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Are
you doing it Right?
Tip for Self-help Before seeking medical help, remember some of the things you can do to enhance your own fertility potential. Body weight, diet and exercise. Proper diet and exercise are important for optimal reproductive function. Women who are significantly overweight or underweight can have difficulty getting pregnant. Talk with your doctor about a healthy diet. Normal exercises, including aerobics, tennis, or jogging may improve your chance of conceiving; however, excessive exercise (for example, jogging over three miles per day) can affect your ovulation. Stop smoking: Cigarette smoking has been associated with a decreased sperm count in men. Women who smoke take longer to conceive. Stop drinking alcohol: Alcohol (beer and wine as well as hard liquor) intake in men has been associated with low sperm counts. Review your medications: A number of medications, including some of those used to treat ulcer problems and high blood pressure, can influence a man's sperm count. If you are taking any medications, talk with your doctor about whether or not it can affect your fertility. Many medications taken during early pregnancy can affect the fetus. It is important to tell your doctor or pharmacist that you are attempting to become pregnant before taking prescription medications or over the counter medications, such as aspirin, antihistamines, or diet pills. Stop abusing drugs: Drugs such as marijuana and anabolic steroids decrease sperm counts. If you have used drugs, discuss this with your doctor. This is confidential information. Both partners should stop using any illicit drugs if they want a healthy baby. Limit your caffeine: Limit
you intake of tea, soft drinks and coffee.
Frequency of intercourse The simple rule is - as often as you like; but the more often you have sex, the better your chances. Thus, for couples who have sex only on weekends (often the price they pay for a heavy work schedule) the chance of having sex on the fertile pre-ovulatory day is only one-third that of couples who have sex every other day - which means they may take three times as long to conceive. Timing of intercourse. Unlike animals,
who know when to have sex in order to conceive (because the female is in
"heat" or estrus when she ovulates), most couples have no idea when the
woman ovulates. Timing intercourse during the "fertile period" is important
and can be easily learnt. However, some couples are so anxious about having
sex at exactly the right time that they may abstain for a whole week prior
to the "ovulatory day " - and often the doctor is the culprit in this over-rigorous
scheduling of sex. This over attention can be counterproductive (because
of the anxiety and stress it generates) and is not advisable.
Position and technique of intercourse Pigs are very efficient at
conserving semen - the boar literally screws his penis into the cervix
of the vagina, obtaining a tight lock prior to ejaculation, to ensure that
no semen leaks out. Humans do not have such well-designed mechanisms of
technique - and perhaps this is because they are really not necessary.
Most doctors advise a male superior position; and also advise that the
woman remain lying down for at least 5 minutes after sex; and not wash
or douche afterwards. A number of products used for lubrication during
intercourse, such as petroleum jelly or vaginal cream, have been shown
to affect sperm quality. Therefore, these products should be avoided if
you are trying to get pregnant (a suitable alternative is raw egg white).
Is fertility lower at present? Has the fertility of couples declined in modern times? Possibly. The reasons for this include:
Most couples consult their family physician who will refer them to an obstetrician - gynecologist when infertility is a concern. This first visit should include both partners. The physician will usually outline the possible causes of infertility, and provide an evaluation plan. The first step should be to achieve an accurate diagnosis to try to find out why pregnancy isn't occurring. Once a diagnosis has been determined, the couple and physician should talk again about a treatment plan. For difficult problems, referral to an infertility specialist may be suggested.
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