegetarian? (by vegetarian I mean he's a proper veggie, in that he doesn't eat any form of meat, poultry or fish etc)
Or any foods that would potentially improve or at least give a helping hand in upping his sperm results

Thanks in advance.

Could you provide say the top ten foods that a woman should eat when trying to conceive and the same for men. There are so many different theories out there and many contradict each other so it can be hard to know!!!

Thanks

Hi Flamenca

Preeclampsia or pregnancy -induced high blood pressure can of course be a problem for you and your baby so I would certainly try dietary management to help prevent it. Have a look at the food wheel for general dietary advice on www.tellsyoufirst.co.uk and in addition there is evidence that women with preeclampsia are deficient in vitamins C and E so plenty of vegetables and a couple of pieces if fruit a day (lots of sources on the food wheel) including avocados. Risk also seems to be higher if you are low on omega-3 fats so small sized oily fish (e.g. sardines) a couple of times a week and a daily tablespoon of flax oil may benefit

Hi Yvonne,
Glad you are back. I've been TTC so long I remember your previous webchat!!
Any advice for me. I am 37 and it took me 10 months to conceive. Sadly I had a miscarriage at 9+4 but I'm trying again now. I want to prevent any further miscarriages as far as possible and because of my age I want to get pregnant ASAP.

I eat a relastively healthy diet and take The Pregnacare tablets with the Omega fish oils plus most days I have a Berocca Vit B drink for a boost at work.

I'm going for acupuncture too and wondered whether tanything diet wise works well with alternative therapies

Many thanks

Hi Yvonne,
Another question as not many of us around this afternoon it seems.

I have got some Typhoo Decaf Teabags as on your previous chat you said to avoid defaf but there were 2 types and I don't know how you tell good from bad. Should I limit my intake? Also I've heard some herbal teas should be avoided when TTC. Which ones should we take any which should we avoid?

Hi Claire-ski

You are concerned that your husbands low sperm count could be due to his vegetarian diet and lack of zinc. I have not founds that vegetarians fair worse in fertility and often they have more veg and fruit which is vital for antioxidants and sperm quality. Zinc is important for sperm production and there should be no need to be deficient on a veggie diet.A few sources include: dried seaweed, pumpkin, sesame and sunflower seeds, pine nuts, whole grains, wholemeal bread, brown rice, lentils, almonds, wheat germ and oats. You mentioned you don't always get your 5 a day veg and fruit, I advise clients to aim for 8 a day and have some with each meal and snack from breakfast onwards to increase the chances of at least getting your 5. As you suggested supplements are helpful and the best way of taking supplements is to find out what you actually need. It costs from ??150 but can save you a fortune on supplements as you take what you actually need and the lab can then make these up for you. We all have very different needs and an off the shelf pill doesn't always do it. There is a vegetarian food wheel on www.tellsyoufirst.co.uk and most of the advice applies to men too. The only exception is that there are a couple of important amino acids which are more specific to men but again these can be tested. We see good results with improvements in male fertility on dietary plans so don't give up on the diet! 2 quick and easy (ish) general tips for him are to give up the caffeine and keep alcohol below 5 units a week as individually these factors can make it take twice as long to fall pregnant.

Sorry, I didn't mean to hijack the webchat but as there do not seem to be any more questions may I ask another?

I have read that you should avoid acidic foods when TTC. Do you go along with this or should I not worry about it. It can be difficult enough to prepare healthy meals without having to factor this in. The trouble is when you have fertility problems you will try anything!

Hi Yvonne

Quick question i have recently been diagnosed with PCOS. I have been ttc for 3 years now without any joy i have really irregular periods is there any food herbal tablets you could recommend that could help me .

Hi Claire1234

Really sorry to hear you miscarried at 9 weeks. The fact that you fell pregnant is however very hopeful for the future. Protecting more senior eggs (at 37 yrs) as they develop is important so really making sure you have enough antioxidants so again 5 portions of veg a day and up to 3 of fruit. Also don't forget your partners diet as healthy sperm is just as important in helping to ensure a lasting pregnancy. I will post an answer with my top pregnancy foods as a few people have asked that question and sorry to repeat myself but testing is the best way to find out what your individual body really needs (I'll post the clinic details at the end of the chat). We have seen good results with a combination of diet and acupuncture. You may also consider a hair test for heavy metals as this is something we explore along with thyroid function in first trimester miscarriage.

Hi Yvonne

I am almost 39 and trying for my first baby.

Is there anything I can be doing to help boost my fertility? Do supplements such as bee pollen and royal jelly really help?

We've both cut out alcohol and caffeine and we are eating a lot of organic produce, but I was wondering if these extra supplements really are worth the expenditure?

Thanks for your advice.

Hi yvonne...
im new to ttc ..
im a mum off two boys ..
i am not in long term ttc yet but was wondering if you could answer me a question please...
i have had the midera coil in 2 1/2 years and got it removed last week to ttc number 3 ..
i have not bleed at all since and cant tell when im ov is it possible i can get preg without ov ????
or is there any way to increase my chances ??
i want to get preg asap

gracey
any advice is greatfull

Hi All

My top foods and ones to avoid as promised.

To Eat
In our nutrition fertility clinics we test and find out the optimal nutrient needs for the individual but the following tips would give you a great start:
o Essential fats for brain development. Small sized oily fish, hemp and flax seed oils and omega-3 eggs from seed-fed hens are rich in omega-3 fats. These fats support male and female fertility and hormone balance and are vital for baby as they are needed for the development of the brain, nervous system and eyes. They also help prevent dry skin and stretch marks in the mum-to-be. Choose small sized oily fish as the large ones such as tuna may be too high in toxicity.
o Phyto-estrogens for hormone balance. These plant-based hormone balancers help to prevent imbalances between oestrogen and progesterone which can lead to fertility problems and early miscarriage. Include a daily portion of fermented soya such as tempeh, miso, beans, peas, lentils and flax seeds.
o Organic is best to avoid toxicity and maximise nutrients.
o Go up to 8-a-day. 5 handfuls of veg and 3 pieces of fruit a day in a variety of colours including red, purple, orange and dark green help top up antioxidant levels to help protect the genetic material in the egg and sperm and also give you plenty of fibre to help your digestive system clear out waste and toxins.
o Algae. Algae is the true super-food as it contains a vast array of nutrients, essential fats and amino acids in a totally natural and easy to absorb form. As it is at the bottom of the food chain it is also easy to grow with no potentially harmful toxicity. Have a daily algae shake such as ProGreens which also includes beneficial bacteria for digestive health and hormone balance and is safe in pregnancy.

To Avoid
o Alcohol and caffeine which not only deplete the body of nutrients but also each reduce fertility by 50% in that it may take twice as long to get pregnant (based on study which found this fertility reduction with more than 1 cup of coffee a day or 5 units of alcohol a week)
o Liver which can be high in vitamin A which although needed in pregnancy should not be taken in excess
o Foods which may pose a risk of food poisoning such as undercooked meat, fish, dairy and eggs and unpasteurised cheeses
o Processed foods which are depleted of nutrients

Hi Saly

You wanted to know if diet can help with PCOS. The most useful diet I have found for this condition is a low glycaemic load, insulin balancing diet as insulin problems may well be a route cause in many cases. This is partly about what you eat (low sugar and refined carbs) and partly about how you put your diet together (protein with each meal and snack and having 3 meals plus 2 snacks a day). We do use supplements to balance blood sugar (and so insulin levels) and also work with a herbalist in some cases. The supplements are much higher dose than would be recommended for pregnancy so we tend to use them only when we know you are not pregnant and use the First Response 6 day early test so there is only about 1 week a month when we cannot use the supplements

Hi mum024

When you have had a coil removed it can take a few months for regular periods to start up again. If you want to work out if and when you are ovulating the ovulation prediction tests can be really useful. You can't fall pregnant without ovulation (as you asked) but whilst things are settling back down it may be hard to tell when that is. If things don't settle down then best to go back to your GP

Thanks for your reply. Will have a more detailed read later on.

Hi Yvonne,

I've recently had a cystectomy via Lap & Dye Study (currently recovering at home) and hav confirmed Endometriosis (which appears on my ovaries - tubes are clear).

Do you have any dietary recommendations for Endo sufferers as we have been TTC for nearly years, so now I have had a "clear our" it would be good to supplement the surgery with a good diet.

Thanks

MrsJules

We've reached 4.30pm so this webchat is now CLOSED. No more questions, please. Many thanks for your questions, and a big thanks too to Yvonne for sharing her invaluable expertise with us here on Babyexpert again. Yvonne, we'd love to have you back any time
Web Ed Nicola!