Foods to Avoid While Trying to Conceive: A Guide for Better Outcomes

What are the Foods to Avoid During IVF Treatment?

The treatment of infertility brings both excitement and challenges in the lives of to be parents. While preparing to meet your little bundle of joy, you must look after your health to ensure highest chance for success. One of the most effective ways to ensure your health is at its best is a well-planned diet.

As you must be aware, lifestyle and diet play a key role in the success rate of IVF. Eating junk or fast foods crammed with saturated fats is bound to take a toll on both your mental as well as physical well-being. To this end, you must follow a healthy diet during your journey to parenthood with IVF.

When you’re trying to conceive you want to do everything you can to ensure that your sperm is healthy and can fertilize your partner’s egg. Hence, you need to pay special attention to your diet. Eat plenty of fruits and vegetables that are rich in iron, zinc and vitamins.

Foods to Avoid for Fertility Treatment

Several ways are available for you to choose from for boosting your fertility, including quitting smoking getting adequate rest, and changing dietary habits. Your diet significantly influences your fertility and can help you maintain a healthy fertility during your IVF treatment.

There are certain food items that should be avoided. Consumption of these food items can interfere with sperm production and lead to the development of sperm with low motility and improper morphology. Some foods to avoid during fertility treatment are:

Fish with High Mercury Content

Fish with high mercury content like tuna and swordfish should be avoided by men and women when they are trying to conceive. This is because mercury gets stored in the body and can affect the production of sperm. However, other fish such as shellfish and salmon that are rich in zinc and essential fatty acids are good for fertility.

Full Fat Milk

Full fat milk and dairy products could drastically reduce the amount of sperm your body produces. It can also affect sperm motility. The main reason for this is the pesticides and chemicals that are attracted to fat in milk. However, you do not need to avoid milk completely. Instead, you should have low fat milk.

Processed Meats

Processed meats such as salami, sausages, bacon, hotdogs etc. should be avoided when you are trying to conceive. Processed food tends to have higher hormonal residue than unprocessed meat. This can affect sperm production and leave you with sperm that has low motility.

Furthermore, studies have shown that processed meat can lead to several ailments. To ensure optimum health of your reproductive system, you should gradually reduce the amount of processed meat in your diet to avoid any negative effects.

Alcohol and Carbonated Drinks

Alcohol should be avoided not only by women who are trying to get pregnant but also by their partners. It is a food to avoid while trying to conceive by both, men and women. Alcohol and carbonated drinks have an adverse effect on sperm production and may cause abnormal sperm. Diet drinks also contain a substance known as aspartame that affects sperm count and sperm quality.

Soy

Soy-based foods can have a mild estrogenic effect on men. Thus, in certain cases, it can be harmful to male fertility. Men with a naturally low sperm count should avoid soy as it could further reduce sperm production.

Cigarettes

Smoking is very bad for sperm health. This can reduce sperm count and cause abnormal sperm shape. The more you smoke the less your sperm count will be. Some studies also show that smoking can cause DNA fragmentation in sperm. Thus, if you’re looking for a reason to quit smoking, this is it.

Bisphenol A and Pesticides

Even though these bisphenol A and pesticides are not foods, these two are some of the most hazardous chemicals that you need to keep an eye out for as they may eventually turn up in your food. Pesticides are applied to veggies as well as fruits and may even be found in fish and meat products due to various reasons, including polluted water. The chemical BPA is found in packaging materials, from which it can get absorbed into the food items.

Fried Food

You must be aware that fried food mostly contains trans fats, which are bad for your heart. A little-known fact may be that fried food negatively affects male fertility. Fried fast food, such as fried chicken, French fries, and cookies, can lead to a decrease in the sperm count. So, when wondering about “fertility treatment diet restrictions,” “fertility treatment foods to avoid,” “what not to eat during fertility treatment," fried food can be a good answer.

Foods to Eat While Undergoing Fertility Treatment

Now that you know about the foods to avoid during IVF, let’s find out foods that you can have to maintain good health to improve your fertility.

• Before you undergo embryo transplantation, you should include foods that are rich in vitamins and antioxidants, like leafy greens, berries, and vegetables, in your diet. The incorporation of these items in your diet ensures that your eggs and sperm stay protected against oxidative stress, thereby increasing your likelihood of conception.
• You should also have food containing high amounts of omega-3 fatty acids, including chia seeds and salmon. Omega-3 can promote your fertility and the health of your uterine lining.

The success rate of the IVF procedure highly depends on your overall health, which can be easily maintained with good dietary choices. During IVF treatment, you must focus on including food that provide your body with essential nutrients required for conception and healthy pregnancy. Here are some IVF success tips:

Diet: A balanced diet rich in minerals, vitamins, healthy fats, and protein is a must during IVF treatment. You can go for various whole foods, like vegetables, fruits, whole grains, lean proteins, and nuts.

Hydration: Keeping your body hydrated throughout the day is vital for egg quality and the development of uterine lining. You should have adequate water in a day to ensure overall health.

Making a well-balanced IVF diet plan can offer your body the micronutrients and macronutrients it requires for a successful IVF cycle.