Anyone else a vegan ttc?

[buddybull]

Just wondered if there were any more vegans out there ttc? Both me and my partner have been vegan for 1.5 years and vegetarian for a few years before that. We do have one child (8) already but we are struggling to conceive no2.
If anyone else out there is also vegan what vitamins/supplements do you take daily?
We both take a vegan multi vitamin (I've read on the back of Holland and Barrett brand vegan multi vitamin that is should be avoided??)
And have both started having maca powder (a tablespoon each in a smoothie)
So difficult knowing what to take and what to avoid.
We have also cut down on our soy intake as I've read it's bad for males.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated :)

Hello, I'm not vegan but I do have hypothyroidism and know an researcher in the field of iodine. I do know that iodine is important for reproductive health and especially during pregnancy and lactation for the development of the baby (and mother's health), hence the guidelines for dairy and fish in diets of pregnant women (amongst other vitamins and minerals). In the uk we get the majority of our iodine from milk and oily fish (one in particular I'll have to check!)

So a vegan diet risks missing out iodine. It's hard to judge how much iodine is in iodised salt etc and eating seaweed is not recommended as too much iodine is equally bad, plus harmful levels of certain toxins in seaweed.

I'd do some research on how much iodine is required in the diet for conception and pregnancy. Most pregnancy vitamins do contain it but not always the full amount. Be very wary of taking too much also, and I'd be taking it for 3 months ideally.

It's a big factor in thyroid hormone production. Cretinism used to be common in areas of severe iodine deficiency. Thyroid issues can affect fertility.

I havent been pregnant myself but I know a useful Facebook group - vegan pregnancy & parenting.

Also do come and check out the new vegan topic .

I think I'll have to enquire about getting some bloodwork done as it's something I haven't done since being a veggie and vegan. Same with my partner.
I didn't even think about thyroid, my mother has hyperthyroidism, I just read it can be hereditary too.
Generally speaking we are both pretty healthy, I do wonder about my hormones though as although I have regular cycles (and positive opks monthly) I just have a gut feeling I might have an imbalance. I was checked for this a few years ago whilst ttc and it was fine but I'd be curious to get that all checked out again.
Is difficult to pinpoint what our struggles are second time round as I had all the relevant tests, lap dye, bloodwork, scans and everything was fine. We never even tried for #1.

I always had a feeling that my c section has caused me to have secondary infertility but my doctor said it was extremely unlikely.
I guess all we can do is keep trying!

** just had a quick look on my multivitamin and it doesn't contain any iodine whatsoever.

No they don't as a rule. Which is potentially an issue for some as veganism is on the rise. When the dairy industry was streamlined and iodine was used as a disinfectant, iodine deficiency became a non issue in the U.K.

It can't hurt to get checked out for a few things especially if it's ok the family though hyperthyroidism is a different issue / different impacts. And why to be careful not to over do iodine.

I reckon taking pregnacare and using the blue oatley (which has iodised salt in it) would have you covered, if that brand is acceptable to veganism.

Beyond that I read "it starts with the egg" and am following some of the things in there, also gives suggestions for sperm quality too. Cutting out caffeine and alcohol being a basic one. I'm trying ubiquinol as I'm 'old' - I do think I have a tad more energy as a result!

I do buy oatly for my family or rice milk - I've not tried the blue, I use the grey for coffee and the boys have the brown organic one on cereal or alpro rice milk (my son is allergic to dairy so he has to have alternatives also)
I don't personally consume a lot of plant based milks as I don't really need it as I usually just have a smoothie for breakfast.
Definitely need to wean myself off the coffee though...and red wine! I know those 2 things won't be going in my favour!
Just looking in holland and Barrett at iodine - is the sea kelp the right thing to take?

I honestly don't know re h and b- I'd look up the amount needed in diet depending on who you are. In pregnacare it's 150 ug (mg?) which it says is 100%.

The H and B look like the correct amount. It's 150 per day for adults, 200 if you're pregnant or breastfeeding. So you could add them to what you're taking. Tiny extra amounts in food won't be an issue.

Although - the BDA says not to take kelp supplements.

www.bda.uk.com/foodfacts/Iodine.pdf

I think I'm going to start taking the pregnacare conception multi vitamins as they state to have almost (I think it was just over 90%) of the daily recommended dosage. Is difficult trying to figure out what I should/shouldn't supplement being vegan. Thanks for mentioning iodine though I'd have never thought of it otherwise.
Hopefully that vitamin plus the maca I have daily should suffice :)

It’s essential to choose a ubiquinol supplement that is both water and fat-soluble to be sure your body is actually absorbing it. Research shows that solubilized formulations of ubiquinol and CoQ10 are absorbed better by the body and lead to higher plasma levels. (Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?term=Plasma+coenzyme+Q10+response+to+oral+ingestion+of+coenzyme+Q10+formulation)

What would you suggest ck?

Op I think that sounds like a good plan. The pregnacare conception for men is good too but pricey. Not as pricey as ivf

Hi buddybull

i'm new on mumsnet but wanted to say i'm also a vegan ttc #2, we already have a DD who will be 5 this year.
I wasn't aware of the iodine thing so it was good to read this post, i was taking 'raw one' multivitamin for women but just checked and it doesn't have any iodine :/ me and hubby have now switched to the pregnacare conception vitamins!
I was interested to hear you said you felt you had a hormone imbalance too as I have also noticed a change in my hormones since becoming vegan (was vegetarian for 14 years, vegan for nearly 2). Although I wouldn't say I'm irregular but my cycles are longer, around 33 days and I can get near to 2 week extreme pms before coming on.
I'm interested to see how ttc will work out for us, as our DD was a lovely surprise and so this is all new to us. Feeling very anxious and excited! I will be joining the June ttc train :)

Please do let vegan people know about it especially if they're pregnant or ttc. It's important for brain development in the baby.

The boots own has slightly less at 140 but still ok if wanting a lower price. I was surprised that cytoplan only have half the amount.

@beechmead oh it's not just me with the pms too then! I literally get AWFUL pms some months (I've also been vegan for 2 years) - this last period was a horrible build up - my boobs were literally on fire even before ovulation - up until a few days before af.
I've always had a 28 day (give or take 1 day) clockwork af but over the past year I'd say they've been a little more irrregular ranging from 24-30 days which is a pain in the butt with predicting ov.
I'm definitely going to try cutting down on soy as I have a feeling this is a contributing factor. I know it can be problematic for males and have read studies on it contributing toward infertility so that's why we've switched to oat milk. It's in bloody everything though when your vegan, all the meat substitutes are soy based which sucks.
Pregnacare is probably better in reality, I read that the vegan multi vits have too much vitamin A in them which isn't good for women ttc. Iodine is already in the pregnacare which is handy.
I have read about ubiquinol too, I'm 29 and partner is 34 - do we still need this?
There are so many tablets, powders etc to get your head round - i would be rattling if I bought them all lol.

@buddybull so glad to hear the same thing from someone else :) I had heard that turning vegan could disrupt hormones, apparently some women don't even get a period :/
I know what you mean about the soy, luckily I also started using Oatly about a year ago, although I have to say when i conceived my DD I was drinking soya milk all the time.
From what i've heard about the ubiquino,l is that it is useful for those who are experiencing fertility problems or if you are aged over 35. I'm 30 and my hubby is 33 so I don't think I will be taking the ubiquinol (fingers crossed won't need it). I read in a previous post you were taking maca? I've heard about it but not sure how best to take it and where to get it from?

@beechmead my cycles aren't always the same, sometimes I get hideous pms and others nothing at all. Hopefully cutting down on soy might help.
All this ttc malarchy is hard work - with my son we didn't even try, I was young, drank every weekend, was a meat eater then too and it happened unexpectedly but this time round is so difficult.
I buy the natura brand maca powder from holland and Barrett, i personally like this regardless of its supposed ttc benefits...partner isn't keen though. I usually make a morning smoothie with mine, 2 bananas, splash of vanilla extract, about a half cup of milk, tbsp of maca and a tbsp of earth balance pb - I think it's lovely but he disagrees lol.

The men's pregnacare has maca in it actually.

I think if you're younger you are better at turning coq10 into ubiquinol; if you're older it's harder so they say to take straight ubiquinol.

You can still be low in it but your body is more efficient at converting co10 into ubiquinol so no need to buy ubiquinol as it's more expensive.

@buddybull i know what you mean, i was vegetarian but i was in no way healthy and i used to drink too. May i ask how long you have been ttc? this is my first cycle so i have absolutely no idea how it's going to go. Are you charting your LH? I just thought i can't be too prepared so am getting all the vitamins, charting my basal temp and LH lol your smoothie sounds amazing, will have to try :)
thank you @ekphrasis for all the useful info, good to hear there is maca in the male pregnacare (which i'm now making hubby take!)