Preseed.com Blog

Over 75% of the time couples that are not conceiving (that are infertile), have one of the following four problems. If you are younger than 35 yrs of age (for the woman)- have these checked out if you have not conceived in a year. If you are 35 yrs old or older, after 6 months of trying you may want to get checked out!

1) Poor Sperm Quality: At least 50% of the time, when a couple is not conceiving there is some component of abnormal or poor quality sperm. This may be all of the problem, or partially the problem (so that both the man and the woman are contributing). A sperm analysis should be done by an ANDROLOGIST or a fertility Urologist. Many RE clinics do not do sperm analyses correctly (read other FAQs here about this). IF his test is abnormal, repeat it once more to confirm the results. Also, remember with guys, quality counts! The better intercourse feels for him, and the more foreplay the MORE sperm he can make. Pre~Seed® can help here to make things slippery fun!

2) Abnormal Cycle: This often has to do with hormonal abnormalities, and can be seen as failure to ovulate or cycle normally, or chemical pregnancy and losses. Working with an ObGyn or RE to evaluate how your ovaries are functioning is critical. While you are waiting, keep a careful, detailed log of when you have your period, when you have any ovulation mucus, and any other information on your cycle. The very best book on monitoring this is Toni Weschler’s book, Taking Charge of Your Fertility.

3) Tubal Problems: Many women have blocked tubes, that keep the sperm and egg from meeting. The only way to know if this is the case is to have special testing done. In general, couples often wait too long to have this testing. It can be helpful to know what is going on, and in some cases the testing itself can help promote conception. Especially if you have had a history of Chlamydia or bacterial vaginosis, have this checked!

4) Poorly Timed Intercourse: Many couples do not have intercourse at the right time. Specifically, some women ovulate a little later than OPKs suggest. So they are quitting the baby dance too soon. If you are unsure at all, regular intercourse 2-3 times a week has been shown to be almost as effective as every day well timed intercourse. Too many couples have daily sex for 2-3 days early on at ovulation and then stop, only to have actually missed her peak time.

If you have ruled all these out, then I also suggest you have a sperm chromatin assay done, to make sure the DNA in his sperm is of an adequate quality to support conception.

Good Luck
Dr. E

Please be sure and check out my Love Notes for some fun ideas to spice up your Special Day for your man and you.  Being the scientist that I am, I try to be fairly specific in my suggestions, so please only venture thru to the next click if you are in search of some fun ideas for your love making

For example, today’s new Love Note is titled “Honey, please don’t forget milk, bread and Trojan Vibrating Rings….” 

Enjoy!
Dr. E

Someone forwarded me a post at Baby and Bump Chatroom asking about using Pre-Seed if you have chronic Yeast Infections.  I thought it was an interesting post, and there seems to be a lot of confusion about normal vaginal pH and secretions. First of all, of course folks should talk to their doctor about these things.  That said, often times physicians and women have poor understanding of the vaginal environment.  During most of the cycle the vagina has a low pH, and the acidic environment helps keep kill “bad bacteria” that can cause an infection.  However, sperm need an environment of around 7 – 8 pH to survive.  The acidic vagina during the non-fertile part of the cycle would kill sperm.  So Mama Nature had us make egg white cervical mucus  when we ovulate.  This has a pH of 7-8 – JUST like semen and just what sperm need!  If your hormones are off, or if you have an infection in the vagina this shift may not occur, making hostile cervical mucus and decreasing your chances of conceiving.

Pre-Seed has a pH of around 7, to match fertile cervical mucus and semen and to provide an optimal environment for sperm.  Although, this higher pH could change the bacteria make up in the vagina and hypothetically in some women make a yeast infection easier to get, since 2004, we have only had around 25 women contact us  with a yeast infection after using Pre-Seed (out of the hundreds of thousands of boxes sold).  Of course other women  may have had this happen after using Pre-Seed and not let us know, but suffice it to say, the rate is very low (less than 0.5% of users).  Pre-Seed has the same pH as semen and fertile cervical mucus,  so it should be something the body sees occasionally anyway.

If you are told you have a chronic yeast infection that never goes away, make SURE you get  a second opinion.  Vaginas secrete fluids.  At sometimes in the cycle, this can be white and tacky and that is TOTALLY normal.  I am always sad when I hear of women being treated for something, and it ended up being just normal vaginal secretions.  If you have a confirmed chronic yeast infection, as in they see yeast buds under the microscope…talk to your doctor about using plain yogurt infusions into the vagina.  Some medical studies have shown these work as well as medication.   I would also ask your doctor about trying Pre-Seed.  Pre-Seed can replenish your moisture, and this may help your symptoms.  If your doctor is game, give it a try and let us know how it goes!

Take Care-
Dr. E

A recent CDC article on infertility has some very important Public Health information. The article revealed that in 2002 7.3 million (or 12% of reproductive aged) US women had had impaired fertility, meaning they had trouble conceiving or bringing a pregnancy to term.  Additionally, an estimated 4 million men reported they had sought help for fertility issues in their life time. Take home = lots of people don’t get pregnant when they want to!

A very important cause of infertility was due to tubal damage (as much as 18%)  which can often be a consequence of Pelvic Inflammatory Disease .  Chlamydia, with over 1 million cases a year, can cause this.  Take home = early detection and treatment, even of “low grade” STDs is important . If you aren’t conceiving get those tubes checked earlier rather than later to make sure they are open.

In 2002, 1 million women had sought medical help to get pregnant. Of these, 59%  underwent some testing, 46% received drug therapy, 13% underwent IUI, 8% had surgery for blocked tubes, and 3% used in vitro (ART).  Take home = even though we talk a lot about Assisted Reproduction, only 1% of all babies result from this, with an average per cycle 29% live birth rate (overall for the US), with an average cost of $12,000/cycle.  

Even though the vast majority of couples with problems conceiving (97%) do not undergo in vitro fertilization, there is NO accurate information on the overall success rate or health complications from non-ART treatments for infertility, such as IUI or medication use (such as clomid).  Can you imagine if the efficacy studies and research emphasis of our cancer or heart disease therapies  were limited to treatments that only 3% of patients would use? This is poor medicine and public policy.  The CDC estimates we spend $5B a year on diagnosing and treating infertility. The media, the specialists, and our society as a whole, needs to stop looking to ART (in vitro) as the blanket “cure” for infertility -especially given only a third of cycles  result in live births-and look for new empowered ways for couples to optimize fertility or manage infertility when ART is not the right option for them.

Here is the link for this great tax payer funded work!

Dr. E

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