You’ve been trying for a baby for ages. Maybe you’ve even done all the tests, and there’s nothing wrong with either of you. So what now?

Perhaps you’re not quite ready for IVF, or at least not yet. Maybe you want to try all of the natural options before moving to more invasive support.

Lesser Known Causes Of Unexplained Infertility

Sometimes, despite having hormone blood tests, everything looks within normal ranges. Maybe symptoms through your cycle tell a different story. I rarely find standard hormone blood tests helpful. Other options like urine or saliva hormone testing can show a more broad picture. I can often detect hormonal imbalances by asking detailed questions about the menstrual cycle, fertile signs, premenstrual symptoms and what your period is like. These imbalances can then be treated with herbal and nutritional remedies. In short there can still be hormonal imbalance present, even if your blood tests say otherwise.

Gut health can potentially impact every other body system. This is where you absorb all of your nutrients and eliminate waste. Gut and liver health can have a huge impact on hormonal balance. It can also influence the health of the egg and sperm that will make your baby. Often it’s necessary to improve gut and liver health as part of enhancing fertility.

Oxidative stress is a lesser known root cause of infertility. This can impact egg and sperm quality, hormonal health, how well your body detoxifies, inflammation and immune factors.

Believe it or not, food sensitivities can be a cause or contributor to infertility. I’ve found sensitivities to dairy, gluten, fructose, soy, and other foods can be a part of the infertility picture. Undiagnosed coeliac disease can occasionally be uncovered during our investigations. This of course, also ties into gut health.

Heavy metal toxicity can not only affect fertility but general health. Heavy metals can affect hormone balance. Take a look here at how copper overload can play a role. This can be assessed with a screening tool like HTMA hair analysis.

The nervous system, adrenals and thyroid can also all impact fertility. If you experience high levels of stress or ongoing stress this can impact hormone balance. This may also lead to your body using up certain nutrients more than it should.

Some cases of unexplained infertility are purely caused by poor-quality eggs or sperm. This can be connected to gut health, food sensitivities and nutrient levels in the body. Egg turnover can be as long as 3 months, and sperm can take 100 days to form. Anything you do to enhance your health can impact the health of both the egg and sperm in as little as 1-2 months, but could be as long as 3-4 months.

At times your immune system can be part of the picture. Your immune can sometimes make it hard for the egg to become fertilized or implant and develop in the uterus. This can sometimes be related to high levels of certain antibodies in your body. This is a cause of secondary infertility and is triggered off during a first pregnancy.

Circulation can also affect fertility. When there is poor circulation to the pelvic organs and reproductive system, this can impair conception. Some women may have a diagnosis of pelvic congestion syndrome, which is a little like having varicose veins in the pelvic region. In addition to herbal and nutritional support, exercise, yoga and pilates will help.

There are many potential causes of unexplained infertility that can be investigated and treated. Book an appointment with Nicole today to get started!