Ottawa Fertility Clinic - Natural Fertility Treatments
Natural Fertility Treatments in Ottawa, ON Canada
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Dr. Harsimranjeet Singh, ND provides naturopathic treatment options to support patients undergoing fertility treatments at fertility clinics in Ottawa, Montreal, Toronto and some patients from international clinics. The use of naturopathic alternative medicine is significantly useful in helping to support positive fertility outcomes. He utilizes the use of various treatment options, depending on which is best suited for you, to help address the root cause of the infertility and to support positive outcomes with IVF, ICSI, or IUI with evidence based treatments.
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How Does Naturopathic Medicine Support Fertility?
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Hormone Balance: the use of fertility acupuncture, diet & lifestyle changes, nutraceuticals, and botanical therapies are helpful in supporting optimal hormone balance. Improving progesterone production, reducing estrogen dominance, helping to reduce stress hormones (i.e. cortisol), reducing prolactin levels and much more.
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Reduce Stress and Anxiety: treatment options also focus on the treatment of the whole person, not just the reproductive organs. The reproductive function of the body is delicate, in that if there is another systemic disease affecting other organs, it can significantly reduce fertility as well (i.e. malnutrition, inflammatory bowel disease, or celiac). Reducing stress and anxiety helps to reduce cortisol levels and reduces the harmful impact of cortisol on the reproductive function of the body.
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Improve Male Fertility and Sperm Parameters: sperm health is very much dependant on the antioxidant capacity of the body. Our city lifestyle and air pollution, diet, and lifestyle choices constantly deplete our bodies antioxidants. Decreased antioxidant function in the body leads to oxidative stress and the production of toxins that are harmful for both sperm and egg health and quality.
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Nutritional Supplementation: deficiency of certain nutrients, for example Vitamin D, can contribute to infertility. Other important nutrients include Vitamin B12, folic acid, iron, and much more. In many cases, more than just a simple prenatal is needed.
Treatments for Conditions Causing Infertility
Fertility treatments offered are focused on supporting positive outcomes for conventional fertility treatments by utilizing evidence-based adjunctive therapies and recommendations or treating the root causes of various conditions which contribute to infertility. Some of of various conditions treated include the following:
Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome: patients searching for fertility treatments at a fertility clinic for PCOS will often be recommended to either make dietary and lifestyle changes or to move directly to a more invasive treatment options (i.e. medication, IUI, or IVF). The role of adjunctive and natural therapies to treat polycystic ovarian syndrome focus on addressing some of the core hormonal imbalances and root causes. If preparing for a treatment at a fertility clinic, it is vital to first support healthy blood sugar and insulin balance to optimize ovulatory function and follicle growth. It is also very important to support healthy progesterone levels as this can have an impact on implantation rates and the chances for a successful pregnancy. New international guidelines have officially suggested that 3 months of lifestyle and dietary changes be implemented before trying any conventional fertility treatments for patients suffering from PCOS.
Endometriosis: some of the key factors we focus on treating when addressing endometriosis is elevated inflammation, increased oxidative stress, hormonal imbalance, and immune system dysregulation. Treatment with various herbs and/or micronutrients have been shown in research to help reduce inflammatory markets and reduce pain associated with this chronic condition. One of the reasons patients with endometriosis suffer from infertility is decreased egg quality. Increased oxidative stress can damage egg quality and treatment with various micronutrients has been observed to increase the antioxidant capacity and support healthy egg/follicle health. Supporting egg quality is key when going for treatment at a fertility clinic. Treatments also focus on addressing the relatively increased levels of estrogen when compared to progesterone levels. This entails supporting healthy metabolism of the estrogen hormone in the liver and supporting detoxification while improving progesterone production.
Poor Sperm Health: male-factor infertility is the sole cause of approximately 1/3 of fertility cases and is present (along with female-factor) in another 1/3 of causes for infertility. One of the most important factors in supporting positive outcomes from your treatment at a fertility clinic is to support the production of healthy sperm cells. Fertility tests performed for sperm evaluation vary greatly depending on the fertility clinic. It may include just a basic sperm analysis, which evaluates for sperm motility and sperm concentration. Or more advanced testing may be included, such as, sperm morphology testing and sperm DNA fragmentation rates. The more advanced testing for sperm DNA fragmentation is gaining popularity as research over the last few years has uncovered the significance of this test. Some studies have suggested that sperm DNA fragmentation rates may be one of the most important predictors of IVF success. This is because the DNA fragmentation rate influences the quality of the embryo and has been shown to strongly influence the miscarriage risk (elevated fragmentation rates increase the risk of miscarriage). More importantly, the use of dietary and lifestyle changes along with the clinical use of micronutrients have been suggested to improve sperm health and reduce sperm DNA fragmentation rates.
Thyroid Health and Function: the role of the thyroid has long been established in influencing fertility rates. If you are preparing for a treatment at a fertility clinic it is important to discuss the following with your healthcare provider. The optimal range for thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) is usually from 0.5-5.0, however, when you are trying to conceive it is recommended to help bring that level below 3.0. This is because if it is too high, it may increase the risk for miscarriage and affect follicle growth. Thyroid function affects every aspect of fertility, from follicle growth to ovulation, fertilization, implantation and maintaining pregnancy. Advanced testing for thyroid antibodies may also be indicated in some cases, such as unexplained infertility, because they may be elevated in patients who have a TSH in the normal range. Elevated thyroid antibodies increase damage to the zona pellucida of the egg cells and decrease their quality. Some studies have suggested treating patients with elevated thyroid antibodies with a small to moderate dose of thyroid hormone may actually help to mitigate the risk associated with the elevated levels.
This information is presented for educational and informative purposes only. This is not a replacement or substitute for medical advice from your fertility doctor or physician. If you have any questions or concerns regarding fertility drugs, please follow-up with your fertility