A Fertility Diet |
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JPAGE_CURRENT_OF_TOTAL  What you eat before you become pregnant may be just as important as what you eat during pregnancy.
Eat Well, Eat Safely Food safety has become a hot button for many Americans, as tales of foodborne illnesses and contamination make nightly TV-news headlines. It's also a particular "pet peeve" of nutrition authority Claire Dalidowitz, who regularly advises patients at Connecticut Children's Medical Center to "buy fresh and buy local" from U.S. farmers who are subject to stricter pesticide-control laws than foreign exporters. All fruits and vegetables, even those grown on organic farms, should be rinsed and scrubbed under cool running water before eating, cutting, or peeling. In their book, Before Your Pregnancy: A 90-Day Guide for Couples on How to Prepare for a Healthy Conception (Ballantine Books, 2002), Amy Ogle, M.S., R.D., and Lisa Mazzullo, M.D., urge women trying to conceive to follow the same food safety advice they would give to pregnant women: Avoid both raw and uncooked sprouts, since they can be carriers of E. Coli and salmonella bacteria.Remove and discard outer leaves from lettuce and cabbage. Don't drink unpasteurized juice from roadside stands or markets. And once food is served, refrigerate any leftovers as promptly as possible, especially within a two-hour time limit. Dalidowitz also promotes the importance of knowing your "fish facts" so that you can optimize your intake of omega-3s without exposing yourself to unsafe levels of mercury or other potentially toxic pollutants. "Too many Americans overdo omega-6's, which are found in corn and safflower oils, while neglecting omega-3's found in canola and olive oils as well as fatty fishes." This is especially worrisome for women trying to conceive, since research shows that omega-6's mediate uterine contractions, meaning that a diet tilted too far to omega-6's could increase the risk of miscarriage, even before a woman knows she is pregnant. Experts generally consider it safest to eat omega-3-rich U.S. farmed catfish and wild Alaskan salmon as often as you wish; sardines, albacore tuna, and Spanish mackerel (not the large king variety) can be eaten safely up to twice a week, while women planning a pregnancy should avoid shark, swordfish, tilefish and king mackerel because of contamination concerns. If “we are what we eat,” can a woman’s diet help encourage fertility? In the broadest sense, say experts, the answer is yes. While scientists already have evidence that being overweight or underweight (and, by implication, over-or under-eating) can sidetrack pregnancy attempts, there’s also growing, but still sketchy, evidence that specific eating habits can help or hurt the odds of achieving a successful pregnancy. In a world in which fad diets are often instant bestsellers, the desire to become pregnant may be the perfect chance to take a hard look at your nutritional habits. Where to Start Make Your Diet “Baby-Friendly” It’s literally never too early to begin. The American Dietetic Association (ADA)—the “top guns” in the field—stress that women should attain “good nutritional status” before conception to optimize pregnancy outcomes. The American Pregnancy Association, among others, suggests that women “begin making healthy changes in their diets three months to a year before you conceive.” What that means: less junk, more real food. “It sounds boring, but the fact is that few Americans eat a truly balanced diet,” says Claire K. Dalidowitz, M.S., R.D., clinical nutrition manager, Connecticut Children’s Medical Center in Hartford. “I’m really of the ‘old school’ that says we need to eat a true variety of foods. The basic food pyramid is as good a place as any to start. A healthy diet, at minimum, should include 20 different foods a week from the five food groups to avoid deficiencies. It’s not uncommon to ask someone to keep an eating journal and find that two out of five groups are missing.” Watch Your Protein/Carbohydrate Balance A widely reported study of mice suggests that high-protein diets could endanger both the original development of an embryo and its subsequent genetic make-up. While some experts caution that “mice aren’t humans,” others already were concerned about the wisdom of being on high-protein/low-carb diets even before the data became public. “Bulking up on protein eliminates many of the foods that we know are healthy for a woman overall and for growing a baby—fruits and vegetables and dairy foods along with carbs,” says public health nutritionist Melinda Johnson, R.D., a spokesperson for the ADA. Few doctors advise women to follow any type of weight-loss plan when trying to conceive. Be vigilant if you're a vegetarian. While lacto-ovo eaters (those who eat milk and eggs) probably have little to be worried about, Dalidowitz cautions that true vegans who subsist strictly on high-fiber, high-phytate fruits, veggies and whole grains can sometimes deplete their bodies of zinc, iron, and calcium—all (especially zinc) needed for early embryonic cell division. You don’t want to megadose; a multivitamin/ mineral supplement should be fine. Careful With the Caffeine Doctors have long warned pregnant women to go easy on caffeine due to its possible role in causing miscarriages; some studies now suggest high caffeine intake may also be associated with lessening the chance for conception, says Jackie Gutmann, M.D., associate director, division of reproductive endocrinology, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. “There’s pretty clear evidence that miscarriage risks rise once caffeine intake goes above moderate levels, considered 300 mg a day, but statistics on conception are always more subtle. Certain levels of a substance like caffeine may make it harder for a woman to conceive, delaying pregnancy rather than definitively preventing it. The best advice to a woman who wants to conceive as soon as possible is simply to cut back on caffeine.” An 8-ounce cup of coffee, depending on how it’s brewed, contains 60-120 mg of caffeine—and many upscale cups are double that amount. Brewed tea generally contains 20-90 mg per 8 ounces, a 12-ounce cola 45 mg, two tablets of some over-the-counter pain relievers 130 mg. |
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