In vitro fertilization and natural conception are more successful if you take care of your diet

A recent study has shown that women who undergo assisted reproduction are more likely to conceive if their diet is rich in protein.

They studied 120 women who underwent in vitro fertilization (IVF) at a medical center, and found that those who ate a lot of protein and few carbohydrates were more likely to conceive a child.

The message we need to take from these findings is how important it is to pay attention to what you eat when it comes to fertility.

The study, conducted by Dr. Jeffrey Russell who directs the Institute of Reproductive Medicine of Delaware in the United States, although it was done on a small number of patients, has nevertheless highlighted some very important data.

The results of the study

Of the 12 women who underwent IVF they became pregnant

• 67% of those who got 25% of their daily calories from protein
• only 32% of those who had little protein in their diet
• 80% of blacks who got more than 60% of their calories from protein in their diet

To obtain these results, a specific program was used to calculate the amount of protein and carbohydrates the women consumed each day.

This by no means means that women with fertility problems should gorge themselves on steak, eggs and butter. Probably the women who got fewer calories from carbohydrates were those who ate whole grain carbohydrates and fewer refined foods than other women. Carbohydrates could be put in the dock because generally those that are present in our diet are refined carbohydrates.  Their digestion creates a rapid increase in blood sugar with a consequent increase in insulin which could negatively affect the woman’s hormonal balance. Which does not happen if whole carbohydrates are present in the diet.

Dr Russell also noted that there was no difference between the groups of women in their body mass index . A high body mass index has in fact been linked by other studies as being responsible for the decrease in IVF success. According to Russell, however, more attention must be paid to the   quality of the diet , whatever the weight of a woman.

There is also other research that supports that a nutritious and well-balanced diet can be conducive to fertility. For example, it now seems established that the Mediterranean diet allows for a better chance of conceiving than the standard Western diet, in women undergoing IVF or seeking conception by natural means.

The traditional Mediterranean diet is low in red meat, dairy products, and processed foods, and is instead high in fresh fruits and vegetables, fish, olive oil, and whole grains.