From an Oriental Medicine perspective, foods that could enhance your kidney energy and fertility, include:
- Anchovy
- Brazil nuts (3 per day) (Selenium)
- Chicken
- Eggs
- Fish
- Fish oils
- Ghee
- Kidneys (Chicken)
- Liver and fish oils (Vitamin A)
- Mussels
- Oysters
- Salmon
- Sardines
- Trout
Also incorporate these plant-based foods:
- Almonds
- Avocados
- Barley
- Barley grass
- Black beans
- Black sesame seeds
- Black soybeans
- Brussels sprouts
- Carrots
- Chestnuts
- Chlorella
- Coconut
- Flax seeds
- Flaxseed oil
- Honey (sparingly)
- Kelp
- Kombu
- Leafy greens
- Legumes
- Micro algae
- Millet
- Mulberries
- Mung beans
- Nettles
- Oysters
- Pumpkin seeds
- Raspberries
- Sprouts
- Unrefined Sea salt
- Vegetable sources of protein
- Wakame
- Walnuts
- Wheat grass
- Whole grains
- Yellow and Orange vegetables (Beta Carotene)
- The above in moderation
All food is best consumed fresh and unprocessed (not out of a can, jar or box).
Foods that could harm the reproductive system include:
- Alcohol
- Animal protein: Replace steak or chicken with beans, tofu, or nuts. Throw beans into a soup, try a side of lentils instead of potatoes, and snack on roasted almonds instead of chips midday. Animal protein in moderation: Keep it under 115 grams per day (ideally around 80 grams).
- Caffeine
- Cold and raw foods
- Excess rich foods
- Foods that you find difficult to digest
- Juices
- Peanuts
- Processed foods
- Spicy-hot foods
- Sugar
- Too much salt
Common daily activities to avoid when trying to conceive:
- Car seat warmers
- Cold raw foods – all foods need to be at room temperature or warmed/toasted
- Drugs
- Foods that you find difficult to digest
- Hot baths
- Hot computers on the lap
- Hot tubs
- Juices
- Late night eating
- Microwave ovens
- Overeating
- Processed foods
- Saunas
- Smoking
- Spicy-hot foods
- Sugar
- Trans fat
Supplements
Diet, supplements and lifestyle can make a big difference to sperm mobility. For example, highly viscous semen may inhibit sperm motility and make it more difficult for your sperm cells to reach the female’s egg. It can take three months for positive changes to occur. Diet and lifestyle will be an important factor over a time of focussing on successfully create balance and semen motility.
Vitamin E
This antioxidant fights inflammation, helps support cell membranes and prevents deterioration of body fats, particularly the essential fatty acids and other unsaturated fats which, by their nature, are easily damaged. Foods rich in vitamin E include leafy green vegetables, seed oils, cereals, eggs, avocados, sweet potatoes, nuts and seeds, cod liver oil and animal foods. Men need 12 mg per day.
Zinc
Men need about 10 mg of zinc per day. Good dietary sources include meat, eggs, green vegetables and seafood, especially oysters (which can contain as much as 50 mg of zinc per 100 g), scallops, prawns, lobster, cockles, mussels and crab.
Other:
Avoid Artificial Lubricants
Some types may be too viscous for sperm to swim through. If you do need it, use lube that is water-based and does not contain spermicide. WHO recommends Pre-Seed Fertility Friendly Lubricant (see Life Pharmacies in New Zealand or baby4you.co.nz), which is not supposed to interfere with sperm function.
Assume the Right Position
The missionary (man on top) position will get the sperm closest to where it is supposed to be, at the top of the vagina. The vagina naturally tilts toward the back, so lying on the back allows the semen to pool in the proper location. Female may benefit from putting knees up to accentuate this position: placing feet on a wall with hips on a small pillow. The longer the seminal fluid is kept near the cervix, the more sperm could be in the proper location. Gravity may hold the sperm in place while sleeping.
