Scottsdale Health November 2019

nutrition
/ by Megan Rigby, DNP
Megan Rigby is a
Doctorate Prepared
Nurse Practitioner,
Certified Nutritionist and
Owner of MacroMINI.
With over 13 years of
experience in the health
and wellness space, she
specializes in gut health,
nutrition and lifestyle
changes.
Fertility
Facts
1 in 8 couples suffer
with infertility
Fuel Your Fertility
5 essential nutrients to incorporate
Infertility is a sensitive, deeply personal and oftentimes private topic.
The range of emotions can vary between guilt, shame, anger, and
helplessness. According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), one
in eight couples suffer with infertility. Fortunately, the conversation
surrounding reproductive complications is becoming a more common
topic thanks to those who are willing to share their journey. With this
newfound candidness, comes a wide variety of differing viewpoints
regarding the complimentary alternatives to modern medicine.
The most commonly discussed natural remedy to aide fertility is
nutrition, but does it work? It seems every few months there’s a new
hot list of “fertility-boosting foods.” While limited, studies do tend
to support a correlation between eating and infertility, but do not
specifically define “boosting foods” alone. Complimentary remedies
and modern medicine can work in harmony. Risk factors such as
sedentary lifestyle, poor eating habits, excessive body mass index
(BMI) or low BMI have been found to correlate with reproductive
complications. Proper nutrition is an essential change to make to
improve these areas of concern.
Infertility affects
both men (9%) and
women (12%)
See a physician after
6-12 months of trying
to conceive without
success
Seek a physician’s
advice if currently
taking medications
before trying to
conceive
Leading an unhealthy
lifestyle can put an
individual at risk
for reproductive
complications:
-Excess weight gain
-Poor dietary intake
-Sedentary lifestyle
-Smoking
-Excessive alcohol
intake
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