Stress from work is the most common cause of infertility worldwide…thus the inability to conceive or get pregnant is becoming one problem that we never thought of as one. We know of many married couples who have difficulty in conceiving such that after 1 year of unsuccessful pregnancies, they leave their jobs or resort to artificial means. And yes…clinical practice involving artificial conception methods is becoming a booming business worldwide. As an endocrinologist, two common conditions that are often blamed for infertility include uncontrolled blood sugar and thyroid diseases while the less common one includes- a prolactin producing tumor of the pituitary gland called prolactinoma. They’re easy to treat as long as diagnosis is made.
Unknowingly for many… the infertility from not ovulating properly may actually just be simple lack of iron. A new study by Harvard researchers offers great hope for these women. This study intrigued me because this is the first study that looked at iron as the culprit.
Published in the November issue of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Harvard researchers looked at data on more than 18,500 married, premenopausal women who were participating in the Nurses’ Health Study II and followed them for 8 years.
- Women who consumed nonheme iron( from vegetable sources) had a significantly lower risk of infertility due to ovulation when compared to women who were consuming low iron or heme iron( from animal sources).
- Women consuming iron supplements with 41 mg of iron or more had a 62 percent lower risk of infertility.
The clinical implication of the study is: women who are trying to get pregnant should consider having greater amounts of iron in their diet from non-animal sources or from a multivitamin supplement!
It may be simple solution but it is a measure that is often not followed! An iron pill a day to boost nutrition may be worth the wait.
Iron…A Simple Measure For A Lasting Bliss!