Category Archives: IVF Treatment
How to Prepare for Your Upcoming IVF Treatment
I encourage my patients to be mentally and physically prepared for their upcoming IVF treatment, regardless of my recommended protocol:
Mental and physical readiness can mean all the difference in IVF pregnancy success.
- Eating a well-balanced diet will increase your chances of IVF success. You should begin improving your nutritional habits at least 3 months before your embryo transfer. Good nutrition enhances the health of your reproductive organs and ensures a quality blood supply to the uterus. Why is this important? Good nutritional habits you develop now will be easy to carry over into your pregnancy.
- Take a good quality multi-vitamin and mineral supplement containing vitamins A, B, D, and C complex. Your supplement should include zinc, magnesium, selenium, iron, and co-enzyme Q10 which all play a vital role in fertilization and implantation. That’s not all. Ask your fertility specialist to prescribe a folic acid supplement to fend off neural tube defects such as spina bifida.
- Reduce your alcohol intake because studies show that women over 30 who drank seven or more alcoholic beverages a week were twice as likely not to conceive. Cutting out alcohol altogether while you try for a baby is the best plan because, once you conceive, your cravings for a drink will be diminished. If you don’t abstain completely from alcohol, opt for only three glasses of red wine per week – sorry, no chardonnay.
- Watch your BMI and get good sleep. A healthy adult Body Mass Index (BMI) is between 18.5 and 24.9. A 2016 review of studies shows that not getting enough sleep leads women to consume an average of 385 more calories the next day. Too much body weight can make women less fertile. Seek help from a dietician and an exercise coach to help you lose weight and maintain a healthy BMI while you are trying to get pregnant. Remember: Your revamped diet and physical fitness regimen will help you to have a healthy pregnancy and baby.
- Avoid Caffeine in coffee, tea, and soda because it can have an adverse effect on female fertility. It’s best to cut caffeine out altogether to boost your fertility level and prepare for a healthy pregnancy. Drinking more than 300 mg of caffeine per day – 2 to 3 cups of coffee – has been linked to a higher risk of miscarriage and stillbirth.
- Exercise increases blood flow to a woman’s reproductive organs and brings in fresh blood to cells. Exercise helps to oxygenate the blood. New studies have shown that both online yoga and in-person yoga help to increase the chances of a successful IVF pregnancy by up to 26 percent. This is because yoga is proven to reduce stress and anxiety in IVF patients. Fertility Yoga regimens include a series of poses and postures designed to improve fertility.
- Acupuncture for Fertility has been proven by studies to increase a woman’s chances of getting pregnant by up to 50 percent! National Institutes of Health research has shown a direct correlation between acupuncture and pregnancy. New Hope Fertility Center has recently launched an in-house acupuncture service as an integral part of our all-encompassing infertility treatment options.
IVF Treatment Doctor
To schedule your initial consultation with Dr. John Zhang at New Hope Fertility Center, click the icon below – or – call 917.525.5496.
Healthy Lifestyle Choices While Undergoing IVF Treatment
Many of my IVF patients procrastinate on making healthy lifestyle changes before treatment. If you are contemplating IVF treatment, you must begin healthy lifestyle habits at least six months before you begin the process to prepare your body for pregnancy. Don’t wait until you are pregnant to get serious about a healthy lifestyle. Good lifestyle choices will greatly boost your fertility and help you have a healthy baby.
Preparing for IVF Treatment
A successful IVF is greatly supplemented by a patient’s reliable fertility diet and healthy body mass index. I always offer my patients helpful resources by recommending they avoid detrimental lifestyle choices.
This is true regardless of your chosen IVF protocol.
Begin an Acupuncture Regimen
Without a doubt, beginning acupuncture treatment three months before your IVF transfer will enhance your chances of a successful pregnancy. Studies have shown that women who underwent acupuncture before, during and after IVF embryo transfer increased their chances of pregnancy by up to 42 percent. Why is this important? The pregnancy success rate of those who did not undergo acupuncture was only 26 percent.
In-House Acupuncture Therapy and IVF
These phenomenal IVF success rates are why New Hope Fertility NYC unveiled its in-house acupuncture therapy treatment program in July of 2017! Our acupuncturists are specially trained in acupuncture therapy with a focus on treating women’s infertility. The World Health Organization (WHO) and the National Institutes for Health have found that acupuncture is a viable and accepted method of treating female infertility.
- Enhances IVF success rates
- Reduces stress during IVF treatment
- Enhance ovarian function
- Increase blood supply to reproductive organs – especially the uterus
The IVF Embryo Transfer Acupuncture Plan
Acupuncture can begin at any time during your fertility treatment – but this is the best plan of action:
- Plan an acupuncture treatment on the morning of your transfer
- Plan another in the afternoon following your transfer
- Book an acupuncture session five days after your transfer
- Book a follow up acupuncture session 5 to 7 days later
Read more: Healthy Lifestyle Choices While Undergoing IVF Treatment
How to Plan Ahead for Travel During IVF Treatment
Fertility medication is an integral and vital part of In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) treatment. Medication is used to delay the start of a cycle, spur the growth of eggs, and trigger ovulation. In order for an IVF treatment cycle to have the best chance at pregnancy success, it is important that all prescribed fertility medication be taken at the time and dose indicated by your fertility care tam. Failing to do so can result in the IVF cycle being unsuccessful.
Administering IVF Medications While Traveling
Finding the time and place to administer fertility medication can take some maneuvering and coordination.
This is true regardless of your chosen IVF protocol – traditional or holistic.
· Mini IVF
· Natural IVFRead more: How to Plan Ahead for Travel During IVF Treatment
Why IVF is the Best First-Time Treatment Option for Older Women
For women between the ages of 38 and 42 – I believe that placing them on the fast-track to In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) treatment is the best course of action. Why does this matter? Moving past other first-line alternative treatments – such as Timed Intercourse and Intrauterine Insemination (IUI) – and going straight to IVF has been proven to increase an older woman’s chances of conceiving faster. Look: IVF saves older couples from the financial, physical, and emotional stress of repeated failed infertility treatment cycles. Plus: IVF offers those couples suffering from male factor infertility the benefits of Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI) – the direct injection of healthy sperm into an egg for fertilization in vitro. Double Plus: IVF is a means of having an older couple’s embryos graded for health through genetic screening, such as PGD and/or PGS/NGS technology.
Recent IVF Research
In the case of older couples – between 38 and 42 – with unexplained infertility, a recent study favored going straight to IVF treatment. What does this recent research show?
- IVF is the most cost-efficient treatment
- IVF results in fewer treatment cycles
- IVF results in less multiple pregnancies
- IVF results in higher live birth rates
Researchers have found that older women were more than twice as likely to become pregnant through IVF within the first two cycles of treatment. The best part? They were twice as likely to have a healthy baby from their IVF pregnancy.Read more: Why IVF is the Best First-Time Treatment Option for Older Women
How Can OHSS Complicate Your IVF Treatment?
Many fertility treatments use medications that are designed to stimulate a woman’s reproductive system. The stimulation is often medically needed in order to aid a woman in ovulation. Ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome, commonly referred to as OHSS, can occur when a woman’s body becomes overstimulated, resulting is discomfort and pain.
Dr. Zhang’s Pick of the Month: What do I do after a failed embryo transfer?
All the doctors at New Hope Fertility Center and patients hope that everyone would have a good result from their treatments, and we are all looking forward to be able to help many couples and women achieve their dream of being a parent.
Read more: Dr. Zhang’s Pick of the Month: What do I do after a failed embryo transfer?
Pregnancy Success and BMI
Weight impacts fertility for both men and women. For both genders, being overweight can significantly reduce a person’s natural fertility. Being overweight can negatively impact hormone levels making ovulation and sperm production difficult.
How Is Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) Managed During IVF?
In continuing to post about some of my unique and interesting cases, this article will address my standard practice of care in the treatment of patients who are suffering from polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) after undergoing in vitro fertilization (IVF).
Read more: How Is Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) Managed During IVF?
Infertility Misconceptions
Giving birth to a healthy baby is a common dream. Unfortunately, not all women can achieve pregnancy naturally. There are many misconceptions and questions about infertility.
Under what circumstances do I need IVF treatment?
At New Hope Fertility Center in New York, I have encountered a few couples who, after a few years of trying to conceive and no infertility tests done, come and tell me that they wanted to do and are ready for an IVF treatment. When this situation happens, we explain to patients that not all infertile couples need to do IVF. First, we will need to check the semen quality. If it is poor quality, the woman does not need to have a tubal patency test undergoing IVF treatment. If the semen quality is poor, the sperm does not have the ability to naturally fertilize the egg. On the other hand, if the semen quality is good, the woman will need to have a tubal patency test. If the tubes are normal, they may consider artificial insemination; if the tubes are abnormal (or blocked), they may need IVF treatment.
Read more: Under what circumstances do I need IVF treatment?
