special guest: Dr. Neal Barnard,
founder of the Barnard Medical center and
president of the Physicians committee for Responsible Medicine
offering plant based telemedicine through PCRM.

In this episode:
Stories of success conceiving
Thyroid issues (Hypothyroidism, Hyperthyroidism, Hashimotos vs Graves Disease)
Is dairy a threat or helpful for fertility?
Will exercise help to increase fertility?
Fat cells are busy hormone factories.

Many women who had trouble conceiving change their diet and were able to conceive.
Share some of your stories.
Women - diagnosed as infertile, changes diet and becomes pregnant
Catherine Lawerence - had endometriosis, and recommended hysterectomy. After diet transformation, she didn't need surgery.

You wrote a book called your Body in Balance…. And oh, BTW… if you want the “Cliff Notes”... we broke this book apart and dove deep into the topics and you can find that at SimplyPlantBased.net. This book is basically about the thyroid gland. If your thyroid is not functioning correctly, can it impact fertility?

Hypothyroidism,
underactive thyroid or low thyroid, is a disorder of the endocrine system in which the thyroid gland does not produce enough thyroid hormone. It can cause a number of symptoms, such as poor ability to tolerate cold, a feeling of tiredness, constipation, slow heart rate, depression, and weight gain. Occasionally there may be swelling of the front part of the neck due to goiter. Untreated cases of hypothyroidism during pregnancy can lead to delays in growth and intellectual development in the baby or congenital iodine deficiency syndrome.

From Wikipedia, - Hyperthyroidism
Condition that occurs due to excessive production of thyroid hormones by the thyroid gland. Signs may include irritability, muscle weakness, sleeping problems, a fast heartbeat, heat intolerance, diarrhea, enlargement of the thyroid, hand tremor, and weight loss. The opposite is hypothyroidism, when the thyroid gland does not make enough thyroid hormone.

Hashimotos vs Graves Disease

And here is the million dollar question… can you heal your thyroid and get off of medication?

Fat cells are busy hormone factories.
The more fat you have, the more hormones they produce.

Is dairy a threat or helpful for fertility? In the Fertility Diet by Drs. Walter Willett and Jorge Chavarro, a review of the Nurses Health Study showed less anovulatory infertility when women had 1 glass of full fat milk/day, but more infertility if they had nonfat milk; What is going on here? The authors suggested that the hormones attached to the fat were helpful.

One part of The Pregnancy Advantage is exercise. Will this help to increase fertility?

• Special Guest: Dr. Neal Barnard - Pregnant Possibilities - Q&A w/ Drs. Debra and Jeanne (Aug 13) ( Download)
• Pregnant Possibilities - Q&A with Drs. Debra and Jeanne - Jul 7, 2020 ( Download)