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SCHOLARLY PAPER Couples perception regarding how lifestyle might affect fertility: results of a pilot study AUTHORS Gillian Homan MN, BN Bed, RN, RM Fertility Nurse Specialist. Master of Nursing, The Robinson Institute, School of Paediatrics and Reproductive Health, Discipline of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Medical School, University of Adelaide, South Australia. Repromed 180 Fullarton Rd Dulwich SA Professor Robert J Norman MD, FRANZCOG, FRCPA, CREI Director of the Robinson Institute, The Robinson Institute, School of Paediatrics and Reproductive Health, Discipline of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Medical School, University of Adelaide, South Australia. KEY WORDS lifestyle, infertile, perception, healthy child, couples ABSTRACT Background There is evidence that lifestyle behaviours can adversely affect general health and reproductive performance. Despite this evidence a substantial proportion of the Australian population continue to ignore the importance of a ‘healthy lifestyle’. Aim This study aimed to examine the perceptions of infertile couples regarding the effect lifestyle might have on general and reproductive health. Methods Twenty new patients from an Adelaide fertility clinic were interviewed and asked a series of structured questions about their own lifestyle and whether they thought that various lifestyle factors might affect the chance of conceiving and a healthy pregnancy. They were also asked to rate the possible effect of other factors on the chance of conception, using a 10‑point likert scale. Results Most couples thought smoking and being over or underweight would adversely affect the chance of conceiving and a healthy pregnancy. Couples also perceived that taking recreational drugs and psychological stress would adversely affect the chance of conception, but were not as convinced about the effects of other lifestyle factors such as alcohol and caffeine consumption. Although most were taking some type of over the counter supplement, only half of the females were taking folic acid. The majority of participants wanted to make changes to their lifestyle and common barriers included, insufficient time, difficulties in finding an enjoyable exercise and lack of motivation. Conclusion This study has highlighted that infertile couples are generally aware of the potential impact of some lifestyle behaviours on fertility. However, only half of the obese women in this sample considered their weight to be a risk factor to their own fertility and while most were taking over the counter supplements, half the females were not taking folic acid. There remains an obvious need to research and develop effective means of assisting couples to make ‘healthier choices’ that will improve their general health and well being and chances of conceiving and delivering a healthy child. AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF ADVANCED NURSING Volume 26 Number 4 77
INTRODUCTION Lifestyle behaviours have been shown to affect reproductive performance in both the infertile and general population. There is strong evidence that age, weight and smoking impact on general health and adversely on reproductive performance (Homan et al 2007). For example recent results from 36,412 first IVF cycles demonstrate a decline in live birth rates with increasing female age. For women aged 30 or over, eachadditionalyearin agewasassociatedwith a13% (99% CI: 12–14%) reduction in the chance of a live delivery (Wang et al 2008). A large Australian study of 3,586 women who underwent Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) treatment found pregnancy rates were halved for very obese women in comparison with women with a normal BMI (Wang et al 2000) and a study of 2,112 pregnant women found those women with a BMI of >25 or 12 months of 2.2 (95%CI 1.6–3.2, P
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June - August 2009 Volume 26 Number
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AJAN australian journal of advanced
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Health and the Global Financial Cri
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RESEARCH PAPER Living the experienc
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such as, ‘tell me how you felt wh
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more from it, to be able to cope wi
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aware that how they responded to th
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RESEARCH PAPER Verbal, physical and
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Abuse is a universal problem, which
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In the study, children working on t
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2009; Ali 2004; Baybuga 2002; Hadi
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INTRODUCTION The concept of the sho
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Page 29 and 30: REFERENCES Abenhaim, H.A., Kahn, S.
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Page 37 and 38: Predictors of nurses’ commitment
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Page 47 and 48: REFERENCES Al‑Aameri, A.S. 2000.
Page 49 and 50: Wasti, S.A. 2002. Affective and con
Page 51 and 52: INTRODUCTION Monitoring quality of
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Page 65 and 66: SCHOLARLY PAPER Nurse practitioners
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Page 89 and 90: INTRODUCTION Pressure ulcers have t
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