Helix Clinic blog

Some women who are having trouble getting pregnant get worried at the thought of all the drugs involved in assisted reproduction treatments like IVF. However, it is possible to do IVF in a natural cycle without hormonal stimulation.

A natural IVF cycle basically involves collection of a naturally produced egg, followed by fertilisation in laboratory and subsequent replacement of the embryo. It is less expensive and less invasive than a normal IVF cycle and in addition, because no drugs are used to stimulate the ovaries, it can be easily repeated in following cycles if unsuccessful after the first go.

The only thing is that success rates tend to be low compared to stimulated cycles. However, for women who don’t want to take conventional fertility medicine, or who can’t take fertility medicines, this treatment could be an option to consider. For example, women who are ovulating and have damaged tubes may wish to try a natural cycle of IVF before moving on to stimulated IVF.

Obviously, the natural IVF cycle fits well with the natural approach of acupuncture. No research has yet been done to see if the natural IVF success rates are improved if women also have acupuncture treatment, but based on previous studies of acupuncture and IVF it could be an interesting study to look at.

Tags: fertility, infertility, IVF, natural cycle

Today a patient asked me about research studies that have been done looking at the effects of acupuncture for Multiple Sclerosis, and off the top of my head I couldn’t think of any major ones so did a bit of searching on the web to see what was out there. There have been a few small scale studies but overall it is a little surprising how few studies have evaluated acupuncture in Multiple Sclerosis. I did make one interesting finding though.

The Rocky Mountain Multiple Sclerosis Center is a centre for the study of MS founded in 1978 by 2 men dedicated to finding the causes of MS and a cure for the disease. In 1999, the Rocky Mountain MS Center began to collect information about complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), and now provide state-of-the-art information on MS and CAM. They offer what seems to be a unique approach to research, using technology to survey large numbers of people living with MS on the effectiveness and safety of various interventions used to treat MS.

A survey carried out by the center reported the results collected from more than 1000 MS patients. It was not a controlled study, but nevertheless seemed to show promising results for the treatment of MS symptoms with acupuncture. About 20% of the respondents had used acupuncture since their initial diagnosis, and about two thirds of those reported an improvement in the symptoms of pain and anxiety. Other symptoms that were reported as improved by between 50% and 60% of respondents were fatigue, depression, muscle stiffness, numbness and insomnia. Only 4% of patients noticed a worsening of any pre-existing MS symptoms with acupuncture.

Tags: multiple sclerosis

In 2007, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (which is part of the WHO) listed shift work as a possible human carcinogen. This listing was based on studies that showed that shift workers are at a 48% higher risk of developing breast cancer than women who work regular daytime hours.

The body’s production of melatonin is reduced if night time is spent in artificial light. Melatonin acts to keep the biological clock ticking so that you are alert during the day and sleep at night, but is thought to also play a role in cancer protection.

There is evidence suggesting the night shift effect is also linked to reproductive health. A Danish study of 40000 women showed that night workers were more likely to have lower-weight babies or longer lasting pregnancies, potentially increasing the risks of still birth.

The ancient Chinese were keen observers of biological cycles, and used the language of yin and yang to describe their observations. They have long noted that staying up late or working into the night can deplete the ‘yin energy’, and over long periods of time, they also noticed that this deficiency can lead to fertility and reproductive problems or more serious illnesses such as cancer.

Tags: cancer, melatonin, yin energy

Chinese medicine looks for patterns of symptoms and treats holistically by directing treatment based on the overall pattern rather than on specific symptoms. One pattern in Chinese medicine is called ‘damp’, and is characterised by symptoms like heavy limbs, bloating after eating, sluggish digestion, fluid accumulation, or congestion of phlegm/mucus in the chest or sinuses.

The pattern of damp is characterised as being heavy and slow to shift, and can be made worse by eating or drinking certain foods. Dairy products are a typical culprit, so if someone is suffering from a pattern of damp-type symptoms, we would normally advise them to cut back on products like milk, cheese and yoghurt. Often just doing this can make a real difference.

The thing is, when a woman is pregnant she is often advised to eat lots of dairy products to help keep her calcium levels up. Calcium is important for the development of strong bones, so is vital to the healthy development of a baby. But if that same woman has a tendency to develop damp-like symptoms, she may find that these become worse during her pregnancy once she increases her intake of dairy products. A common symptom is sinuses becoming more stuffy, because this can be doubly aggravated by damp and also by having to sleep flat on her back due to the growing bump!

So can anything be done? Well, dairy products are not the only sources of calcium. Dark green leafy vegetables such as spinach and curly kale are excellent sources, as well as many nuts and seeds. Good calcium absorption is helped by vitamin D which is produced naturally by the body on exposure to sunlight, and also found in oily fish and eggs. If you are pregnant, eating lots of dairy produce and your sinuses are giving you trouble, why not try cutting back on some of the dairy and replacing it with some other less damp-forming sources of calcium?

Tags: dairy, damp, pregnancy, sinuses

It takes two to make a baby, and if a couple is infertile the problem is often due to a combination of male and female factors.

Three key measures for sperm health are sperm count (quantity), sperm motility and sperm morphology. The correct medical name for low sperm count is oligospermia, and there are some key nutritional guidelines that can help to improve this condition.

Most people have heard about ‘free radicals’, chemical fragments that contribute to the toxicity of various drugs, aging, and the development of cancer. What one might not know is that free radicals tend to be abundant in the semen of 40% of infertile men. In fact, free radical, or oxidative damage to sperm is one of the major causes of oligospermia.

So how to reduce damage from free radicals? This is where anti-oxidants can work their magic, and some of the best anti-oxidants are vitamin C (found in citrus fruits), beta-carotene (found in red, orange and yellow vegetables) and vitamin E (found in nuts and green leafy veg).

Smoking reduces vitamin C throughout the body - this is one reason why smokers are more likely to have low sperm counts, but non-smokers will benefit from increased vitamin C as much as smokers.

Vitamin E is the main anti-oxidant in sperm membranes, and can enhance the ability of the sperm to fertilize an egg in vitro.

In addition to good levels of antioxidants, it’s important to have the right kind of fats and oils, so saturated or hydrogenated fats should be avoided and replaced with the good Omegas (3, 6 and 9) found in oily fish and seeds like flax, pumpkin and sunflower.

Finally, the most important trace mineral for sperm production is zinc. Zinc deficiency decreases testosterone as well as sperm counts, and studies have shown that men with oligospermia tend to have lower levels of zinc.  15mg a day should do the job, and zinc can be found in high quantities in oysters and other shellfish, chickpeas, baked beans and pumpkin seeds.

Tags: antioxidants, fertility, infertility, oligospermia, omega oils, vitamin C, vitamin E, zinc