A good quality multivitamin and mineral supplement can be a simple way to ensure that you are obtaining adequate levels of all the essential nutrients to aid with conception and the development of a baby.
A study conducted on over 18000 woman found that supplementation with a multivitamin and mineral supplement significantly reduced the risk of ovulatory infertility. Additionally, a meta analysis has shown that supplementation with nutrients including Selenium, CoQ10, L-carnitine, Zinc and Folic acid is beneficial in men experiencing infertility.
Specific nutrients such as Folic acid, Vitamin D, Iron and Iodine have been shown to be required at an increasing level prior to and during pregnancy.
Libido can pose a problem for both men and women which may negatively impact the chances of conception. Pressures from everyday life, work, family, health and money can have detrimental effect on your sex drive. As many as 43% of women and 31% of men have experienced sexual dysfunction and one of the most common problems is low libido.
Erectile dysfunction becomes more common with increasing age and is seen in 50 - 55% of men between 40 and 70 years old.
Some herbs such as rhodiola and maca have demonstrated positive influences on male and female libido and also have beneficial effects on energy and stress levels.
Author Dr Shamini Singh Sachdev