Hi lovelies
I've heard raspberry leaf tea is good to drink, along with cranberry juice.
I've also heard pineapple being mentioned.
What foods and drinks are supposedly good to eat and drink on the lead up to ivf please? And post egg transfer?
Thanks so much!
I'm taking conception vitamins, have cut out alcohol and have reduced caffeine. I'm also eating generally healthy and exercising....but any extra tips most welcomed - I've got approximately a few months until I start ivf x
I'm drinking pomegranate juice as it's supposed to be good for thickening your womb lining, beetroot is also very good for this I'm hoping to start ivf this month x
Are you on Pinterest? If you are search IVF diet it brings up loads of tips x
Yes I am - good idea, I'll check it out x
Good luck!!!! And thanks for the tips xxx
Hi Scarlett. How are you? And how is Mr Winklepicker and Boodle, those posh puddy tats. When I went up to bed last night, my cat was asleep right where I sleep. He's out in the rain today.. probably asleep under a hedge.
Anyway, I know some say food doesn't make a difference to IVF outcome, but i followed a really healthy diet in the build up to IVF and when downregging / stimming. I was on long protocol. Officially you are not supposed to cut out any food groups. But that depends on the individual and whether you have endometriosis.
I generally ate lots of veg, and good protein. So i cooked a lot of turkey mince bolognese (I don't eat red meat), and made veg (not too much fruit) smoothies every day. I'm building up to the same again as I continue to deliberate on FET.
Here is my food list that I lived on... but note, I have stage 4 endo, so a lot of this was based on the endo diet and my own research.. not a diet as such, but avoiding inflammatory and oestrogenic foods..
Daily breakfast or lunch -
Smoothie containing the following, made with a nutribullet. Try stick to organic.
Walnut milk (homemade 6 walnuts blended with water) and add the following. Try not to add too much fruit, fruit smoothies - even fresh are loaded with sugar.
Spinach or kale
Half avocado
Blueberries
Half banana
Sometimes added oats.
Or I had porridge made with water, only a dash of milk with blueberries and seeds.
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High protein food for lunch or dinners.
I ate eggs for lunches. Or omelette / salad for dinner. Or avocado sliced.
Turkey mince made with carrots / celery / onion / garlic / organic tomato passata base.
Roast organic chicken.
Ate roasted veggies, roasted beetroot carrots etc with greens - to go wth the protein. Roasted pear is also lovely with roast chicken...
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Foods I mostly avoided but had some of (but mainly because of my endo)
Avoided bread pasta cake as much as poss but had the odd treat.
Only had a v little amount of cheese and other dairy inc milk.
Although natural yogurt seems okay, oddly. Perhaps because of the probiotics.
Avoided Soya based products completely (and mainly still do). So chinese food is out unless home made without soy sauce. Soya is high in phyto oetrogens. Flares up my endo badly.
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Waitrose sell an organic almond milk, it's quite nice.
I think out of this list the key things for me were cutting down alot on milk and cheese, although I think i ate a bit more during the 2WW.
Smoothies made with organic pesticide free fruit mainly veg really helped me but adding the avocado and walnuts really contribute to the powerhouse of vitamins.
And yes, I added pineapple including the core to my smoothies but stopped this after embryo transfer.
I had only 2 or 3 cups of mild caffeine per week, mainly weekend treats. I drink Earl Grey Rooibos tea with a teeny dash of milk as a natural chemical free caffeine replacement (Many decaf processes are chemical laden, best avoided unless with swiss water decaf method).
Sugar free Cranberry juice is good, especially if you get a positive. But only sugar free, Biona organic sells on Amazon. I had a mild infection just after OTD. Wished I had the biona then. It's awful to drink but I diluted it with sparkling water.
I did also eat out once or twice at weekends. So i wasn't 100% organic or free from wheat. It was just about making 90% of my diet good and having the odd treat.
Don't get too obsessed with it. On the other hand, I found that focusing on healthy food was a good distraction for me. Well, that and the tv and the cat, of course.
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My clinic (Oxford) advised to not over exercise. Walking is best, so I took a few 5/6 mile walks each week. Nothing more strenuous, because the drugs take there toll and zap energy.
Sorry for the long post, but this was quite literally my IVF bible. When are you due to start? xx
Oh and I took Coenzyme Q10 as well as pregnacare conception. xx
Ok I'll look into this x
So FET is next for you? X
Yes i have 1 remaining embie, trying for sibling after the 1st cycle success. Can't imagine being so lucky again and age is not on my side.. but feel i have to try. xx
You can buy try, there's always hope, and if it worked once, you know your body is well behaved for these things! Xxx
Wow this is so helpful and informative - thank you! Any reason why you stopped having pineapple after embryo transfer?
I do eat a lot of these things anyway but I've not been choosing organic so perhaps I should make that change, and I'll start making more smoothies too. You sound really healthy, well done you!!!
Aw bless you for remembering me and my cats! They're good 😊 such good company and distraction. Glad you and your cat are well xxx
I'm having my first ivf consultation late August then TAC surgery in mid September then I can start ivf once I'm recovered x
Oh bless you, good luck with the TAC surgery. Is it a fairly short op?
I think the bromelain in the pineapple helps the uterus contract, helpful before egg transfer but not after, although many say to eat it after to aid implantation. But it can be a blood thinner so I didn't want to mess with anything like that after ET. I'll go back to double check my research on it.
Agree with the poster below re Omega 3, but Avocado is a huge source of this as are walnuts, seeds and organic chicken (they tested various chickens and organic free range live longer and so contain more good fats that the puffed up cheap chickens pumped with water!)...
My concern with fish is the amount of pollution, particularly with plastic beads being ingested by marine life...the sooner these are banned the better. But that alone has put me off eating too much fish.
Do go for organic, especially tomatoes potatoes strawberries spinach. Apparently these contain up to 15 different pesticides. Here is a list.
huffingtonpost.com/2014/05/...
You are so helpful - really appreciate you taking the time and effort to respond x
Thank you!!! This has been so incredibly helpful! I have stage 4 endo also and finally managed to get my FET done today! Nearly 4 years down the line from starting the whole process off.
But the diet and food tips are a always a massive help I've got books and all sorts on what to eat/not eat it it's good to see some recipes of useful stuff - the spinach/avocado/blueberry/banana smoothie I am definitely all over tomorrow morning for breakfast!
Superstar!! Thank you ❤️💕 xxxxxx
Hello
It is good to read that you have good eating habits from before, it will help you to have a healthy pregnancy. And that what you eat affects everything from your blood and your cells to your hormones
I recommend eating fish. Since it is the best source of omega-3 fatty acids and, according to most specialists, these fatty acids can have a positive effect on fertility. Available studies suggest that a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids could help regulate ovulation, improve egg quality, and even delay the aging of the ovaries.
Omega-3 is also important for the development of the baby's brain and eyes and could bring many other benefits to pregnancy, such as reducing the risk of premature delivery, preeclampsia and lessening depression.
Also make sure you have a good supply of iron now, because once you are pregnant your body will have difficulty maintaining its iron stores as your baby uses the mineral of your body
Thank you so much, I love salmon and fish in general x
You're welcome. I hope it can be of help. I wish you the best 
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