TTC - tips and questions

[sunflowersaremyfav93]

Hi there,

I hope you're all keeping well during lockdown.

Me and my partner have been together 6 years, we bought our first home last May, and are going to TTC in March 2021. I've become a little bit obsessive, I've wanted a baby for years so I've been reading up on loads. I'd be grateful if anybody could shed any light on some of the questions I have or just any info/ first hand experience is greatly appreciated. 🥰

1. I've read a lot about diet being important, I've upped our fruit and veg intake but should I be as strict as cutting out ham and bacon fully?

1. Are there any vitamins my OH should be taking? I've read up on foods that increase sperm count/ quality and been cooking them.

1. Any thoughts on Conceive Plus? Is is any different to Preseed, does anybody have any preference?

1. Which prenatal vitamins would you say are the best to use? I've read about a lot of different tablets. I'm already taking folic but was going to start taking the ones Luisa Zissman recommends in her maybe baby blog post.

Sorry for the long post!! All tips and answers are very much appreciated!

[LouiseTrees]

1. No you still need iron and protein. Unless you are an unhealthily high BMI I don’t see why you should do this. One thing though which is super important is to limit caffeine (coffees, teas and even cola).
   

2.Wellman Conception vitamins. Although not needed unless you suspect there is a problem, there no harm in taking them.

1. And 4. Can’t offer any advice really.

[sunflowersaremyfav93]

Thank you @LouiseTrees!

My BMI is just over normal, it says if I lose 5lbs I'll be in normal range.

I'll look those tablets up, thanks. 🙂

[DontStandSoClose]

That seems like an awful lot of “prep” 10 months ahead of time. I’ll be honest we decided to go for it and fell pregnant the first month trying, we literally just had sex. We were both fit and healthy and only 31 but we really didn’t put that much thought or effort in. The only thing I’d do on the list is maybe take folic acid a couple of months before, the rest are usually things people do in the hope it’ll help when it isn’t happening. I’m sure it can’t hurt doing all that but if you are healthy it isn’t needed.

I certainly wouldn’t be giving up bacon.

[LouiseTrees]

Okay OP. Don’t give up Bacon/ham especially when you are so close to the normal range. Also I think the past poster has a point unless you know you will have problems. 1 in 8 couples will. For the other 7 in 8, it could take anywhere from 1 month to 2 years. Apart from the caffeine. I actually think it’s important to know when you ovulate rather than taking the vitamins showing in your questions 3 and 4. I wouldn’t suggest it now but nearer the time you are ready to try (like the month or two before) maybe track your cycle?

[sunflowersaremyfav93]

Thanks both @DontStandSoClose @LouiseTrees I'm definitely overthinking and worrying myself. I'm telling myself it's going to take ages or never going to happen which, I know is ironic because that's it's damaging in itself!

I like bacon and ham too much 😂

I think I need to not think about it for a while, feel like lockdown is making my mind work overtime.

[TheDaydreamBelievers]

There are a lot of vitamins etc flying about but for couples who do not have any underlying fertility issues the only thing you need to take is folic acid and Vitamin D. None of the others are shown to increase a healthy couples chance of conceiving. Folic acid is recommended 4 months prior to TTC then for the first bit of pregnancy. Vit D is recommended for all people in the UK anyways (because we dont get enough sun!). You should avoid vitamin A and food which contains too much vitamin A (basically liver) once TTC as it is toxic to a fetus.

Generally, do some moderate exercise and eat well. Being overall healthy leads to a better chance of conception and healthier pregnancy and birth.

If you are on oral contraceptives consider when you want to come off them as it can take 3-6mo for your cycle to return to normal.

When you start TTC, the nhs advise you stop drinking alcohol and that your male partner cuts back. For him, it's because alcohol impacts on sperm quality. For you, its because alcohol is toxic to a fetus if you did get pregnant.

[peperethecat]

My doctor said take folic acid and vitamin D.

I would recommend taking methylfolate rather than folic acid because it's more bio available. Some people have genetic mutations which make it more difficult to metabolise synthetic folic acid but you won't be able to get tested for this unless you have three miscarriages and even then the treatment is to take methylfolate rather than folic acid, so you might as well do that from the beginning really. Your partner should also be taking it.

Most people are deficient in Vitamin D and it's almost impossible to overdose, so don't be scared to take a high dose. I take 4000 IU per day.

Those are the two most important ones. You may also both want to take a standard conception vitamin. For your partner, make sure it's one that contains zinc and selenium, as these are both very good for sperm health (and some regular multivitamins don't contain them). For you a conception or pregnancy vitamin will be better than a regular multivitamin because they don't contain Vitamin A, which can cause birth defects in high doses. However, you don't need to worry about that just yet, so if you want, just take a regular multivitamin now and then switch to a pregnancy specific one about three months before you start TTC. Same with your partner - sperm take about two months to develop so if it's cheaper just put him on a decent multivitamin now and then switch to a conception one such as Wellman plus the methylfolate three months before you start TTC.

You will definitely not do yourself any harm by improving your diet. You have plenty of time so if I were you I'd try and lose weight to get to the lower end of the healthy range. Maybe aim for a BMI of about 21. If you drink a lot then start reducing your alcohol intake and if you're a coffee fiend then start trying to limit your caffeine to 200mg/day. If you start making small changes now then all of this will be much easier for you when you start TTC.

You don't need to give up ham and bacon, but if you're eating a lot of both then maybe look at ways of making your diet more varied and including some healthier choices.

[sunflowersaremyfav93]

Thanks @TheDaydreamBelievers and @peperethecat really good advice!

I've cut out caffeine and don't drink anyway but getting myself to the lower end of the healthy range is a good idea, my partner also needs to lose some weight.

Thanks again 🙂🥰

[TheDaydreamBelievers]

@peperethecat - great advice! I'm also just into overweight @sunflowersaremyfav93 and am trying to lose some too. Currently arent using contraception but my cycle hasn't come back after pill (no AF, no ovulation) so dont think we are biologically at a hope of conceiving atm anyway. May as well prep best I can before I can approach the GP for some investigations