 Article by Naota Hashimoto, D.C.
There are many couples who desperately want to get to have children but cannot. When a woman is unable to become pregnant she is said to be infertile. Infertility is a painful and significantly stressful problem affecting thousands of couples who desire children but pregnancy won’t occur.
A woman is said to be infertility when she, if under 35 years of age, cannot become pregnant within 12 months of stopping use of all contraception. In women over 35 years of age, infertility is considered if she cannot get pregnant within 6 months.
In order for pregnancy to occur, a woman must first release an egg from one of her ovaries; this egg must then pass down through one of her fallopian tubes moving toward her uterus (womb). This egg must then be fertilized by her partner’s sperm, and then the newly fertilized egg must reach the uterus and attach itself to the uterine wall, a process called implantation.
While many couples simply take this complex process for granted, some 6.1 million, about 10% of all women in the United States, ages 15-44, do not. Men often think of infertility as a woman’s problem, however, one third of all fertility problems are actually caused by problems and issues with the man himself.
There are many causes and factors involved in causing infertility, a few of the more common problems are associated with, but are not limited to: heavy alcohol use, drugs, smoking cigarettes, age, heavy metal toxicity, hormone imbalance, radiation exposure and believe it or not, cell phone use.
In a recent article, researchers from the Cleveland Clinic warn in the Journal of Fertility and Sterility that the cell phone radiation can impair sperm quality and motility. Sami David, MD, a New York based reproductive endocrinologist tells all of his patients to keep their cell phones and blue tooth devices away from the testicles while they are trying to get pregnant.
Most cases of female infertility are however, caused by problems with ovulation. Without ovulation, there will be no egg and no opportunity for fertilization. One indication of ovulation problems is when the woman has either irregular or absent menstrual periods.
Another very common cause of female infertility is a condition called Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS). One of the hallmarks of PCOS is a significant hormonal imbalance which can interfere with normal ovulation. Other less common reasons for infertility occurring in women are: blocked fallopian tubes, structural problems with the uterus, and uterine fibroids. Other hormonal imbalances such as hypothyroidism that is a lowered production of thyroid hormone, nutritional deficiencies and certain medications that may be prescribed for other reasons.
Of the many factors that can affect a woman’s ability to get pregnant, some are immediately correctable these may include: smoking, reducing alcohol use, improving her diet, reducing excess athletic training, weight loss to control obesity, treatment of anorexia, treatment of STDs and elimination or reduction of stress.
With all these complex imbalances going on in the woman’s body, why wouldn’t this couple want to seek the help of a holistic fertility doctor? The goal of holistic practitioners, Eastern Acupuncture therapy, and herbal medications is to bring the woman’s body into ‘balance,’ or homeostasis. The goal is to encourage male and female hormones to return to the levels where they should have been in the first place. It is also important to bring energy levels back to normal as well as increase libido, improve overall health and to optimize the couple’s general well being. If the body functions well, pregnancy shouldn’t be a problem.
Acupuncture and herbal medicine have been used for thousands of years with great success to help renew health and hormonal balance. While they do not address physical reasons for infertility, both can help improve hormonal imbalances and as well as a number of other fertility issues. A study by Stener-Victorin from the Departments of Obstetrics and Gynecology Fertility Center in Scandinavia encourages women to receive acupuncture pre and post embryo transfer.
James Dillard, MD, assistant clinical professor at Columbia University of Medicine says acupuncture “can allow you to cross the line from infertile to fertile by helping your body function more efficiently, which in turn allows other, more modern reproductive treatments, like IVF (in vitro fertilization), to also work more efficiently.” With almost zero risk, many physicians are jumping on board with this ancient method of fertility treatment; the worst case scenario is nothing happens. High tech methods such as IVF are very expensive, if another considerable less risky and less expensive therapy can increase the woman chances of getting pregnant, then why not try it.
Combining this with specific nutrition and natural hormone treatments can be an effective and risk free treatment for couples who are having difficulty getting pregnant or maintaining their pregnancy.
 Dr. Hashimoto, DC is offering a $49 fertility consultation this month which includes a nutritional scan, consultation and evaluation of your labs for the first 15 couples to respond to this article. We can be reached at: (760) 777-8377 or via email at
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
. N2Health is located in La Quinta along Washington & 48
Related Articles:
More articles by this author
|
Gynecologic Conditions 
