Cervical Cancer: Good Nutrition, Regular Screenings & Safe Sex Can Protect You & Your Fertility!

January is Cervical Cancer Awareness Month – and it packs a powerful message no woman can afford to ignore. Here’s what you need to know …

By Colette Bouchez

As we spin head first into a brand new year – and a brand new list of resolutions we’re eager to tackle- it’s easy to let some of life’s more mundane tasks slip by - especially health screenings.

Which is one reason why health awareness months can serve such a strong and powerful purpose: They remind us of the importance of taking care of our health and move us in the direction of preventive care.

If you’re a woman, never is this more true than it is right now during January, the month dedicated to cervical cancer awareness - a disease which, while it affects some 12,00 women a year, can be prevented!

Indeed, with the help of 2 important cervical cancer screening tools – the Pap smear (which looks for abnormal cells within the cervix) and the HPV test ( which detects the human papillomavirus, the leading cause of cervical cancer ) your doctor has the power to not just detect this disease at its earliest, most easily treated stages, but in many instances detect the kind of pre-cancerous cell changes that, once treated, can stop this disease from ever occurring.

And that’s not just good news for your overall health – it’s also great news for your fertility.

Cervical Cancer and Getting Pregnant: What You Should Know

Though it has a specific name, your cervix is actually the lower portion of your uterus. It is the “connector ” which brings together the upper part of your uterus (where your baby attaches to the lining and grows) and the birth canal, through which your baby is born. So it’s easy to see how the health of your cervix is vital to your fertility.

Normally, that health is maintained by the lining of the cervix – a layer of cells that develop, grow and die, and are replaced by new cells, in a cycle that lasts anywhere from 7 to 14 days. The continuing turnover of these cells is one factor that determines cervical health

When, however, due to any number of health challenges these cells come under attack - including infection with the HPV virus - that normal life cycle becomes disrupted. Cells don’t die as they should, and as a result they begin to build up, causing the lining of your cervix to thicken and change in both shape and form. This cell “overgrowth” is known as “dysplasia” – a condition said to affect between 250,000 and 1 million women a year.

Fortunately, for some women dysplasia – even that caused by HPV - can revert to normal on its own. When your immune system is strong, and you are healthy, you simply overcome the HPV virus – or whatever factor is causing the cell build-up - and the dysplasia stops.

For a significant number of women, however, this isn’t the case. For these women, the HPV, if present, does not go away, and the dysplasia – regardless of the cause – continues to worsen. Eventually, if not stopped, these cell changes lead to the development of cervical cancer, which can progress at an alarmingly fast rate.

Unfortunately, the treatment for late stage cervical cancer involves removing not just the cervix, but the entire uterus and usually the ovaries , which is often followed by either chemotherapy, radiation or a combination of both. All of this pretty much puts an end to childbearing.

The Good News: According to fertility expert Dr. Niels Lauersen,  “ If you catch cervical cell changes early on, not only can the dysplasia be treated and the cancer prevented - or if the cancer is already there, treated at a very early stage - these  treatments won’t harm your ability to have a baby."

Lauersen adds that the treatments for dysplasia or early cervical cancer can include either electro cauterization or laser vaporization (both work to burn away or vaporize the pre-cancer or early stage cancer cells.)  Other treatments, he says,  include  the LEEP procedure (which uses electrical current passed through thin wire loop to remove the abnormal tissue) or a “cone” biopsy (which removes a wedge shaped piece of the cervix containing the bad cells).  And, he says,  none of these procedures will interfere with your ability to get pregnant in the future!

                          Preventing Cervical Cancer & Protecting Fertility:

                                                 What Else You Can Do

While having regular Pap smears and tests for HPV are two ways to protect your fertility, since the HPV virus is sexually transmitted, if you are not in a monogamous relationship ( or your partner is not monogamous) you might also want to consider the protection of Gardasil – the first and only vaccine shown to protect against HPV.

Although the vaccine has been the subject of some controversy – with some women having experienced life –threatening and life-changing side effects – to date the vast majority of women who have had the Gardasil vaccine appear to suffer no serious side effects or lasting problems.

If, however, you don’t want to get the vaccine, then practicing safe sex is a must – and using condoms is essential.

Perhaps most important to remember is that good nutrition can also make an important preventive difference in protecting against both cervical cancer and the effects of HPV . According to Dr. Lauersen’s new book Green Fertility: Nature’s Secrets To Making Babies, there are also  a number of key vitamins and nutrients that studies have shown can help protect against the cell changes that lead to dysplasia – or in some instances even reverse dysplasia once it begins. As a bonus, these same nutrients protect your fertility as well!

Among the most important he says, are Vitamins C, E, and beta carotene ( vitamin A) , plus other carotenoids found in fruits and vegetables such as carrots, apricots, squash and cantaloupe.

What do all these nutrients have in common?  Lauersen says they are all antioxidants, natural chemicals which enhance immune system function. And according to experts this could hold the key to protecting cervical cells from undergoing unhealthy changes.

How Vitamins Can Protect You From Cancer

Indeed, in a study at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City, researchers found that women who had cervical dysplasia routinely had lower blood levels of both beta carotene and vitamin E when compared to healthy women. Moreover, there was also a direct correlation between the amounts of beta-carotene and vitamin E in the blood, and the stage of cervical abnormality – with the more advanced cases having the more significant nutrient deficiencies.

Likewise, a previous study also conducted at Albert Einstein, found that women who consumed less than 30 mg of vitamin C daily were 10 times more likely to develop cervical dysplasia than women who consumed more.

In studies elsewhere, doctors showed that topically applying vitamin A directly into the cervix was able to reverse cell changes associated with dysplasia in up to 50% of women

According to Green Fertility, another key nutrient is folic acid or vitamin B9. How can this help? As you read earlier, cells lining the cervix renew themselves every 7 to 14 days – and in the process continually form new DNA.  Lauersen says  that when the body is short on folic acid, abnormalities in DNA formation can occur – and that can mean a higher risk of dysplasia.

Conversely, keep your folic acid levels high – at least 400 mcg per day – and you may keep your DNA production humming along in a normal and healthy fashion. Not surprisingly, folic acid is also the nutrient that can protect the DNA in the cells of your developing baby, thus helping to ensure a successful pregnancy and reduce your risk of miscarriage at the same time.

So, along with regular screenings, practicing safe sex, and the addition of these nutrients to your diet, you not only have the power to reduce your risk of cervical cancer, but maybe even eliminate that risk entirely – and preserve your fertility for years to come. And that’s the kind of awareness that can make a real difference in your life!

To learn more about these specific helpful foods and nutrients– as well as how much you need to take - and to read more about other natural ways to protect your fertility and your health, visit GreenFertility.com – or pick up a copy of Green Fertility: Nature’s Secrets for Making Babies.

Colette Bouchez is the co-author of Green Fertility: Nature’s Secrets For Making Babies.

Copyright by Colette Bouchez 2011 - All Rights Reserved. In addition to US Copyright, the text of this FERTILITY BLOG is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License. All Formatting and style elements of this page are not available under this license and Colette Bouchez retains all rights in those elements. The owners and contributors to this blog may or may not benefit from the products, services or treatments mentioned herein.

Relieving A Mother’s Guilt About Autism: The Cause Remains Unknown

An off handed comment by a researcher suggesting mothers who don't take good enough care of themselves might to be to blame for their child's autism touched off a firestorm of anger and rightly so. If you were one  troubled by this week's report take heart:  There is no evidence you should ever blame yourself.  Here's what you must know ...

 

By Colette Bouchez

This week the early release of a study from the February issue of the journal Pediatrics made headlines, with news concerning  new reasons  for  autism – a developmental disorder that can range from mild to severe and is said to effect up to in in every 110 children.

In the paper, lead author Peter Bearman, PhD, the Jonathan Cole Professor of the Social Sciences at Columbia University in New York City  reported that  one reason behind the disorder could be  having  children too close together. 

Based on records of some 660,000 children born in the state of California between 1992 and 2002  the researchers say second born children conceived within one year of their older siblings were three times as likely to be diagnosed with autism when compared to second children conceived three or more years after their older sibling.

The results, say researchers suggest that  having children close in age could be the link to autism.

When asked for a possible reason, Bearman commented in media reports  that it could be linked  to a mother’s prenatal and even preconception nutrition, suggesting as he did  that possible low levels of nutrients such as folic acid or  iron could be the cause.

“ It could be a biological factor, such as maternal depletion of nutrients  … or another process that hasn’t been described or discovered yet,” Bearman  has said,  igniting somewhat of a firestorm of guilt in mothers everywhere.  But is there any real truth to the idea that prenatal nutrition is at fault?   

Looking To The Past For Answers In The Present

Certainly, past research has shown that a woman’s prenatal and preconception intake of nutrients can play a key role in affecting  baby’s health in myriad ways. Most notable are the mound of studies linking a low prenatal intake of folic acid to a group of devastating birth defects  known collectively as neural tube defects.  In short, when a mother’s intake of folic acid during pregnancy is low her baby’s risk of being born with neural tube defects rises significantly.

And who could forget  the now-famous Dutch study of 1944 – conducted  using records of births recorded during a severe famine in the Netherlands.  Here researchers learned that babies born to mothers who did not support their pregnancy with proper nutrition were more likely to suffer low birth weight – a condition that can go forward to affect the child’s health and development in myriad ways – including an increased risk of coronary heart disease later in life.

Indeed, time and again it has been shown that prenatal nutrition – and more recently, preconception nutrition -  can have an enormous impact on not only the  health of the developing baby, but also on whether or not conception even occurs!

And in this respect, it’s perfectly logical to want to  take that small leap of faith and link the possibility that close births deplete a mother’s nutritional stores in a way that might increase the risk of autism.

 But does it?  

 What We Don't Know About Autism

 First it’s important to realize that nothing in this study looked at a mother’s prenatal nutrition or her levels of folic acid or iron. The study simply made a connection between close births of children and an increased risk of autism – and nothing more. The suggestion that  prenatal nutrition may be a link  was entirely speculative and not shown in this study or any other to be relevant to the findings.

Fred R. Volkmar, MD, the Irving B. Harris Professor and director at the Child Study Center at Yale University in New Haven recently told WebMD , “This is preliminary, and nobody else has seen this yet ...We don’t know if it is true, or if it is true, why would it be true.”

Also important to keep in mind: Three  weeks ago a very solid study published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives offered similarly  convincing evidence that autism was linked to freeway traffic – and the pollution that resulted.  

Before that it was studies linking autism to  food preservatives, artificial sweeteners,  too much food coloring  … the list is almost endless.

And let’s not forget the most recent debacle over the now-defamed studies linking autism to the MMR vaccine.

Certainly, this new research could  one day turn out to be  the most exciting advance in the history of autism science.  But the point is that right now, it is just one more in a sea of studies that have  failed to prove anything we can rely on as true.  And in my opinion,  based on what we know thus far, to prematurely suggest to mothers of autistic children they may have been at fault ,  seems a bit irresponsible - and the kind of guilt trip that quite frankly helps no one,  least of all the children. 

Worse still may be the  charlatans who may follow  this lead , twisting the facts  to sell you vitamins, or nutritional guidance or even a crate of oranges in hopes of protecting your child from autism.

So  to all the loving and caring parents of autistic children who look deep into their own soul everyday searching for answers:  Do not  blame yourself.  We all pray that the mystery of autism will one day be solved.  But as of today, no one has yet solved it.  

Colette Bouchez is the co-author of Green Fertility: Nature's Secrets For Making Babies - a diet and nutritional guide to pre conception health. The opinions expressed in this blog are strictly her own.

Copyright by Colette BouchezBouchez retains all rights in those elements. The owners and contributors to this blog may or may not financially benefit from the products and services associated with the materials presented herein. The owners and contributors of this blog may or may not benefit directly or indirectly from the products and services featured throughout.

Danes Say Going Organic May Not Make You More Fertile

If you’re spending a ton of money on organic fruits and veggies listen up: A new study says traditionally grown products could be almost as good for your fertility . Here’s what you need to know. 

By Colette Bouchez

The premise seems so obvious it’s hard not to believe it: Vegetables grown organically, without the use of pesticides or chemicals should be healthier and more nutrient dense.

But at least according to one study, that’s just not true. In research presented this week in the Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry, researchers from The Food Institute at the University of Denmark found that carrots, onions and potatoes grown under organic conditions generally contained no higher levels of antioxidants –among the key nutrients in veggies – or other healthful properties, than the same produce  grown commercially, using pesticides and other chemicals to help them grow.

According to Danish researcher Pia Knuthsen,  there are certainly many good reasons to pay the higher price that organic fruits and vegetables command – most notably better taste and possibly  health benefits that come from avoiding the chemical contaminants not found on organic food.

That said, if you’re buying organic because you think the nutrient value is higher, then Knuthsen says her studies show that’s probably not the case.

“On the basis of the present study carried out under well-controlled conditions, it cannot be concluded that organically grown onions, carrots, and potatoes generally have higher contents of health-promoting secondary metabolites in comparison with the conventionally cultivated ones. The ability of crops to synthesize selected secondary metabolites was not systematically affected by the growth system across different growth years and geographical locations,” says Knuthsen in the study.

Why  Organic May Not Be Worth The Price

For the current Danish study researchers cultivated onions, carrots, and potatoes in three different geographical locations over a two year period. One group of vegetables were treated to conventional agriculture techniques while two other groups were cultivated using organic farming methods.

After harvesting,  the scientists measured  levels of flavonoids and phenolic acids – two key types of antioxidants – in all three groups.

The result: There was no statistically significant differences between the level of nutrients found in  foods grown using traditional commercial agriculture methods and those grown organically. In short, the commercially grown, non-organic produce was as healthful, in terms of key nutrients, as that which was grown organically

Organic Food And Your Fertility

So, what does this mean to you – particularly if you’re trying to get pregnant? According to the book Green Fertility: Nature’s Secrets For Making Babies, the nutrients found in many fruits and vegetables can play a key role in enhancing fertility. Onions, for example, are one of the main sources of polyphenols and a rich source of flavinoids  – both of which  have been shown to play a key role in the production of healthy sperm.

Another group of polyphenols are phenolic acids, found in many fruits and vegetables, including carrots and potatoes can boost female fertility, by increasing blood flow to the ovaries and uterus, and help insure the health of every cell involved in conception.Other nutrients found in many types of fruits and vegetables can have direct effects on the reproductive hormones necessary for egg production and a health conception. So, a fertility diet high in these nutrients can be a real plus - whether you're trying to get pregnant on your own or looking to boost the success of your next insemination of IVF.

Certainly  it’s always a good idea to avoid chemical exposures when and where you can –particularly when you are trying to conceive. But that said,  it’s also comforting to know that many of the key nutrients which protect your reproductive system from chemical assaults, are in full force,  ieven in  the fruits and vegetables that aren’t grown organically.

The bottom line:  If you just can’t afford to “fork over” the extra bucks for organic fruits and vegetables, you can rest easy knowing that you’ll be helping your reproductive health by filling your plate with produce - no matter how or where it is grown! 

For more information on dozens and fruits and vegetables proven in medical studies to have specific and direct effects on fertility and getting pregnant, visit GreenFertility.com – or pick up a copy of Green Fertilty: Nature’s Secret’s for Making Babies. 

ColetteBouchez is the co-author of Green Fertility: Nature’s Secrets for Making Babies. 

Copyright by Colette Bouchez 2011 - All Rights Reserved. In addition to US Copyright, the text of this FERTILITY BLOG is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License. All Formatting and style elements of this page are not available under this license and Colette Bouchez retains all rights in those elements. The owners and contributors to this blog may or may not financially benefit from the products and services associated with the materials presented herein.

Med Study: Increase IVF Success and Reduce Miscarriage With Natural Treatment

A new study found that a simple natural oil emulsion could be the key to a more successful IVF. Here’s what you need to know… By Colette Bouchez

If a group of British researchers are right, improving your odds of a successful IVF – and reducing your risk of miscarriage - could be as easy as using a simple, inexpensive soy-based oil treatment one week prior to when your fertility procedure takes place.

That’s the conclusion of some new research being presented later this week at the British Fertility Society Meeting in Dublin , Ireland on January 6^th.

Here researchers from Care Fertility, an IVF clinic in Nottingham, England will present evidence that an intravenous treatment using a prescription-only soy-based oil known as Intralipid prior to an IVF procedure , dramatically increases pregnancy success rates while reducing the risk of miscarriage.

Dr. George Ndukwe, of the Care Fertility Clinic in Nottingham where the study was conducted, told the Daily Mail: “Every day in my clinic I see women who have had numerous IVF cycles all with the same negative outcome and no baby. We are now devoting our attention to finding answers when nature goes wrong.”

According to Ndukwe and his team at least some of those answers can be found in Intralipid, the soy based fatty acid that researchers say plays a role in helping a newly implanted embryo attach to the mother’s uterus and begin to thrive.

The Study: Research  on Intralipid involved 96 women – average age 37 - all of whom experienced at least 6 previous failed IVF attempts. Fifty of the women in the group received infusions of the soy-based oil, given by intravenous drip about a week before their IVF was to take place. Forty six of the women received no treatment.

All the women subsequently underwent an IVF procedure, which included removing their eggs, combining them with sperm in a laboratory dish , and then implanting the resulting embryo into the woman’s uterus.

The Result: Fifty percent of the women who received the Intralipid infusions achieved successful pregnancies, compared to just 9 percent of those not treated.

In terms of miscarriage, just two women who received Intralipid miscarried (about 8 percent) compared to seven miscarriages in the group who did not receive the infusions (about 64 percent).

What is Intralipid – And Can It Help You?

So what is this seemingly “magic” fluid called Intralipid? Lest you think it’s a brand new “miracle” drug, guess again. Intralipid was approved by the FDA in 1962 to help correct an essential fatty acid and calorie deficiency in those who are unable to eat normally – either due to gastrointestinal difficulties or the inability to swallow.

It consists of 20% Soybean Oil, 1.2% Egg Yolk Phospholipids, 2.25% Glycerin, and Water . Given as an intravenous infusion it bypasses the stomach and goes directly into the bloodstream to supply the body with several essential fatty acids. These are substances required for many biological functions, including reproduction – but they can’t be made by the body. As such they must be obtained via food, supplements, or in this case the intravenous infusion.

Reduce Inflammation – Get Pregnant Easier

Although the new study surrounding the use of Intralipid for fertility purposes is new, it’s important to point out that previous studies have  found that other sources of essential fatty acids have had similar fertility-related results.

Indeed, in one study published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, researchers found that simply adding more foods high in an essential fatty acid known as Omega 3 to the diet had enough of an impact on reproduction to kick start ovulation in women with PCOS ( poly cystic ovary syndrome) who were not ovulating at all.

Other studies have shown that foods rich in omega 3 fatty acids ( like cold water fish, flax seeds and walnuts) can encourage a healthy conception in all women by reducing inflammation that can frequently impact the production of fertility hormones, as well as cause inflammation within the uterus that could result in pregnancy loss.

Indeed, Dr. Ndukwe suggests  - and many fertility experts agree - that a leading cause of infertility in women today is  related to inflammation, often the result of undiagnosed immune system malfunctions. This, he believes causes an excess production of white blood cells (called natural killer cells) which he says ‘fight’ the pregnancy by triggering the production of  chemicals that attack the placenta or the embryo. And indeed, abnormally high levels of white blood cells have been shown in some studies to increase the risk of miscarriage.

In fact, currently the arthritis drug Humira – which reduces inflammation - is being used by some fertility experts to boost pregnancy rates in some women suspected of having inflammatory –related infertility. Moreover, Professor Siobhan Quenby, of Solihull Hospital and Warwick University, in England, has already successfully used an anti-inflammatory  asthma drug to curb the immune response in a pilot trial of women plagued with chronic pregnancy loss.

And of course, there is the old standby of taking one baby aspirin a day beginning two weeks prior to conception and continuing throughout the first trimester, to reduce the risk of miscarriage – a regimen long prescribed by many fertility doctors.  The active ingredient in the baby aspirin: the anti-inflammatory compound salicylic acid.

But it’s also important to remember that  studies show that for many women, simply increasing their intake of essential fatty acids – particularly Omega 3 fatty acids – either via diet or supplements, can have a similar positive impact on reducing inflammation, while increasing conception rates and decreasing the risk of miscarriage in women who do conceive.

Moreover, once you do get pregnant, studies also show that  essential fatty acids reduce the risk of premature birth while helping women avoid pre-eclampsia and possibly post partum depression after birth.

Getting Pregnant: The Green Fertility Plan

The new study on  Intralipid reports that the treatment is easily tolerated, has few side effects and is relatively cheap to administer. So in this respect, it may be worth talking to your doctor about adding it to your IVF regimen.

At the same time, however, remember that Mother Nature offers similar results via foods and nature-based supplements of essential fatty acids, including Omega 3’s as well as fatty acids known as linoleic acid and gamma linoleic acid, otherwise known as GLA.

To learn more about the power of all anti inflammatory essential fatty acids to boost your fertility naturally, as well as increase the success of your IVF procedures and reduce your risk of miscarriage visit http://www.greenfertilty.com/ – or pick up a copy of Green Fertility: Nature’s Secrets for Making Babies.

Colette Bouchez is the co-author of Green Fertility: Nature’s Secrets for Making Babies. 

Copyright by Colette Bouchez 2010 - All Rights Reserved. In addition to US Copyright, the text of this FERTILITY BLOG is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License. All Formatting and style elements of this page are not available under this license and Colette Bouchez retains all rights in those elements.

VIDEO: Miscarriage - 5 Ways To Reduce Your Risks

If you've lost even one pregnancy then you know how devastating this experience can be.  While many women blame themselves when a miscarriage occurs, this is virtually never the case. 

There are, however, some things that every couple can do to reduce

their risk of pregnancy loss and have a healthy baby!  

Watch this video for 5 tips on avoiding miscarriage 

from Green Fertility: Nature's Secrets For Making Babies

To learn more about reducing your risk of miscarriage and having a healthy baby be sure to visit 

http://www.blogger.com/goog_2023512441

 Copyright  2010 - All Rights Reserved. In addition to US Copyright, the text and video  of this FERTILITY BLOG is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License. All Formatting and style elements of this page are not available under this license and the owner of this blog  retains all rights in those elements.