Larissa McBride Naturopathy & Clinical Nutrition

Infertility affects 1 in 6 couples, increases with age and is defined as the inability to conceive after 12 months of conception attempts. Infertility is a life crisis. It affects your identity, relationships, hopes and dreams.

Fertility is increasingly understood to be multi-factorial, and subfertility frequently due to a combination of several underlying problems, rather than a single diagnosed pathology or obstruction.

A naturopath’s role is two-fold:

1. Important diagnostic role – through an integrated approach and examination of nutritional, environmental and genetic factors, in addition to referral for further medical tests, which may bring to light otherwise undiagnosed issues.


2. Crucial clinical role – to improve underlying reproductive health or the chances or a successful, healthy conception, pregnancy or baby

Preconception health care is one of the most meaningful and important gifts a parent can provide for their child. It takes 3-4 months for the egg and sperm to generate and mature. The delicate eggs and sperm are highly susceptible to environmental and lifestyle factors. In this window of time, as a parent you have the opportunity and responsibility to greatly influence the health of your child. Preventative medicine at its finest.

At the exact instant the egg and sperm come together an irreversible genetic blue print is formed. However it is possible through environmental and lifestyle factors to switch genes on/off. This is call epigenetics, meaning ‘above-genetics’. Epigenetics affects the way in which genes are expressed. The result is the ability to advantageously affect the health of future generations.

Assisted reproductive technology (i.e. IVF/ICSI) is extraordinary and provides the opportunity for a family for many otherwise childless couples.

IVF/ICSI success rates varies between 0-50% per attempt depending upon:

• A woman’s age


• The number of eggs retrieved


• The number of eggs fertilised (which is also dependent upon the quality and number of sperm)


• The number of embryos transferred, and


• The state of the woman’s uterus

The Foresight Association survey in the UK clearly demonstrated a significant improvement in IVF success rates, which doubled after thorough preconception preparation (for both parents).

Working in conjunction with your fertility specialist, a naturopath has the ability to greatly influence one or many of these deciding factors, and improve your chances of a healthy conception and child.