What Causes Infertility in Women?

Infertility is one of the most heartbreaking experiences that a couple can go through. Typically, if a couple has been trying to conceive for a year or longer without success is dealing with infertility. For women the age of 35 and older that time reduces to six months. It’s at this point that you should start seeing a doctor. They can help to find the cause of the infertility and treat it. It’s estimated that 1 in 8 couples in America are living with infertility in the United States.

There are many different causes for infertility in both women and men. A caouple might have one of these problems or several of them can prevent a pregnancy from happening.  A woman can only get pregnant when the complex process that starts with ovulation and ends with fertilization works the way it was suppose. Any type of disruption can impair the process. By consulting a fertility doctor or reproductive endocrinologist a couple can find the problems and choose the correct treatments for them to pursue. This greatly increases the chance of a woman becoming pregnant, and having a healthy baby.

While there are numerous issues that can affect a couple’s fertility, these five are the most common.

• Endometriosis: When a woman has endmetriosis, her uterine tissue grows on the outside of her uterus. This can affect the other organs nearby, including the ovaries and fallopian tubes. This condition may cause problems for the ovaries, sperm, egg and uterus.
• Uterine fibroids: These are small, benign tumors that develop within the uterine wall. This typically occurs in women between the ages of 30-40 years old. Implantation of a fertilized egg is usually impacted by these fibroids. It is rare for them to be blocking the fallopian tube.
• Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS):  PCOS is a very common problem for women having difficulty becoming pregnant. When a woman has PCOS her body will produce too much androgen hormone. The overproduction of androgen can disrupt the ovulation process. Many times its found in women that are overweight or have a resistance to insulin. PCOS is often treated with a prescription medication.
• Damaged Fallopian Tubes: Fallopian tubes can be damaged when a woman contracts a sexually transmitted disease. Chlamydia is known to frequently cause these tubes to become damaged. Uterine fibroids can also cause damage to the fallopian tubes.
• Early menopause: Some women begin experiencing menopause before the reach the age of 40. This is condition is known as “early menopause”. There is no known cause for this to happen, but there are certain risk factors that may have an impact on it. These include smoking, chemotherapy treatments, and other immune system problems.

These are just a few of the conditions that may play a part in a couples infertility. Some types of medications, besides birth control pills, will reduce the chance of a woman becoming pregnant. Medical treatments such as chemotherapy, lifestyle choices, such as smoking or drinking, and her partners health can all contribute to infertility. If you have been trying to conceive for at least a year, then you need to seek medical treatment. You can get pregnant with the right help.

Prenatal Testing: Earlier and More Accurate Than Ever

During the first trimester of pregnancy, expecting parents can determine what the gender is of their baby and whether there are any abnormalities they need to learn about before the baby arrives. Over the past few years, parents have been able to determine their child’s paternity and sex with a maternal blood test. A new blood test is able to determine if there are distinct chromosomal abnormalities as early as nine weeks into the pregnancy.

How it Works

Within the mother’s blood, there are small amounts of her unborn baby’s DNA. When that DNA is extracted, a mapping process of the human gene can help predict a number of conditions and traits that bring the baby’s makeup together. Once the genetic link is located, there is no reason why a test should not be able to detect the problem.

Misuse of Technology

As this technology enters into the world, people tend to use it for the wrong reasons. One of those reasons is that people will use the technology to abort children who are not of the gender they desire. Even though the tests to determine chromosomal abnormalities are not for determining the gender of the baby, it can be difficult to miss the gender component when reviewing the DNA. Parents have the option to opt out of receiving that information.

Different Chromosomal Abnormalities

Out of the different chromosomal abnormalities that the test can detect, two of those have an extremely low rate of survival. In situations where the baby has trisomy 18 or trisomy 13, the fatality rate is extremely high. Half of all those with trisomy 18 do not live past their first week or life, if they make it to term at all. Eighty percent of those with trisomy 13 do not survive long enough to reach their first birthday. Earlier testing provides the parents with the necessary time to prepare for the unfortunate outcome that awaits them.
Trisomy 13 and monosomy X are not all a guaranteed death sentence. Although there are different mental and physical challenges associated with these chromosomal abnormalities, numerous groups exist to help individuals understand what they are dealing with and how to help them have a life that is fulfilling and rewarding. Some people are frustrated at the rising cost of paying for this testing. The only preventative method for trisomy 21 is that of abortion. It is understandable why people are concerned with discriminating against those that have this abnormality. Since it is the most common form of a chromosomal abnormality in babies, it is something that many parents already understand. Parents deserve as much information as possible about the situation they are facing.
The last abnormality is an extra chromosome in males. Even though some individuals will end up with language impairments, many men do not realize they even have this problem. Being aware of the condition can help the individual receive the intervention required from an early age. It is difficult to determine how an individual child will be affected until later on down the road.

Image Credit: trevhunter

Derek often likes to blog about parenthood and child care. When he is not blogging, he enjoys spending time with his family and coaching his son's football team. The article above is for uk paternity test.

Attached Images: License: Creative Commons image source 

Aid Your Pregnancy Journey With FertilAid

A few months ago I was given the opportunity to review a few different fertility products. The picture above is the package I received from Fairhaven Health. This review is long overdue. In my defense, this is a very difficult topic for me to discuss. I have a tendency to push things like this to the background. My apologies to all my readers as well as to Fairhaven Health for the delay.

Unfortunately, I still haven't been able to get pregnant so I can't say that taking any of the products above will help you. Fertility is a very, very complicated thing. It's very possible that I could have a different problem that these products can in no way help me. 

Now that all that stuff is out of the way, on with the review :) The kit that Fairhaven Health sent to me contained a one month supply of FertilAid for Women, FertilDetox and FertilCM.  Plus it also include a SpermCheck test kit. 

I took all the pills above as prescribed and I have to say I really felt great afterwards. I already take a multivitamin, but 1800 mgs of calcium each day, so to add something that actually made me feel even better was a surprise. I found that after about a week or so I had more energy than I did before. At the time I was also having other lingering issues from a previous medication and I believe that the FertilCM was able to help my body get back to normal.  These supplements range from $19.95 to $34.95 for a months supply. 

Perhaps the most truly helpful item for us was the SpermCheck test. This test costs $39.95 and can be taken at home. The instructions are a bit involved so you'll want to make sure you read them over a few times before you take it. It cost us over $80 to have this test performed by our doctor. While this doesn't guarantee that you doctor won't want a test from the lab anyways, for people just starting out this can help. If you have any reason to believe that the problems you're having could be due to a low sperm count then I would recommend taking this test. I do want to add that on both tests my husband had excellent counts. The lab results were more precise, but I believe that's to be expected. 

Here's a tip: Insurance doesn't always cover fertility treatments. However, if you take this test and it shows that your significant other has a low count then have him go to the doctor. Most insurance companies will cover his treatment by urologist. 

Conceive Easy Giveaway!!

Are you trying to have a baby? Being able to conceive can be very difficult for some people, including me. I've personally used this kit in my quest to become pregnant. Just the ovulation tests alone make this a great kit to win! 
If you have been trying to get pregnant and didn't have any success just yet, don't throw in the towel. Ditch those artificial fertility medicines, go visit your doctor and dentist for pre-natal care (yes! you have to visit your doctor even before pre-pregnancy!) and check out Conceive Easy!
Photo courtesy of ConceiveEasy

Tianna's Coupon Cafe teamed up with ConceiveEasy and To Sew With Love to bring you this giveaway where one lucky winner could win a ConceiveEasy TTC Kit System which includes pregnancy or ovulation tests, a basal body thermometer, a BBT chart and a start guide and a ConceiveEasy starter pack to boost your chances of conceiving! ConceiveEasy is giving away  one (1) TTC Kit valued at $152 with FREE shipping to one lucky winner. This giveaway is open to the US and Canada only. This giveaway will end on October 30, 2012.
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Interested on learning more about ConceiveEasy and the TTC Kit System and find out ways to get pregnant fast? Then go HERE for more information.

Disclaimer: Tianna's Coupon Cafe will not be held responsible for the shipment of prizes. Please see Rafflecopter entry form for full disclosure. 

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Save the Date: National Infertility Awareness Week is April 22-28

One in eight American couples today are dealing with the heartache of infertility. Unfortunately, I'm one of them. My husband and I have been married for 15 years and my biological clock is ticking much faster than I ever thought possible! The pain of watching everyone around you have children, and then seeing them grow into teens while you're still struggling to have your first is unimaginable for those that have never dealt with this problem. If you would like to learn more about infertility and what you can do help change the laws in country to not only provide better access for fertility treatments, but to protect our rights to have them, then please visit the links below. Resolve is a national organization that is full of resources to help.

http://www.resolve.org/infertility101
http://www.resolve.org/national-infertility-awareness-week/about.html