Eating for Conceiving

After being on hold for a few months due to my job change, my husband and I will start trying to get pregnant again this month. I still go back and forth often about feeling "ready" to parent. When I am feeling ready, I want to hurry things along! That leads to a lot of googling and research on how to increase my chances of getting pregnant quickly.

One of the best sources on this subject that I have come across is the Nurses' Health Study (discussed in this babyzone article). This article, and others, have lead me to the decision to replace low and non-fat dairy items in my diet with full fat dairy. Previously, I was eating a lot of reduced fat dairy every day - yogurt, string cheese, milk, etc. The Nurses' Health Study showed that women who ate low fat or no fat dairy products had more difficulty conceiving, while those who enjoyed at least one serving of full fat dairy had less difficulty conceiving.

I found it very difficult to find full fat dairy at my grocery store (aside from cheese)! Eventually I found Dannon's Pure yogurt. The texture and taste is different from the low fat yogurt I've been enjoying for years. And with a higher calorie count, I need to keep an eye on what else I eat throughout the day. I also purchased regular string cheese and full fat block cheese. We still have fat free milk in the house, but I only use that for cereal, so I'll just try to indulge less.

Full fat dairy aside, what else am I trying?

*Taking prenatal vitamins & B6

*Eating as many fruits and veggies as possible, as well as whole grains, nuts and beans (I'm a vegetarian)

*Drinking lot's of water

*Exercising regularly (hopefully daily)

*Reducing my caffeine intake - I'm a coffee lover and recently switched to 1/2 caff. I want to keep it to 2 cups or less daily

*Limiting or eliminating alcohol? I already drink very little. However, there is a debate in our home now, because my husband believes the occasional glass of wine helps to de-stress me.

After all is said and done, I will never know if any specific change to my diet lead to a pregnancy. My husband, who is often very wise, doesn't believe low-fat dairy kept us from conceiving during previous attempts. His theory? It just wasn't the right time yet.

Do you eat or avoid certain foods in hopes of getting pregnant?

~E