Planning for a baby creates more excitement and anticipation for many couples and everyone wants their pregnancy to be safe and healthy. Most of the time, the best beginnings for a successful pregnancy begin before conception.
If you are wondering whether to seek a doctor before conception? The answer is yes for numerous reasons. This blog will explore the potential reasons why you need to schedule a preconception doctor consultation.
Is it Good a Fertility Doctor Before Conception?
Yes, consulting a fertility doctor before conception is advisable for anyone who is planning a pregnancy. This will help in providing the necessary information and tools for a healthy and safe pregnancy, reducing the potential risks. It is advisable to consult a fertility doctor before conception if you are:
- Women over the age of 35 and actively trying to conceive.
- Having recurrent miscarriages and wanted to investigate the underlying causes.
- Couples attempting to conceive for more than 12 months.
- Women with irregular menstrual cycles and pre-existing medical conditions such as PCOS, Endometriosis, Thyroid, and other abnormalities.
- Men with fertility issues such as low sperm count, mobility, and low testosterone levels.
- Couples having genetic disorders related to fertility.
- Couples undergoing other treatment options or have a history of having hormonal treatments.
- Couples with STD complications.
- Couples wishing to delay their conception, but wanted to preserve their fertility.
When to Consult a Fertility Doctor Before Conception?
There is not an exact time frame to consult a fertility specialist before conception. However, it is recommended to schedule an appointment at least three months before attempting pregnancy.
This timeframe will help you prepare yourself mentally and physically and will create an awareness to have a safe and healthy pregnancy, reducing the potential risks caused by pre-existing medical conditions.
What to Expect in a Preconception Appointment?
Medical History
It is mandatory to provide your medical records to the fertility doctor to analyse your health, genetics, lifestyle factors and medications. This will help your underlying conditions related to fertility.
Physical Tests
Your healthcare provider or gynaecologist will perform a physical examination to assess your general health. Some of the basic tests involved in physical examination include weight, BMI, blood pressure, pelvic exam, semen test, breast exam, thyroid test, skin and hair assessment, diabetes, STIs, heart and lung examination, and more.
Habitual Changes
Based on your medical conditions, the doctor will advise you on lifestyle changes regarding your diet, exercise, smoking and alcoholic addiction, menstrual cycle, nutritional advice, and vaccinations if required. This will help in preparing you for the parental stage.
Fertility and Conception Education
The preconception counselling will educate you on how to track your menstruation cycle, the right time for conception, factors affecting fertility, planning pregnancy and how to overcome underlying infertility conditions.
Risk Factors Addressed During Preconception Appointment
Chronic Diseases
- Asthma
- Depression
- Diabetes
- Heart Disease
- Blood Pressure
- Kidney Disease
- Thyroid
Genetic Conditions
- Down Syndrome
- Huntington’s Disease (HD)
- Cystic Fibrosis
- Sickle Cell Disease
- Phenylketonuria
- Colon Cancer
- Breast Cancer
Infections
- Hepatitis B
- HIV
- Measles
- Rubella
- Tetanus
- Chickenpox
- Zika Virus
Toxins
- Arsenic
- Asbestos
- Fluoride
- Lead
- Pesticides
- Rodent Droppings
- Workplace Chemicals
Weight
- Obesity
- Gestational diabetes
- Gestational hypertension
- Delivery Complications
Intoxicants
- Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
- Fetus Issues
Lifestyle Changes After Preconception Counselling
After your preconception counselling, your doctor will recommend to modify your lifestyle changes such as:
- Maintaining ideal weight.
- Consuming proper nutrition diet.
- Having a healthy exercise routine.
- Quitting smoking or drinking.
- Enhancing immunity.
- Stress reduction.
- Consuming prenatal vitamins.
- Avoiding harmful medications.
Benefits of Consulting a Gynaecologist Before Conception
Early Assessment of Fertility Issues
Identifying and addressing fertility issues such as irregular ovulation, hormonal imbalances, or male fertility problems at the early stages increases the chances of successful conception and reduces delays.
Optimize Reproductive Health
By early consultation, you can optimize your reproductive health from conditions such as PCOS, endometriosis, fibroids and other infections. This will increase the chance of conceiving naturally without any health complications.
Preventing Future Risks
Addressing the underlying medical conditions at the preconception stage will help manage the medical conditions by preventing future pregnancy-related complications such as miscarriage, diabetes, preeclampsia and others.
Genetic Screening
Genetical screening during the preconception stage can identify genetic disorders of both parents that come through family history. By identifying the recessive genes one can plan their reproductive options for pregnancy.
Assess Ovarian Reserve
General assessment of ovarian reserve, especially for women aged above 35 and semen analysis for men. It would help in preserving fertility by freezing the egg or semen for future use or will help in planning the pregnancy better.
Lifestyle Factors
In preconception counselling, lifestyle changes will be suggested based on your diet, weight, exercise and stress. Improving the diet, exercise and managing stress could improve the chances of natural conception and healthy pregnancy.
Male Fertility Assessment
The low sperm count, mobility, growth and stress are some of the major concerns in male fertility. With an initial screening, the fertility status will be analysed and proper advice can be given to improve the fertility.
Increases Success
Preserving Fertility
If you are planning to delay your pregnancy, but worrying about fertility, preconception counselling will help in preserving fertility by freezing the eggs or sperm to conceive later in life, even when the fertility declines.
Conclusion
Consulting a fertility doctor before conception is highly effective in achieving a natural and healthy pregnancy. It helps in identifying all the major risk factors. By managing the risks and planning the pregnancy, achieving a successful pregnancy and retaining fertility becomes easy. All these factors and proven results, make preconception counselling mandatory.
FAQs
Age plays an important role in fertility. As age increases, the sperm count or egg count decreases. Since age is a crucial factor, consulting a doctor at the earliest will improve the chances of conceiving by either freezing the eggs or sperm or by using ART methods.
Preconception counselling helps in identifying the underlying risk factors that affect fertility. Early assessment helps in managing the risks and reducing pregnancy complications.
