Fertile Foods

[Sharni]

Well, I figured that there must be some really good foods for us to eat and some which are normally good for us but not so if we are trying to conceive.

I have a great book Fertility and Conception by Zita West and I figured I could highlight some of the recommended foods and tips. A lot of the recommendations are actually part of Dr. A's Maintenance stage anyway.

Good protein sources - eggs, lean meat and fish, tempeh (I don't know what this is), milk, cheese, nuts, seeds, rice, cornmeal, beans.

Slow releasing carbohydrates - fruits, vegetables, pulses and whole grains.

Water - "When drinking bottled water make sure the bottles are made from glass, not plastic" Out gassing from plastic can polute your body"

Notes on Aspartame - "when the temperature of aspartame exceeds 30C, which it does once it is ingested, the wood alcohol in it converts to formaldehyde and then to formic acid, which is highly toxic." If this explanation does not stop you from drinking that diet coke, nothing will!!!

Herbs to Avoid - these have negative effects on fertility: burdock, catnip, celery seed, camomile, cohosh, fennel, juniper, pennyroyal and sage. A recent study showed that St. John's wort, echinacea and ginkp biloba may reduce sperm quality and the ability of sperm to penetrate an egg. (Can't forget Dad-to-be's food intake either).

If you have any books/sources it would be great to see other recommended foods. This food also has the vitamins we should be taking either through foods (my choice) or in tablet form.

[vharper]

Wow great information!!! Thanks for sharing that.

[Hafsa226]

My Mother-in-law was a midwife for years in Morocco. She told me to take a hot bath right before bed and drink a hot saffron infusion (saffron boiled in water) Then to go to bed when you're **ready** . She said to do this on the days you think are your most fertile and you should be pregnant almost immediately!

I keep getting pregnant too easy, so I haven't tried this---yet!

I thought I would share it because it's 0 carb!

[vharper]

May I ask what saffron infusion is? Is that a tea of some kind? Our first baby was conceieved on the first shot this time around however has been 3 months which isn't long but when you go by our last time it seems like forever. So guess I can give this a try if this month didn't "take". Where can I get saffron?

[brats4]

All I could think of when I read this title was Vodka. Crappy for you physically but I've seen it do wonders for getting pregnant in the past. LOL

[vharper]

oh brats..silly you..lol.. :yikes

[Sharni]

Saffron is a spice used in Indian/Middle Eastern cooking. It is delicious but VERY expensive. It is yellow and comes in threads. I guess Hafsa means that you set a warm bath and drop a few threads into the warm water.

I'm game except I am not sure where I'd find the authentic item. People here tend to see tumeric under the guise of saffron.

[Hafsa226]

No. Please don't bathe in it! Saffron is usually $2-5 per ounce. You can usually buy it in any grocery store or in a middle eastern or Indian market. Just boil it in a cup of water, and drink it before bed. What I was told, is that it heats up your uterus and makes it thicken, making it easier for the fertilized egg to attach. My MIL did say NOT to drink it if you are already pregnant. Avoid too much ginger and cinnamon also.