woman's stomach with picture of digestive microbiome

Microbiome Infertility Connection

“A new perspective on fertility is emerging as a result of increasing knowledge about the microbiome– and its role in reproductive health.”

A panel of 37 fertility experts, including clinicians from across Europe, met to generate best practice recommendations for fertility experts interested in utilising the microbiome to improve their clinical practice.

 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1472648320303394

A recent study in April 2022 highlights the infertility link to your gut microbiome: “We discovered that the infertile cohort had gut dysbiosis” (imbalance) “The study has laid the foundation of research on the link between gut microbiota, the gut-reproductive microbiota axis, and implantation failure”

Distinct gut and vaginal microbiota profile in women with recurrent implantation failure and unexplained infertility https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35413875/

WHAT IS YOUR MICROBIOME?

The gut microbiome refers to the bacteria, both good and bad, living in your gastrointestinal system. These microbes are essential, not only for proper gut function, but for the health of the whole body – including your reproductive system, endocrine system, immune system and your brain (get our FREE guide below showing you 10 steps you can take to upgrade your microbiome).

The gut microbiome exists in a symbiotic relationship with the human body. Gut Dysbiosis is defined as an imbalance in the gut microbial community that is associated with disease. Changes in your diet will cause changes in the gut microbiome for the better or for worse. An imbalance can cause inflammation and disruptions in the intestinal barrier’s normal functioning, disrupting it’s proper functioning including hormone production and fertility.

The interest in and understanding of the human microbiome has grown remarkably over recent years. Advances in molecular techniques have allowed researchers to identify and study the microbiota and also use this information to develop therapeutic solutions for a spectrum of conditions.

The panel of 37 experts mentioned above found that:

·       Lifestyle changes, especially those that affect nutrition, can lead to changes in the gastrointestinal microbiome and could have a positive impact in infertile patients

Diet has a major impact on the gut microbiome, by far the densest and most metabolically active human-associated microbial community (Lozupone et al., 2012Vieira-Silva et al., 2016Wu et al., 2016), and so nutritional interventions may improve reproductive outcome partly through modulating the gut microbiome composition.

·       Pre-conception counselling is useful and lifestyle habits can impact reproductive outcomes (possibly by modulation of the vaginal microbiota), therefore weight loss, physical activity and lifestyle changes should be discussed and encouraged in infertile patients

A woman’s health is fundamental to a healthy pregnancy and for the future health of the baby (Stephenson et al., 2018). Women who wish to conceive are likely to change bad habits, however advice is often inaccurate or incomplete (Bookari et al., 2017). Pre-conception diet and lifestyle changes can not only lead to better general health but also increase the chances of a positive reproductive outcome.

Your fertility health is a balance between your body, mind, and spirit.

If you are having difficulty getting pregnant, or staying pregnant, look to nourish these by being very deliberate with your diet, your thoughts, your lifestyle.

It is within this delicate balance that you are able to live a fully healthy life full of vitality where fertility thrives.

The secret is that the pathway to health, vitality & fertility is not just in a straight line heading away in one direction. It goes in a circle surrounding and encompassing everything in your life and brings it all together. Turns out that your gut microbiome is a part of that pathway too. Get a copy of our FREE Guide below that has 10 steps to upgrade your microbiome.

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