The reproductive function of the female body is the ability to conceive, bear and give birth to healthy children. Most often, these three stages are associated with the physical health of the internal genital organs (ovaries, fallopian tubes and uterus), as well as their compliance with the concept of anatomical norm (correct location, shape and structure). However, there is another important factor that affects the ability to conceive and bear a fetus, but often remains without due attention - intimate microflora.
Record your menstrual cycle frequency
A woman who wants to have a child should ensure that the first days of her period are separated by the same number of days each month, i.e. Is her cycle regular? Conversely, her periods may be irregular, meaning that the length of her cycle varies from month to month. By tracking this information on a calendar, a woman can better predict when she might ovulate, which is the time when her ovaries will release an egg.
According to the American Pregnancy Association, an egg is fertile for only 12 to 24 hours after it is released. However, male sperm can remain in a woman’s body for up to 5 days.
Monitor your ovulation
In women with regular cycles, ovulation occurs approximately 2 weeks before the start of menstruation. In women with irregular cycles, ovulation is more difficult to predict, but it usually occurs 12 to 16 days before the start of the next cycle.
There are several methods that women can use to determine the most fertile days of the month.
To take the guesswork out of determining when ovulation occurs, there are home prediction kits available. They test the urine for luteinizing hormone, a substance that increases each month during ovulation and causes the ovaries to release eggs. According to the American Pregnancy Association, the 3 days immediately after a positive test result is the best time to have sex to increase your chances of getting pregnant.
Another method of predicting ovulation is cervical mucus tracking, in which a woman regularly checks the amount and appearance of mucus in her vagina. According to the March of Dimes, just before ovulation, when a woman is most fertile, the amount of mucus increases and it becomes thinner, clearer, and slipperier. When the mucus in the cervix becomes more slippery, it can help sperm reach the egg. A study published in the journal Fertility and Sterility found that women who regularly checked their cervical mucus were 2.3 times more likely to become pregnant within 6 months.
How to increase the chance of pregnancy
Some women get pregnant without problems. But there are also those for whom conception is difficult. Pregnancy does not always happen immediately after getting married or deciding that it’s time to have a baby. What determines the occurrence of pregnancy and how to increase the likelihood of a joyful event, says Passion.ru.
Take a rest
Our body gets tired of the crazy pace of life, and therefore is in a state of stress. The brain understands the danger of miscarriage, which is why women often cannot get pregnant.
Many couples who have been trying in vain to have a child for a long time return with good news from a joint vacation. This is due to the fact that on vacation the body and soul relax, the obsessive thought of conception leaves the head, and the woman relaxes. This helps balance hormonal levels and facilitate conception.
The quality of sperm depends on the time of year: sperm become most active and fertile in early spring, when all life on earth awakens, and in autumn, when the body is saturated with vitamins and minerals, there is no suffocating heat, and the body is most active.
Therefore, if you want to become parents, go on vacation together in the spring or autumn. The beauty of the beaches and mountain air promote relaxation and conception.
Calculate ovulation
The probability of conception increases significantly during the period of ovulation - this is the release of a mature egg, ready for fertilization, into the cavity of the fallopian tube from the ovary. Ovulation usually occurs in the middle of the cycle. A few days before it begins and about three days after ovulation is the most favorable moment to become parents.
Therefore, many women keep an ovulation calendar, calculating it by basal temperature , special pharmacy ovulation tests, or a device that determines ovulation by the composition of saliva. When determining the day of ovulation, it is necessary to make love.
Stop the medications
Many hormonal drugs (contraceptives and medications for the treatment of certain diseases) impair the ability to conceive. To succeed in conception, it is necessary to abolish them a couple of months before the start of sexual activity without protection and conceiving a baby.
The effect of hormonal contraceptives may remain for about two months, reducing the absorption of vitamins, folate and magnesium. And with the residual effect of hormones, there may be a superovulation effect - then the likelihood of conceiving twins increases due to the sudden release of two eggs from the ovaries at once.
Add vitamins
For a full-fledged conception, provide the body with all the necessary substances to build the body of the embryo and maintain its viability.
During your fertile period, have sex every other day
According to the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, the fertile window covers the 6-day interval, 5 days before ovulation and the day it occurs. These are the days of each month when a woman is most fertile.
Some women are using new technology tools such as fertility tracking apps and websites to keep track of when they might be more likely to conceive, but a 2020 study suggests apps may not be entirely accurate. accurate.
According to Pavone, research showed that there was not much difference between couples who had sex every day during their fertile window (37%) and couples who had sex every other day (33%).
“And it will be easier for a couple to have sex every other day,” she added.
There are many common misconceptions and legends about conception. For example, there is no evidence that sexual position will affect a couple's chances of conceiving, and a woman lying on her back for a certain amount of time after intercourse does not increase her chances of conceiving, Pavone said.
But she says some water-based vaginal lubricants can reduce sperm motility, so if you need lubrication, it's best to use Pre-Seed rather than Astroglide or KY Brand Jelly.
Contraindications and precautions
Unfortunately, due to the availability of this method, many women resort to it without indications and without realizing the possible negative consequences. First of all, we must remember that by alkalizing the vaginal environment, we open the way to pathogenic microorganisms and inhibit lactobacilli. The result may be a violation of the microflora - bacterial vaginosis or thrush. Despite the fact that the alkaline environment itself is destructive for the yeast fungi that cause thrush, disruption of the microflora leads to the fact that in the process of its restoration, “primacy” may not be taken by the Doderlein bacilli, which are useful for us, but by any other microorganism, including fungus. To support the vaginal microflora, take live lactic acid products or preparations with live lacto-, bifido- or yoghurt cultures during the soda cycle. After ovulation, you can use such drugs topically, as well as use intimate hygiene products with lactic acid.
It should also be noted that you or your man may experience irritation after such “soda” sexual intercourse. This reaction can be caused both by mechanical microdamages from incompletely dissolved soda particles, and by an allergy to the soda itself or to reaction products between it and substances in the vagina. In this case, you should stop douching with soda for conception . Instead of soda, you can use special lubricants for pregnancy planning, which promote the survival of sperm on the way to the goal. Unfortunately, such products are not available for sale in all countries.
It should also be said about the prevailing opinion that the percentage of missed pregnancies after douching is higher than without it. This can be explained by the fact that not the strongest and not the healthiest sperm, which would not be able to pass the “acid barrier” in the natural environment of the vagina, gets a chance to reach the egg and fertilize it.
Contraindications to the use of soda when planning pregnancy are erosion or other damage to the cervix, inflammatory processes in the vagina and cervical canal, and microflora disorders. Before using this method, like any other, you should consult your doctor.
Aim for a healthy body weight
Being overweight reduces a woman's chances of conceiving, but being too thin can make it even more difficult to conceive.
Research has shown that an overweight woman may take twice as long to become pregnant as a woman whose body mass index (BMI) is considered normal. At the same time, an underweight woman may take 4 times longer to conceive a child.
Excess body fat leads to excess estrogen, which can interfere with ovulation. According to the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, losing 5-10% of body weight before a woman starts trying to get pregnant can improve her fertility.
A 2020 study found that couples in which both partners are obese may take 55-59% longer to get pregnant compared to non-obese couples.
At the same time, women who are too thin may experience irregular periods or may stop ovulating altogether.
Eat healthy
While there is no specific diet to promote fertility, eating a variety of healthy foods can help prepare a woman's body for pregnancy by giving her adequate supplies of essential nutrients such as calcium, protein and iron. This means eating a variety of fruits and vegetables, lean protein, whole grains, dairy products and healthy sources of fat.
In addition to taking a folic acid supplement, a woman can also get this vitamin from foods such as dark green leafy vegetables, broccoli, fortified breads and cereals, beans, citrus fruits, and orange juice.
At the same time, if you are trying to get pregnant, you should eat less fish that is high in mercury.
Also, avoid caffeine: Consuming more than 500 milligrams of caffeine per day has been linked to decreased fertility in women. According to the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, drinking 1 to 2 cups of coffee or less than 250 mg of caffeine per day before pregnancy does not affect your chances of conceiving.
Conception and female microflora
For successful fertilization, the motility and activity of sperm (male reproductive cells), which must penetrate from the vagina into the uterus and fallopian tubes, is critical. A decrease in their ability to move directly affects the chances of fertilizing a mature egg - with low mobility, they lose the opportunity to reach it.
The acidity (pH environment) of the vagina has a direct impact on sperm activity. When pH values shift to the acidic side, the ability of male germ cells to move decreases, and with significant changes in the vaginal acid-base environment, their rapid death can occur.
Lactobacilli, special beneficial microorganisms that normally make up 95–98% of all vaginal microflora, are responsible for maintaining a normal level of acidity in the vagina. If their quantity is sufficient, the necessary conditions for sperm activity are created.
Accordingly, microflora affects conception to the same extent as the health of the internal genital organs. Therefore, when planning a pregnancy, it is highly advisable for a woman to get rid of vaginal dysbiosis.
Remember the age-related decline in fertility
As women get older, their fertility decreases due to age-related changes in the ovaries, which cause a decrease in the number and quality of eggs. As you age, you also increase your risk of certain health problems, such as uterine fibroids, endometriosis, and blocked fallopian tubes, which can contribute to loss of fertility.
A gradual decline in fertility in women is observed from the age of 30, a sharper decline occurs after 37 years, declining even more sharply after 40 years. This decrease means it may take longer to get pregnant.
General information about Aktifert gel
The instructions for the product say that Aktifert is a gel for insertion into the vagina. Arabinogalactan polysaccharides, the active substance of Aktifert, give it a yellowish tint. The package contains two tubes of gel (5 ml each), each for one-time use.
Additional substances included:
- glycerol;
- deionized water.
The Aktifert gel tube has a long tip for easy insertion into the vagina
Operating principle of Aktifert:
- plant polysaccharides, according to clinical studies, improve sperm motility and prolong their viability;
- deionized water and glycerin reduce acidity in the vagina, which also promotes conception;
- the complex effect of the composition inhibits the growth of lactobacilli in cytolytic vaginosis, a disease caused by the washing away of the protective layer from the walls of the vagina. Cytolytic vaginosis can develop in women who are overly zealous with intimate hygiene, during pregnancy and after childbirth, including.
The advantages of Aktifert include ease of use. Dividing into single doses eliminates the need for a woman to measure out the right amount of product each time she uses it.
Coniferous trees are rich in arabinogalactan, especially larch contains a lot of this polysaccharide
The main disadvantage of lubricating gel is considered to be its high cost and, according to many doctors, questionable effectiveness . Pharmacy chains offer to buy a package of Aktifert at a price of 820 rubles.
The instructions indicate a contraindication to the use of Aktifert as a tendency to allergic reactions to the components of the gel. Before use, both partners should conduct a sensitivity test by applying a small amount of gel to the wrist area.
Side effects are rare, manifested by increased sensitivity.
During pregnancy and breastfeeding, it is not prohibited to use Aktifert for cytolytic vaginosis, if the doctor deems it necessary. The gel does not contain substances that can harm the child. Aktifert is available in pharmacies without a prescription.
Stop smoking and drinking alcohol
Smoking can lead to fertility problems in both women and men. Chemicals in cigarette smoke, such as nicotine and carbon monoxide, speed up the loss of eggs in women, according to the American Society for Reproductive Medicine.
According to the Mayo Clinic, smoking causes a woman's ovaries to age and prematurely deplete her egg supply. Women are also advised to avoid secondhand smoke, which can affect their chances of getting pregnant.
The safest thing for a woman hoping to become pregnant is to avoid drinking alcohol. She should also stop drinking alcohol if she stops using birth control because she wants to become pregnant.
Well, after a woman becomes pregnant, there is no safe amount of alcohol.
Gestation and female microflora
During pregnancy, a woman’s health, including the health of the reproductive system, is of great importance for the proper development of the fetus and its gestation. Infectious diseases pose a particular danger from the point of view of premature termination of pregnancy. Thus, infectious agents, getting on the mucous membrane of the genital organs, are able to penetrate through the ascending path into the cervix and its cavity, causing infection of the amniotic fluid and the fetus.
In this regard, the importance of microflora is more than obvious. The correct ratio of all representatives of the microbiological environment provides reliable protection against pathogens. Lactobacilli, which are predominant in the vaginal microflora, are not only responsible for creating an acid-base environment favorable to a woman’s health, but also produce antibacterial substances (hydrogen peroxide and bacteriocins) that cause the death of opportunistic microorganisms in the vagina.
