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• Regulating sex hormones
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1. your girlfriend, partner, wife has said ‘read this blog’ and you feel obliged to! or
2. you are taking upon yourself to understand the nutritional requirements for male fertility.

In our blog ‘the most important three months of your fertility journey’ we go through why 3 months is the optimum time to get you and your sperm in top condition and what you should do.

However, sometimes you want to cut to the chase and find out what you need to do so here is our our top 6 nutrient requirements, why and where to find it. At the bottom is a quick menu idea….

Our top 6 vitamin and minerals for male fertility are:  

1. Zinc

Zinc is found in high concentrations in male sex organs and sperm. Zinc is necessary for making the outer membrane and tail of the sperm, and for sperm to mature properly.  Zinc deficiency has been linked to low sperm counts and testosterone levels. Exposure to stress, cigarette smoke, pollution, and alcohol deplete zinc. Zinc supplements have been shown to improve sperm count, motility, form, function, quality, and fertilizing capacity. Men need a minimum of 15 mg of zinc per day, 30mg if you are vegetarian, however when one is looking at fertility issues you can go 50 mg of Zinc per day (please check with health practitioner if this applies to you)

Zinc-rich foods include:

• Raw Oysters (six medium oysters have 16 mg)**
• Lean beef tenderloin (a 3-ounce serving has 4.8 mg)
• Baked beans (a 1-cup serving contains 3.5 mg)
• Dark chicken meat (2.38 mg per 3 ounces).
• Zinc is also found in lamb, pork, shellfish, spinach, and pumpkin seeds

** While Raw Oysters are the richest food source of zinc we would caution eating too many raw oysters during because of the risk of food-borne illness and mercury. Oysters have high levels of two amino acids that help increase levels of sex hormones. Cooking reduces the quantity of the amino acids.

PS: If you are taking zinc supplements, you may need to take copper as well to prevent copper deficiency. (excessive zinc depletes copper – again consult with your health practitioner )

2. Folic acid 

Studies show that men with low levels of B vitamin Folic Acid have lower sperm counts. Folic acid intake is associated with a statistically significant reduction in frequency of sperm abnormalities in healthy males.

Folic Acid foods include:

• fortified breakfast cereals,
• leafy greens,
• Beans peas and lentils
• oranges and papaya
• Seeds and nuts

3. Vitamin C 

Vitamin C is an important anti-oxidant that helps prevent sperm defects and boosts sperm motility. Studies have shown that lower levels of vitamin C may lead to infertility and increased damage to the sperm’s genetic material.

Make sure to get 500-1,000 mg of Vitamin C daily, especially if you smoke which saps the antioxidents in your system.

Vitamin C foods include:

• Papaya
• Citrus fruit

4. Vitamin D 

Vitamin D is essential for the healthy development of the nucleus of every cell including the sperm cell, and helps maintain semen quality and sperm count. Vitamin D also increases levels of testosterone.  Vitamin D is free because you can get ample amounts from the sun but in countries like Australia where we slip slap and slop the sun-ream to stop us getting skin cancer we have a high level of vitamin D deficiency.  If in doubt top up with vitamin D source foods:

Vitamin D foods include

• Milk and cheese
• Fatty fish like Salmon, Mackerel
• Egg yolks

5. OMEGA 3 Oils 

Essential fatty acids are necessary to the production of healthy sperm. They improve sperm membranes and protect sperm from oxidative stress. Omega-3s stimulate blood flow to sexual organs and improve sexual function.  Inadequate intake of these fatty acids has been linked to poor sperm quality, abnormal sperm, poor motility, and low sperm count, largely because of their role in membrane structure.

Previous research has shown that men with poor sperm counts saw improvement after taking fish oil supplements high in omega-3 fats.  Omega 3 is most easily accessible from fish oils. However because pollutants in the waters such as mercury we actually recommend taking this as a high quality, practitioner only prescribed supplement.

Omega 3 foods include:

• Organic or wild salmon, sardines, herring and other low-mercury cold water fish,
• Enriched eggs
• Pumpkin seeds and walnuts.

6. Selenium 

Selenium is a trace mineral that protects cells from oxidative damage and is helpful for sperm function and fertility. Selenium improves sperm formation, quantity, structure, quality, motility, and function. The epididymis, the tube through which sperm pass from the testicle through the penis, needs selenium to function properly.  Selenium deficiency has been linked to male infertility, while selenium supplementation in men has been shown to improve pregnancy rates.

Selenium food sources:

• Brazil nuts (just 2 a day will provide you with your entire needs)
• Eggs,
• Garlic
• Oatmeal

So there you go, our top 6 nutrients.   There are of course other important nutrients that are needed and can be missing from a modern diet such as;

• Coenzyme Q
• Vitamin E
• L-arginine
• L-carnitine
• Calcium 

However these too can be found in the foods we have already mentioned.

So really nothing has changed from when your grandfather was dating grandma. A clean diet with lots of vegetables, fruit, nuts, seeds, sustainably sourced seafood and meat is maybe all you need to help along the next generation. 

Still wondering what to eat tonight?

You could go to a reputable bar or restaurant, order a plate of raw oysters, drink a glass of orange juice, have a couple of brazil nuts mixed in a green salad, followed by a small glass of shiraz (did we mention a SMALL glass of red is an anti-oxidant) take a walk back in the sun and voila…baby making nutrition is done for the day…

If you think you may have other issues such as stress, insomnia, more serious sperm viability issues, or would like further help with your diet plan, then please make an appointment to speak to Heidi or Sally at BOOK NOW

If you would like an appointment please book now

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1) Nutrition

Most women when trying for a baby you attempt to do the right things such as stop drinking and cutting out coffee but when you expect to go through IVF there is more at stake and not just for baby. If you have a diet high in inflammatory foods then your body is already fighting. The process of stimulating follicles is hard on your body.  Bloating, headaches, weight gain, pain are all signs that the body is not coping with the drugs. There is also a risk of over-stimulating. The liver is key here. The liver is the organ in the body that helps clear out the drugs.  In our experience, the women that have a clean diet – low in sugar, mono or trans fats and high in vegetables, fruits and whole grains will have a liver better able to cope with the drugs and will suffer with less side effects.

In addition, providing a high nutrient diet in the lead up to IVF floods the body with the vitamins and minerals it needs to mature the egg and build a thick endometrium.

2) Supplements

Yes, we all know about Folic Acid but there is a lot of evidence around the need for Vitamin D, Iron, Probiotics and other micro-nutrients. Today the jury is out whether folic is actually the best for women to take. Folic is a type of Vitamin B 9 which is otherwise known as Folate. Not everyone can synthesise folic acid and therefore it may be better to go with folate. In addition, anti-oxidents, Co q10, Omega 3 as well as other micro-nutrients will boost your blood with nutrients to help mature a good quality egg.

3) Exercise

We are not asking for 7 days down at the gym. Quite the opposite. Our main aim is to have the body move. Movement causes blood to circulate, Iron and nutrients to travel to organs, endometrium and ovaries. It carries the toxins and waste away from your cells. If you have a job and /or a lifestyle that sits down most of the day you need to incorporate movement. This can be walking, swimming, gym, pilates, Zumba, yoga etc. Aim to move every day. Get the blood circulating!  We’ll add that you should avoid taking up high impact or intensive training just before starting an IVF protocol. The body likes regularity. If you start something new it goes a little into shock. It’s OK to start a more rigorous exercise program when you are kick starting a health program and even a few months before starting IVF but not great in the month before IVF.

4) Mindset

This is the mother ship of success. There is nothing more exhausting, depressing and debilitating to the body than watching friends get pregnant, hear good news from others and not have success in your own endeavours.  Month after month and the body reacts by releasing hormones that are in direct opposition to your fertility hormones.  I recently went back to London and chatted to the head of Zita West Fertility Clinic which is where I worked for a while and is considered one of the most successful IVF clinics in the UK and asked ‘what’s new?  how are you getting such great results? ’ and one of the answers was ‘Mindset is still key’. This doesn’t surprise me; the link between body and our emotions is strong and for years I have advocated that getting women laughing after embryo transfer (more on this below) as being one of the keys to successful implantation’. That’s because Endorphines are our feel good and happy hormones and can directly and immediately influence the state of our health as well as long term effects.

So as mindset is so big I’m going to break it down:

1. In the lead up to IVF a woman needs to start acknowledging the stress, anxiety, depression and look at ways of dealing with it. The options are varied. Perhaps its via gentle exercise such as yoga or tai chi. Fancy laying down for an hour? – Acupuncture is excellent for dealing with stress and has great evidence for anxiety and depression via it’s neurological effects.  If talking is your thing then you may wish to speak to a councillor. Lastly there is the underestimated hypnosis. It doesn’t work for everyone but can help.
2. The other area here is building resilience to bad news. Reminding yourself that it’s not all great for others and being grateful for what you do have. If this is hard to do then try writing a list. Perhaps you have a great job, or family, or friend, or pet or hopefully partner (more on this later).  The aim here is that building resilience actually will cocoon you and help moderate hormones .
3. On embryo transfer I always advocate acupuncture as there is evidence around this increasing success rates especially if there has been acupuncture through the protocol. What acupuncture does here is two-fold:  increasing blood flow around the body but aalso helping to decrease stress and anxiety.

The other tip that I give is after embryo transfer, go home, put feet up and watch some stand up comedy on TV. Why? Because there is nothing better than a good belly laugh to get endorphins running through your system. In this day of Netflix, you tube, amazon and Fox. I’m hoping you’ll have someone you like but if you are short on ideas some of my favourites over the years have been Ali Wong, Chris Rock, Amy Schumer, Iliza Schlesinger to name a few. Being politically correct here is not what you worry about – being entertained to make you laugh is.

5) Making time for your relationship

If you are going it alone here, then ignore this last piece but make sure you have some support through friends and family on your journey. This last tip is for those planning a baby with someone else. IVF puts a lot of strain on both partners and it’s easy to get angry, upset and closed with each other. As you and your partner are looking to start a family – you need to be united. Start how you mean to go on.  Make time for each other, be kind to each other. laugh with each other. Perhaps watch some of those comedies together?

While nothing guarantees success I hope you have found some beneficial advice in this.  At ben&biao we are mainly about giving you a helping hand in your fertility journey. We have experience working with women and couples who are going through IVF and if you would like guidance, advice, acupuncture, pain management, supplements or nutritional advice then please contact us or book now.

We have two clinical nutritionists that can help guide you to the correct food choices for optimal nutrition. Please book in with Rachel Cunard or Chantelle Van Der Weyden.

If you would like an appointment please book now

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