Lifestyle Risks to Female Fertility

Our poor lifestyle choices have a negative effect on our overall health and quality of life. However, this is not the end of the story. Our bad habits affect our fertility and the wellbeing of our babies. Children are the first priority for every parent and the following facts will definitely be a good motivation to switch to healthier choices.

Being inactive

In today’s mad world, it is getting more and more complicated to stay active. We have jobs that require sitting in front of screens all day long. We have schedules that do not allow us to do things outside our routine. We have no time to ensure that we consume healthy food and many of us start putting on weight. Most importantly, we start to accept this as normal.
Low activity level and junk food are our great enemies. As women put on weight, the chances of conceiving or having a healthy pregnancy decrease gradually. Being overweight will lead to gestational diabetes, hypertension, polycystic ovary syndrome. High body mass index will cause hormonal problems and the disbalance of our hormones will finally result in irregular ovulations, also leading to difficulties in conceiving. Being overweight can increase our chances of developing type 2 diabetes and damaging our reproductive systems even more. Being inactive and unhealthy will lower the effectiveness of fertility treatments.
It is crucial that we take this issue seriously. Busy schedule should not be an excuse. Taking a short walk during the lunch break / to and after the job are already some big steps forward and a very good starting point for improving our chances to become parents.

Smoking

Life is stressful. Many smoke to feel more relaxed, some smoke to socialize, others smoke as they are already addicted.. As we smoke, our bodies age even faster. For women, reproductive systems start to become less functional after the age of 35. We always come across the fact that woman’s age has a huge influence on her fertility. Women who smoke accelerate the aging process artificially.
For smokers, menopause will approach earlier. Menopause is the end of the menstrual cycles and is also the finish line for our reproductive systems. Smoking causes a significant drop in the amount of eggs. Lower ovarian reserve is linked to the lower chances of conceiving. In women who smoke, ovaries are aged prematurely.
Smoking harms babies and significantly increases the chance of pregnancy complications. In many cases, smoking during pregnancy can also lead to the miscarriage.

Consuming alcohol

Consuming alcohol during pregnancy puts our babies at a huge risk. Excessive amounts of alcohol can lead to miscarriage or a baby being born with the fetal alcohol syndrome(FAS).
FAS is a severe kind of a disorder. During pregnancy, placenta is responsible for supplying baby with food. When woman drinks alcohol, it will also follow the bloodstream and reach the baby via placenta. As a result, the concentration of alcohol in baby’s blood will become high and at the same time will limit the delivery of oxygen and nutrients to the fetus.
FAS interferes with baby’s growth and normal development. In can result in permanent brain damage and lead to cognitive disabilities. It can affect babies facial features, organs, bones and central nervous system. FAS causes a permanent damage and there are no ways to hide or get rid of them.