Have you and your guy decided to try for a baby? No doubt, you’ve already been bombarded with advice — you may have asked for it, or it may have just found its way to you. Most preconception tips have to do with improving female fertility. You have probably heard all about folic acid and tracking your ovulation. But it takes two to tango. What can your other half do to boost his fertility?
Eating healthily
In an ideal world, every person would easily get all the nutrients they needed from foods. A healthy and varied diet — high in real, home-made meals, and low in junk food — certainly helps. Whether a man is a health nut who never indulges in McDonalds, beer, and chocolate or one who loves unhealthy treats and enjoys them a bit too often, getting tested for nutrititional deficiencies is a great move. Men who are deficient in vitamins A, C, D, E, and B vitamins, or who are lacking zinc or selenium are impaired when it comes to sperm production.
The message to men who do have deficiencies in minerals or vitamins is clear. Taking a multivitamin tablet every day will certainly reduce deficiencies. Taking a critical look at what you’re eating is a great step to take along with those multivitamins. Vitamins and minerals are absorbed more easily when they come from natural sources.
Tackle stress
Have you ever heard that stress can interfere with a woman’s menstrual cycle, and even stop her from ovulating? Men are really not that different. Stress can reduce male fertility, and obviously has the potential to damage your relationship as well. Men have a better shot at becoming a father soon if they are relaxed, so finding a source of stress relief that actually works is worth a lot. It’s not just mental stress that interferes with those swimmers, of course! Really heavy physical activity, including working out heavily, can have a negative impact on sperm too.
Sex — not too little, not too much
Researchers came to the conclusion that couples who have sex every day, or even multiple times a day, actually decrease their odds of conceiving. Sperm takes a while to produce, and having sex too often means men have a lower concentration of sperm in their ejaculate. Not that you’d notice. It’s not good to only have sex once a week or even less, either. Sperm that’s not fresh anymore doesn’t move so well, apparently! Sex every other day is the best interval for those who are trying to get pregnant. Of course, keeping the female partner’s ovulate date in mind (you can find that out by using an ovulation calendar) helps you plan better.
Prevent overheating
Have you heard that hot baths fry sperm? This isn’t an urban myth, unfortunately! Well, hot baths, saunas, laptops, the wrong saddle on your bike, and similar stuff doesn’t actually fry sperm, but it does slow down sperm production. The testicles work best at a temperature that is below your normal body temperature, which is why they are on the outside of the body in the first place. Along with the things we’ve already mentioned, really tight underwear or shorts can also cause the testicles to get too hot — especially if they are also synthetic. Save the heat for where it really counts, in between the sheets (or wherever else)!
No smoking and drinking
Smoking and drinking are bad for your health. That’s a message just as boring as the one about eating healthily. Staying fit falls in the same category. We hate to sound like a broken record, all the more because everyone has (hopefully!?) already realized this common wisdom. Drinking a glass of wine, or whiskey, or beer here and there isn’t that bad. It isn’t such a great idea for guys who are trying to get their partner pregnant, especially if it’s more than a glass here and there.
As for smoking, it’s just plain dangerous for everyone involved. Smoking cigarettes makes a man’s fertility drop, but it also has the same effect on his partner if she breathes the sec0nd-hand smoke from his cigarettes, or even third-hand smoke on his clothes, your bed sheets, and so on. Quitting is an essential part of the preconception checklist for any man who is currently a smoker. - www.trying-to-conceive.com
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