Diets and Vitamins

[LittleP]

Does anyone know if there are any foods that we really should not be eating

I've read loads of leaflets about do this, give up that and now they are whirling around my head - I'm having a very bad case of Arthur v Martha

Anyway, any advice and help would be gratefully received.

Many thanks

Little P

[Sand]

Hi Little P ... I'm sure the list on this goes on and on, but it does depend on how far you want to take it.......

A few no goers to start with (most of which are taken from Zita's book) :

Liver
Excess Tuna fish (I've read somewhere that up to 4 tins per week is okay)
Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) - found, as well as other places, in flavoured crips, packaged soups, meat seasoning, chinese foods, soy sauce
Aspartame - a sweetner, found especially in "diet" drinks
Excess salt
processed hams, bacon, preserved meats, smoked foods (all contain nitrous compounds)
Avoid canned food, unless the can has a white lining (the aluminium in unlined cans leaches into the product)
Caffeine - affects the absorption of some nutrients

Must drink filtered or glass-bottled water (not plastic bottled)

..... and hundreds more things no doubt ..

Sandra x

[LittleP]

Sandra

Golly - is there going to be anything fun left in our lives

Thanks so much for that - it's a big help

Appointment at new hospital tomorrow so will probably get more of an indication when I can start my next treatment - bring it on

Little P

[randa2006]

Great thread idea!

I LOVE reading about nutrition and news in healthcare anytime, but especially during this time in my life (ttc).
Let's share what we know, And ask what we don't know.

[SQUEW]

Hi ladies

Just thought I would add my thoughts and experiences.

During my last and finally sucessful treatment i did take a cocktail of vits and having bought Zita Wests book I followed this as closely as was practical.
I took Pro natal multi vit, selenium, zinc and vit c, co enzyme q10 and vit e, evening primrose oil, and Agnus Cactus. I think I rattled as I walked!! I also had accupuncture, including a treatment just before ET. I think if you read the book you can work out yourself what things are most relevant to your situation. I did eat a healthy diet, and like Deborah says eat a lot of protein whilst making your eggs!!
The other thing I found useful was her recommendation on using flower remedies for certain things. This definately kept me calmer, and I have bought her follow up book, Natural Pregnancy and have continued with this.
I must say though that I still had the odd glass of wine whilst stimming and I tested positive on the 16th Feb, but had had a couple of glasses of Shiraz on valentines night !
What I am trying to say is, get yourself as fit(exercise as much as you can prior to treatment) and as healthy as possible but dont be a slave to it! I did feel really well and do believe that it helped, but you cant deny yourself the odd treat!
Lots of love and luck
Sue xxxxx

[rajiravi]

Hi Squew,
Thats great that your finally ivf turned positive. you must be jumping up in the air. wish you all the best through out your pregnancy.
Well i have one question for you. You did mention that you were taking a lot of vitamins. My question to you is did you consult with a doc or you took them in reference to Zeta West book.
I too am taking a prenatal. But I do want to take other vitamins as i feel just prenatal won't suffice.
What exactly did they do to you in accupuncture?what made you feel different with accupuncture compared to other cycles?

thanks
Raji

[SQUEW]

Hi Raji

Happy to answer any questions!! With reg to the vits I just used self diagnosis from the book, eg, co enzyme improves blood flow and cells etc, figured that was a better option than baby asprin etc, Zinc is excellent for both male and female fertility, I also started taking Agnus Cactus as I panicked that my FSH had gone up, it was only 7.4, but prior to this had been 5.5, when I had my last cycle it had gone down to 6.4 again! My cycle became spot on and I had very little PMT. I stopped taking it whilst stimming though as it is not recommended to take during tmt. Pronatal is an excellent all rounder though, I just felt I needed to try to give my body a litle extra help, some of the things I took cant be easily found in food sources, hence the vits!
The accupuncture I had was with a lady who specialises in fertilty, and follows Zitas principles. She worked on preparing my womb lining, my kidneys etc. although this is tailored to your personal requirements. In fact after my very first treatment with her I had really bad thrush. I have not had this for years, and she was thrilled?!! as it is seen as a damp/cold ailment, and a lot of the treatment focuses on warming up your uterus. If you are considering this I would try to find someone in your area who is specialises in fertilty and IVF though. I really doesnt hurt and the needles were used in my wrist, feet and leg.
I am not saying that what I did was what finally gave me the longed for positive, but I do believe that both physically and mentally I felt better because of it. I will also say that I started a couple of months prior to tmt cycle too.
I also ditched all caffeine and drank 2 litres of mineral water a day, and still am!!
Good Luck
Love Sue
xxxxxx

[rajiravi]

Hi Sue,
You mentioned that you took Agnus Cactus. did you inform your doctor about taking this medication, as it is usually recommended not to take Herbal medication while undergoing ivf.
Sorry to bother you so much. But I too am looking for the best supplement as i surely know, my body does not have the right supplement which is making me difficult to get pregnant.
I do see that agnus cactus is available in capsule form. is that what you took.

Did you ever consider Amino acid supplement as they have L-gutamic,L-carnitine and the list goes on and it was mentioned that this is a very good supplement for fertility issue. I will take any comment from you.

thanks for your quick earlier response.

Enjoy your pregnancy
love
Sue