in mummypages.ie, December 2016
Link to full article – http://www.mummypages.ie/unexplained-infertility

First, the technical definition for unexplained infertility is ‘cases in which the standard infertility testing has not found a cause for the failure to get pregnant’.

Unexplained infertility is also referred to as idiopathic infertility. Another way to explain it is that the diagnostic testing we have available will only identify the major reasons why a couple may have a difficult time getting pregnant. They certainly cannot identify all the reasons, especially when infertility can be caused by other systems in the body, like being pre-diabetic or having high, unstable insulin levels.

If the Fallopian Tubes are blocked or there is no sperm, these are obvious major obstacles to becoming pregnant and can be identified more easily.

It is almost like limbo for a lot of couples. It now appears that one in three diagnoses result in an ‘unexplained’ outcome. According to Dr. Nobert Gleicher of the Centre for Human Reproduction USA, there are generally three main overlooked explanations for unexplained infertility:
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in mummypages.ie, November 2016
Link to full article – http://www.mummypages.ie/winter-nutrition-

Halloween is behind us and Christmas is in front of us. 2016 has whizzed by and as we begin to brace ourselves for the winter ahead, here are some tips on nutritious foods to incorporate into your diet over the next few weeks and months.

Legumes

Rich in important nutrients like fibre and protein, legumes, such as kidney, garbanzo, and pinto beans, lentils, and white and black beans, are a tasty addition to winter soups and stews. I prefer to add legumes to meals than base my meal around them. Adding legumes to salads, soups, stir-fry’s etc. is a great way of boosting your nutritional intake.

Gourds & Squashes

Pumpkin, acorn, butternut, kabocha, and delicata squash are all at their prime during autumn and winter. Golden squash flesh is loaded with healthy goodness like carotenoids, Vitamin A, and potassium. My favourite is butternut squash and pumpkin and they are ideal in soups and curries.

Beetroots

Sweet, earthy, and deep red, beets are pretty unique in the vegetable aisle. Beets contain antioxidants called betalains, which can help support immunity. They’re also rich in vitamins A, B, C as well as potassium and folate. They’re also a natural source of sugar, so a good source of energy!
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in My Fertility Specialist, Nov-Jan 2017

Yes, there is, but of course a nutritionist is going to say this.

So what does the science actually tell us about nutrition and fertility?

Harvard performed a study that showed an 80% decrease in infertility with improvements in diet and lifestyle. Women who followed a combination of five or more lifestyle factors, including changing specific aspects of their diets, experienced more than 80 percent less relative risk of infertility due to ovulatory disorders, compared to women who engaged in none of the factors, according to a paper published in Obstetrics & Gynaecology, examining over 17,000 women.

What this shows is that what we eat and drink, coupled with how we live our lives can improve or impair our fertility.

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For more of similar articles follow these links:

• http://www.mummypages.ie/expert/MarkWhitney
• http://blog.dolledup.ie/author/mark-w/
• http://www.myfertilityspecialist.com/exercise-breaking-down-this-confusing-topic/

With National Fertility Awareness Week 2016 currently taking place, it’s timely to take a look back on twelve months ago, when pre-Conceive featured in a television slot about fertility issues.

TV3’s ‘Sunday AM’ show with Ivan Yates and Anna Daly spoke to two guests: Anita White, a woman who had been trying for a baby for 13 years, and fertility specialist Dr. Phil Boyle. Dr Boyle is a member of the American Academy of Fertility Care professionals (AAFCP) and is a certified Fertility Care Medical Consultant (CFCMC). He is a member of the Irish Fertility Society and is currently president of The International Institute for Restorative Reproductive Medicine

Anita told her story of several unsuccessful pregnancies, and also told how she had started taking pre-Conceive in preparation for further attempts. Dr Boyle told how he too was convinced of its power: ‘People say they feel better from it, and we see pregnancy outcomes improving,’ he said.

‘It regulates your cycle, it makes you feel better, and fertility levels do improve,’ he added, before pointing out how pre-Conceive is fully research-based and how it contains what he termed ‘mega high doses’ of all its key nutrients.

You can view the clip of the entire segment here. Mention of pre-Conceive begins at 6:20.

from the Wexford People – October 22, 2016
Link to full article – http://www.wexfordpeople.ie/business/enniscorthy-company-received-best-product-award-35137985.html

Enniscorthy-based firm Pillar Healthcare – developers and manufacturers of the ground-breaking and all-natural fertility supplement, pre-Conceive – have been honoured with a ‘Best Product’ award at the UK’s leading exhibition for pharmacists.

pre-Conceive was named winner in the ‘Best Supplement & Herbal’ award category at The Pharmacy Show, held in the NEC in Birmingham. There were eight other nominations for the award, including brands that are longer-established and of wider use amongst the public, but pre-Conceive was voted the winner thanks to its ground-breaking formula that has been clinically proven to improve key fertility parameters in both women and men.

pre-Conceive received more than 20,000 votes – over 5,000 more than the runner-up.

Pillar Healthcare’s Managing Director Mark Whitney said it is always great to be nominated for such a prestigious award.

‘Looking at the calibre of the other companies and products pre-Conceive was nominated alongside, it makes the success all the more special. It is always great to get the recognition for the hard work that goes in to creating and developing a product. Hopefully, pre-Conceive can go on to help more couples conceive naturally or with assisted reproduction,’ he said.

Pillar Healthcare and pre-Conceive had already been listed as one of the ‘Must-See’ exhibitors at The Pharmacy Show, which is attended by thousands. This is due to how the company and product exactly fit the ethos of the Show – to showcase new solutions for the pharmacy sector.

Being both a ‘Must-See’ and an award winner meant the Pillar Healthcare stand was visited by a large number of pharmacy professionals during the two-day exhibition, and Pillar Healthcare is now looking forward to further expanding the availability of pre-Conceive in the UK.

For more of similar articles follow these links:

• http://www.mummypages.ie/expert/MarkWhitney
• http://blog.dolledup.ie/author/mark-w/
• http://www.myfertilityspecialist.com/exercise-breaking-down-this-confusing-topic/

in mummypages.ie, September 2016
Link to full article – http://www.mummypages.ie/sperm-dna-what-is-it-and-what-does-it-tell-me

This past month, I had a few enquiries regarding Sperm DNA or DNA fragmentation. There seems to be some confusion about this fertility parameter, or at least what this parameter can tell us.

The object of a sperm cell is to transport the paternal DNA to the egg. As most of you know, in a routine semen analysis we test for sperm count, the motility, the volume of cells in a sample, the pH and a few other parameters. Basically, it is an indicator of the number of cells that are being produced and their ability to swim to the egg. However, as you may have spotted, there is no test for the all-important DNA package in the sperm cells.

Imagine a delivery van coming to your home with a parcel. Imagine the delivery van arrives at the front door, there is a knock on the door and when you open it – the delivery man has forgotten the package, or the package arrives so damaged, that it is not usable any more. This is the point of a Sperm DNA test. If a man is producing a high number of sperm cells, their motility is good and their form is strong, this would elude us to think that the cell itself is strong. This may or may not be the case, and it is particularly important for couples undergoing assisted reproduction.

The embryo-to-be is made up of maternal and paternal DNA. It is of critical importance that the DNA package in the sperm cell is strong and healthy to support a viable embryo and pregnancy.

It appears that sperm quality is declining and this is thus contributing to the increasing rates of infertility throughout the world. Many factors have been implicated (smoking, dietary deficiencies, environmental pollutants, cancer therapy) and it is thought that the problem is related to free radicals. Free Radicals (apart from being a terrible name) are small particles in the body that basically cause cellular damage – in this case, they damage the DNA of the sperm. A certain degree of damage (fragmentation) to the DNA of the sperm is inherent, but the woman’s eggs can repair some of the damage. This is especially true if the eggs are also healthier but as a woman gets older; the ability of her eggs to repair the damaged DNA in the sperm is reduced.

A higher rate of sperm DNA fragmentation, can impact on:
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in My Fertility Specialist, Aug-Oct 2016

Preparing for pregnancy is a concept that is very close to our hearts. It might be a novel concept to most, but hopefully we can outline why preparing for pregnancy is crucial!

Mark says: “In Ireland, the advice for someone trying to conceive is; don’t smoke, don’t drink, take folic acid and come off the pill. In modern life, most couples make a conscious decision to
try and have a child. I am privileged to be able to help people on this journey, but the lack of information worries me. When you or I were conceived, us as an embryo started to grow. At this point, this is the healthiest we will ever be. A sobering thought. The importance of having a super sperm cell carrying the paternal DNA and a healthy egg cell carrying the maternal DNA is vital! This is succinctly demonstrated in a paper by Prof. D.J.P. Barker of the University of Southampton, the following extract being a summary quotation from that paper:

Coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes, breast cancer and many other chronic diseases are unnecessary. Their occurrence is not mandated by genes passed down to us through thousands of years of evolution. Chronic diseases are not the inevitable lot of humankind. They are the result of the changing pattern of human development. We could readily prevent them, had we the will to do so. Prevention of chronic disease and an increase in healthy ageing require improvement in the nutrition of girls and young women…

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For more of similar articles follow these links:

• http://www.mummypages.ie/expert/MarkWhitney
• http://blog.dolledup.ie/author/mark-w/
• http://www.myfertilityspecialist.com/exercise-breaking-down-this-confusing-topic/

in Nutrition I-Mag, June 2016

With one in six couples experiencing fertility issues, education around the role nutrition and lifestyle plays is crucial.

Over the past 20 years, fertility problems have increased dramatically. At least 25 per cent of couples planning a baby will have trouble conceiving, and more and more couples are turning to fertility treatments to help them have a family.

That is the view of Dr Marilyn Glenville PhD, the UK’s leading nutritionist specialising in women’s health and author of books including Getting Pregnant Faster, in discussing the nation’s fertility issues. She also pointed out that, on average, young couples can expect to wait an average of three years before conceiving, and, as a result, very few doctors will consider a diagnosis of infertility until after at least a year has passed […]

Mark Whitney, founder of Pillar Healthcare, which created the pre-Conceive supplement, pointed out:

In 2013, the last report from the UN, states that, ‘Fertility has declined significantly since the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development’. Fertility in developed countries has been decreasing steadily from the 1950s. We are also starting to see fertility crisis’ being highlighted in the developing world, with Kenya the most recent country highlighting a fertility problem on its horizon…

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For more of similar articles follow these links:

• http://www.mummypages.ie/expert/MarkWhitney
• http://blog.dolledup.ie/author/mark-w/
• http://www.myfertilityspecialist.com/exercise-breaking-down-this-confusing-topic/