Preparing Your Body for Conception
To increase your chances of conceiving, you need to get your body in tip‑top condition before even trying for a baby. This will help to ensure that you have a healthy pregnancy and give your baby the best start in life.
Maintain a Healthy Weight
Being a healthy weight will improve your chances of conceiving. If you’re overweight, it’s a good idea to try to lose some weight. On the flip side, if you’re underweight you may want to talk to your doctor about ways to increase your BMI, as low body weight can result in irregular periods, which in turn makes it harder to conceive.
Quit Smoking, Alcohol, and Recreational Drugs
Before trying for a baby, it’s well worth quitting these harmful substances as you’re unlikely to realise straight away if you do become pregnant. Smoking and drinking increase the chance of miscarriage and can cause serious health problems for your baby. No illegal drugs are safe for pregnant women and babies. If you need help to quit, contact your GP — they’re here to help.
Screening Tests
If you’ve had unprotected sex, it’s wise to make sure you don’t have any STIs. It’s also a good idea to make sure you’re up to date with your cervical smear tests.
See Your GP
There’s no reason to see your GP if you’re fit and healthy, however if you’re concerned about your health, have a long‑term condition or are taking certain medication, it’s worth making an appointment.
Healthy Eating
If you don’t already eat well, now is the time to make sure you eat a healthy balanced diet. The most important nutrients for a healthy start to pregnancy are folic acid, calcium, iron and vitamin D. You can get these by including dairy produce, fruit and vegetables, wholegrains and cereals, and protein from lean meat, fish, eggs or pulses — but you may also want to consider taking a multi‑vitamin designed to assist with conception.
We’ve recently launched our Optipreg range, which consists of a Prenatal Multi‑Vitamin and a Pregnancy Multi‑Vitamin. Our Optipreg Prenatal Multi‑Vitamin has been expertly formulated with 18 vitamins and minerals that are beneficial to reproductive health and overall wellbeing. We recommend our Prenatal Multi‑Vitamin for both men and women, as it’s important that men are also in good health when trying to conceive.
