Can You Boost Your Fertility Naturally? Top 5 Tips to Improve Your Chances

Wazzup Pilipinas!?

In a perfect world, an individual or couple would decide to have a baby and the conception process would be simple and straightforward.

Regretfully, this isn’t always the case.

As a matter of fact, the CDC has determined that approximately 10% of American women between the ages of 15 and 44 will struggle with getting pregnant or staying pregnant.

While there isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution to infertility, from in vitro fertilization (IVF) to using donor eggs from a reputable company, there are several different treatment options for conceiving. Further, many people undergoing fertility treatments are also able to use natural techniques to boost their chances of getting pregnant.

Whether you’re going through sperm donation, egg donation, or an IUI, here are five great ways to improve your likelihood of having a baby.

1.     Practice Stress Management Techniques

It’s often believed there’s a link between stress and infertility. In fact, during a 2016 California study, it was found that 76% of people undergoing infertility treatments reported significant symptoms of anxiety.

The connection between the two is believed to be the alpha-amylase enzymes produced when your body is experiencing stress. These molecules seem to have a negative effect on fertility. More specifically, they seem to reduce the chances of having a successful IVF cycle.

If you’re undergoing fertility treatments or are hoping to conceive naturally, lowering your stress levels could be beneficial.

Some trusted stress management techniques include:

·        Exercising

·        Meditation

·        Journaling

·        Acupuncture

·        Hobbies

·        Talking with a friend or partner

·        Taking a walk

2.     Reduce Your Cigarette, Alcohol, and Caffeine Consumption

Most of us realize that drinking too much and smoking cigarettes aren’t healthy habits. However, what many individuals aren’t aware of is that they can also inhibit fertility.

For example, excessive alcohol usage can cause poor sperm quality and an increased risk of miscarriage. Studies have also proven that smoking cigarettes causes erectile dysfunction and trouble conceiving, along with pregnancy complications.

Surprisingly, many people don’t realize that significant caffeine consumption also leads to fertility problems. It can raise the risk of having a miscarriage, along with causing low birth weights.

While you don’t necessarily have to cut these substances out completely when you’re trying to get pregnant, reducing them can be helpful.

3.     Monitor Your Body Mass Index

Whether you’re underweight or overweight, having an irregular body mass index (BMI) can lead to having a hard time getting pregnant. Whether you need to implement a weight loss routine or begin eating a high protein diet, it’s essential to find ways of maintaining a healthy weight range during your conception journey.

4.     Eat Fertility-Friendly Foods

Working on regulating your BMI provides the perfect opportunity to add some fertility-friendly foods to your diet. Depending on your body’s unique needs, there are many different foods that can be beneficial.

From sperm health to egg quality, here’s a short list of some of the most popular fertility-boosting options:

·        High fiber foods, such as beans, lentils, and whole grains

·        Citrus fruits

·        Pineapple

·        Avocado

·        Cheese

·        Asparagus

·        Salmon

·        Nuts

·        Greek yogurt

·        Lean proteins

5.     Start Taking the Right Vitamins

Did you know prenatal vitamins aren’t just for when you’re actually pregnant?

In fact, many health experts suggest taking them while you’re trying to conceive. Your body requires specific nutrients and vitamins, such as folic acid, to support a pregnancy and a baby’s development. By taking quality vitamins, you can ensure you’re getting what you need to boost your chances of conception.

Boost Your Fertility Naturally

While there aren’t often quick solutions to treating infertility, there are small steps you can take to improve your chances of getting pregnant. Even if you need to use a frozen egg donor or require IVF, implementing healthy habits can make a significant difference in the success of your treatment.

Just remember to speak with your doctor before making any decisions about your diet or health. They can help you determine which options are best for you and your specific circumstances.

Infertility is an overwhelming burden that can leave you feeling helpless and uncertain about the future. Many people find comfort in the fact that there are small steps they can take to increase their chances of starting a family.

Whether you’re struggling with low ovarian reserves, poor sperm quality, or unexplained infertility, don’t lose hope for the chance to start a family.

Award-winning Benilde film “IAMANNIKA” bags international prize

Wazzup Pilipinas!

A short animation from the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde film department took home the Southeast Asia Audience Award of the third CRAFT International Animation Festival.

“IAMANNIKA,” directed by Dan Verzosa, bested 19 other short films from host country Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore, among others, for the said award in the Southeast Asia Competition of Short Animations of this year’s CRAFT AnimFest.

In the film, a 10-year-old student named Annika comes across a school requirement about women while she is attending her online class during the pandemic. As she works on it, she ponders upon society’s expectation of women with her mother, whom she highly looks up to.

Verzosa, who is currently pursuing a degree in filmmaking at DLS-CSB, shared that she and her team from Tuklaw Films worked on the advocacy film “with the purpose of promoting gender equality and empowerment of all women because we all know that we still experience discrimination, social inequality, and unrealistic expectations toward women.”

“The whole team behind ‘IAMANNIKA’ believes that this issue is worth addressing. Actually, if you will look closely at the title of our film, it is not just about the name of our character but also a statement on how many people still treat and look down on women,” she stressed.

CRAFT AnimFest, which ran from October 25 to 30, is “a celebration of craftsmanship and talent, but also to commune with authenticity, diversity, and physicality.”

The film festival, which received more than 1,800 entries from 97 countries, took its viewers on “an unforgettable journey through a diversity of techniques, styles, emotions, and amazing artistic personalities in the contemporary animated world.”

“IAMANNIKA” previously won Best Film Editing, Award of Virtue, and Best Animated Film at the Realifilm inter-school filmmaking competition organized by Adamson University’s Silip@Lente.

The short film also got the top prize in the Safe Communities category of the Safe Spaces Campaign competition by the Global Peace Foundation and Consuelo Zobel Alger Foundation.

“IAMANNIKA” was also part of the official selection of the 16th International Student Animation Festival in Brazil and the ninth Seoul Guro International Kids Film Festival in South Korea.

Verzosa is also behind the award-winning “Malapit Na, ‘Nay!” (Almost There, Mother), a short film on extrajudicial killings which she directed at Far Eastern University Senior High School, the Metro Manila Film Festival finalist and Manila Student Film Festival winner “Sala, Salin-Laway” (Living Room Banter), and “Ang Awit Na Lipos Sa Pangungulila” (A Song of a Yearning Soul).  

Another Benilde film, “CITSALP” by Jean Evangelista, Verzosa’s co-writer for “IAMANNIKA,” also made it to CRAFT AnimFest’s SEA competition. “CITSALP” is a short animation on the negative effects of plastic in the world and the responsible consumption and production of plastic.

Half Circles: Grace Tagum Orbon-Emmelot collection

Wazzup Pilipinas!?

Born and raised in the Philippines, Grace Emmelot is now based in Norway.

Having begun her journey in her homeland, she continues to explore the many genres photography—portrait, street, documentary, corporate, landscape, travel, and product. But her forte lies in these four: portraits, events, documentary and corporate photography.

Back in the Philippines, she established her own studio. With her art now ever evolving in Norway, she is in the exciting process of launching Emmelot Grace Photography very soon.

Aside from being a professional photographer, Grace is also a multimedia designer and teacher, passionate about both documentary and film production. She brings with her over two decades of experience in various yet interconnected fields of industry, such as events, film production, marketing, branding, and multimedia design.

HALF CIRCLES

A collection of Grace Emmelot’s photographic work in her motherland, the Philippines, and other places all over the world. It is the story of life at large, peoples, cultures, and her art.

This exhibition has a twofold objective: To showcase Grace Emmelot works as an artist and

professional photographer, and to hope to relate to the immense courage of immigrants who have moved across the globe. Most, if not all of these people, still have half their hearts and souls in their native Philippines, and half in the place where they now live.

Half Circles is a migration journey of sorts, complex and nuanced, with the excitement arriving in your new homeland and the loneliness of being apart from what you left behind.

Half Circles. Finding half of your own space.

A limited number of Grace’s photographic prints are available for purchase on-site of the exhibit at the Philippine Embassy Oslo and online through her website www.emmelotgracephotography.com.

Through this exhibit, Grace would like to reach out and collaborate with fellow artists and photographers by creating a common ground for organizing workshops in the field of arts and photography, best practice sharing, online forums, and photo walks, as well as help organize local exhibitions for other artists too.

As a photographer, Grace has been shooting freelance since 2012 for her personal studios, freelance and corporate jobs in the Philippines, and has also shot overseas for several projects.

Her distinct flavor and style have been deeply inspired by many Filipino photographers that she holds in high esteem, as well as her writing mentor, Ricky Lee, and her batchmates in the Katorse Writers Group.