The 6 Best Fertility Supplements to Help You Get Pregnant

Whether you’re trying to conceive or are starting to think about it, chances are you’ve gone down the Google rabbit hole and found loads of overwhelming info. Though there’s lots to know about planning for pregnancy, it’s helpful to focus on the basics to start: make a few lifestyle changes, learn the basics of ovulation and timing if you’re trying via intercourse, and get your prenatal vitamin routine in check.

While a healthy diet can provide many helpful nutrients, getting therapeutic doses of certain antioxidants and nutrients can enhance egg quality and keep your hormones running smoothly. It’s ideal to start taking a daily prenatal three months before you start trying in order to build up enough nutrients in your system and to impact eggs, which take about 90 days to mature. Not sure what to take? Read on for the best prenatal supplements to help you get pregnant and support your fertility

Known as the “sunshine” vitamin, Vitamin D is actually much more than a nutrient. It acts as a hormone with receptors located in almost every tissue in the body. You might know it for its role in preventing seasonal affective disorder (A.K.A. the “winter blues”) and for supporting bone health, but this vitamin-hormone plays a special role in fertility, too.

Vitamin D assists with the development of ovarian follicles (that’s where eggs live before you ovulate) and may improve thickening of the uterine lining. Research has actually seen a seasonal change in pregnancy rates that correspond to when Vitamin D levels are the highest. And studies have found that having concentrations greater than 75 nmol/L led to more positive pregnancy tests and live births.

To reach adequate levels, guidelines recommend supplementing with 800 to 1000 IU daily while trying to conceive and during pregnancy—though recent studies have shown even more (up to 2,500 IU) can be beneficial. (Read even more about the benefits of Vitamin D for fertility here.) Maternal Vitamin D status will also support baby’s bone development, so it’s important to keep levels optimized.

Coenzyme Q10 is an antioxidant and a key molecule in the pathway that pumps out cellular energy. Known as a “mitochondrial support” supplement, it helps ensure that your eggs are packed with enough energy to help the embryo survive and thrive after it’s been fertilized.

Every cell in your body needs Omega-3 fatty acids, but most diets don't have enough and supplementing is key—especially when trying to conceive. This nutrient is critical to fetal brain, eye, and neurological development, brain function, blood pressure management, and works as an anti-inflammatory. (It's important for sperm health, too—when males don't get enough sperm motility can be affected.)

NAC is a potent antioxidant that also promotes detoxification. It can protect eggs (and sperm!) from oxidative damage (havoc caused by environmental stressors and more). Meanwhile, its effects can also increase the quality of cervical mucus during the fertile window. This is important as cervical mucus helps the movement of sperm as they journey up towards the egg. It also helps maintain a proper environment for sperm survival. Daily doses that have been used in fertility studies range from 600 to 1,800 mg.

Supplements like CoQ10, NAC, and L-Carnitine are antioxidants that can protect your eggs from oxidative damage and provide cellular energy so they can mature.

This hormone does more than just keep you in a deep sleep cycle. Melatonin has major antioxidant effects and is found in the ovaries as a way of protecting your eggs. Its multiple actions include regulating the production of key hormones such as LH and FSH, overall improving egg development. Researchers have seen positive outcomes in IVF studies as well: Compared to no Melatonin treatment, those who supplemented with 3 mg before bed in an IVF cycle had a greater amount of high quality embryos, and increased pregnancy rates of 19.6% versus 10.2%.

With its anti-inflammatory and DNA-protecting effects, Melatonin supplementation may be well-suited for those trying to conceive in their thirties and beyond to enhance egg quality.

You can already find bioavailable forms and optimal doses of Folate, Vitamin D, Omega-3 Fatty Acids, CoQ10, NAC, and more in Bird&Be prenatal vitamins.

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