Getting Pregnant Naturally_ Healthy Choi - Winifred Conkling [35]
HOW MUCH CAFFEINE?
Food Portion Caffeine (mg)
Chocolate
baking, unsweetened 1 ounce 58
chocolate chips ¼ cup 14
(semisweet)
milk chocolate 1 ounce 5 to 10
Cocoa
hot cocoa mix 1 ounce 5
unsweetened 1 tablespoon 12
cocoa powder
Coffee
brewed 6 ounces 105 to 165
brewed decaf 6 ounces 2 to 5
instant 1 teaspoon 57 to 66
instant decaf 1 teaspoon 2
Soft drinks
Cola (diet or regular) 12 ounces 35 to 50
Tea
brewed for three 6 ounces 36
minutes
instant 1 teaspoon 31
Note: Many pain relievers also contain caffeine, often 30 milligrams per tablet or more. Alertness tablet typically contain 100 to 200 milligrams per tablet.
Be Wary of Antibiotics
Antibiotics do a tremendous job of killing disease-causing bacteria, but unfortunately they can’t differentiate the good bacteria from the bad. As a result, after taking a course of antibiotics, many women develop vaginal yeast infections. Often the culprit is an overgrowth of Candida, a type of yeast that leaves the vagina inhospitable to sperm.
To help restore the good bacteria as quickly as possible, try eating yogurt containing live acidophilus cultures or take acidophilus tablets (available at health food stores). You might also drink acidophilus milk, available in many grocery stores. While some health care practitioners may even suggest you insert plain yogurt directly in the vagina, if you are trying to get pregnant you should not put anything containing bacteria inside your vagina.
Give Up Breastfeeding
If you have already had a child and you are breastfeeding, you may need to stop nursing to conceive your next child. Women who do not breast-feed often find that their menstrual cycles return four to ten weeks after childbirth. However, nursing mothers may not ovulate for a year or more, depending on the baby’s feeding patterns.
Each time your baby nurses, the brain suppresses the hormone that triggers ovulation. In most cases, ovulation will resume when the baby goes more than four hours between feedings during the day and more than six hours at night. Keep in mind that breastfeeding is not a reliable method of birth control. Ovulation can occur irregularly during nursing, and you may release one egg before experiencing your first menstrual period.
HIS
Wear an Athletic Cup During Sporting Events
Your testicles need to be handled with care. They contain a delicate collection of tiny tubes, ducts, and vessels that can be damaged or scarred by trauma. So, if you’re planning to engage in sports that can lead to accident or injury, be sure to wear a protective cup.
Get Off Your Bike
Cycling may be great for physical conditioning, but it’s not so great for babymaking. Researchers at the University of Southern California School of Medicine found that cyclists who pedaled one hundred miles a week or more often suffered from “biker’s impotence,” a condition characterized by difficulty in getting and maintaining an erection for a day or two after biking. The thrusting and banging of the groin against the bicycle seat while pedaling can damage the nerves and arteries in the genital area. To avoid this problem, rise from your bike and support your weight with your legs periodically, or scale back on your riding during the times you are trying to get pregnant.
Keep Your Testicles Cool
The human body is designed to keep the testicles cool. In fact, the scrotal sac is housed outside the body so that the testicles can remain about two degrees cooler than the core body temperature. (The scrotal sac normally keeps the testes at between 94 and 96 degrees F.) Evidence suggests that if the temperature of the testicles rises above 96 degrees F, sperm production and motility is impaired.
In some cases, lowering the scrotal temperature can help make an infertile man into a father. To keep things cool, try the following:
Avoid hot tubs and saunas.
Wear boxers rather than briefs or tight bikini underwear. Tight undergarments may heat things up—and not in a way that will enhance your chances