Improving Egg Quality After 40 Naturally

A woman's chances of becoming pregnant naturally decline with age, so if you've found yourself reading this article in search of ways to enhance egg quality after 40, you’re probably already familiar with most of the statistics that proclaim this.

Even though there is little we can do to stop the natural decline in number of eggs as we age, there are fertility supplements you may take, dietary adjustments, and lifestyle modifications you can make to improve the quality of your eggs after 40 and increase your chances of becoming pregnant.

For women over 40, the chances of getting pregnant can feel impossibly small due to declining egg quality and ovarian reserve. However, there are effective natural therapies that can help improve egg quality after 40 by enhancing ovarian function, balancing hormones, reducing oxidative stress, and promoting overall reproductive wellness. With a holistic approach, many women can boost their fertility potential.

The importance of egg quality in women

A woman's eggs develop with all the genetic material they'll ever have by the time she is born. This finite ovarian reserve starts dwindling throughout her life through monthly ovulation. Some women continue to be fertile in their 40s and some women in their 20s and early 30s experience infertility. What is mostly true is that by age 40, most women have lost 90% of their ovarian reserve.

Older women will have fewer eggs in number, and can also struggle with consistent egg quality. Aging increases the likelihood of eggs having chromosomal abnormalities or other defects that can prevent healthy fertilization or embryonic development. Poor egg quality is one of the barriers but not the only barrier to natural fertility and IVF success rates in women of advanced maternal age.

At least 50% of infertility is related to problems with male reproductive issues. Studies show that the degrading of sperm DNA is related to poor embryo development and repeated miscarriages. This means that males need to take supplements as well and make dietary and lifestyle adjustments to improve their health and sperm quality.

Acupuncture can improve blood flow to the ovaries

Acupuncture, a form of alternative medicine and a component of traditional Chinese medicine is one way you can improve egg quality. One of the primary ways that natural therapies like acupuncture can boost egg quality in older women is by increasing circulation and blood flow to the ovaries. The ovaries rely on a steady supply of nutrient-rich, oxygenated blood to function properly and produce viable eggs.

By inserting fine needles into specific acupoints on the body, our acupuncturists can stimulate increased blood flow to your ovaries and other reproductive organs. Multiple studies have found that women receiving consistent acupuncture treatments responded with a higher number of high-quality, mature eggs during IVF cycles compared to those not receiving acupuncture.

The improved ovarian blood flow delivers vital components like proteins, hormones, antioxidants, and growth factors, creating an optimal environment for egg development and maturation. Better circulation also helps remove waste products that could potentially damage delicate egg cells.

How does acupuncture regulate hormones?

After age 40, women's reproductive hormone levels can fluctuate erratically month-to-month and year-to-year. Disruptions in the natural hormonal balance and cycling of FSH, LH, estrogen, progesterone, and other key hormones can interrupt the ovulation cycle and make it difficult to ovulate with regularity or achieve successful implantation.

Acupuncture has clinically been shown to help regulate and normalize hormones that are critical for ovulation and fertility. By prompting better hormone modulation, it can help restart regular ovulation and menstrual cycles in older women. This allows for higher-quality eggs to be released during each fertile window, increasing the odds of natural conception.

Herbal therapies & improved diet

Acupuncture is a safe and wonderful option for older women who wish to become pregnant, but it’s not the only therapy we have at our disposal to improve reproductive health. Certain herbs and herbal medicine used in traditional Chinese medicine have therapeutically been used for centuries to enhance egg quality and ovarian function. When delivered by an experienced herbalist, customized herbal medicine has been used to restore fertility in many women over the age of forty.

Dietary choices also play an important role in a woman’s fertility success over 40. Certain superfoods like dong quai, cinnamon, peony, and chaste tree berries promote better egg maturation and ovarian response. Supplements like CoQ10, alpha lipoic acid, melatonin, and vitamin E also demonstrate protective benefits for egg quality.

Managing oxidative stress

As women get older, their eggs become increasingly vulnerable to oxidative damage from free radicals and inflammation. This oxidative stress can impair egg quality by harming DNA and disrupting proper cell division and maturation of the egg. Reducing oxidative stress is crucial for improving egg quality after 40.

Prioritize a good night’s sleep

Undoubtedly, getting enough sleep is essential to leading a healthy lifestyle, but did you also know that it has a direct impact on the fertility and quality of eggs? Our bodies heal damaged tissues, replenish energy reserves, and produce reproductive hormones when we sleep. Getting a good night’s sleep will allow for the production of eggs that are both high-quality and healthful.

The hormone melatonin, which is produced at night, is essential for controlling sleep and maintaining the quality of eggs. Melatonin may help with ovulation, embryo growth, and oocyte quality in addition to improving reproductive capabilities, according to research. We recommend maintaining a balanced diet, stress management, and limiting your screen time before bed to naturally raise your body's synthesis of melatonin.

Changes in lifestyle

Changes in your lifestyle not only affect overall health but can also be beneficial for improving your egg quality after 40. Regular exercise can support healthy hormone levels and a healthy pelvic floor. Practicing mind-body techniques like yoga, breathwork, and meditation can directly counter the effects of stress on fertility. These practices lower cortisol levels, reduce inflammation, improve circulation, and promote a state of hormonal balance more conducive to ovulation and egg health.

We also highly recommend massage therapy and a good stress management program. We encounter stressors everywhere and over time, we tend to bottle up all of our anxieties in our muscles, causing pain. Prolonged stress leads to elevated cortisol levels, too, and that also negatively affects your egg quality.

It is evident that smoking is deleterious to health but most people don’t know that vaping also has a negative impact on health and on fertility. Numerous health issues are linked to smoking, and studies have shown that it lowers the quantity and quality of eggs produced. Egg cells' DNA is mutated by chemicals found in cigarettes. These altered eggs are regarded as low-quality and frequently unstable for fertilization.

Whatever may be contributing to your fertility struggles, Integrating Healing Arts offers a wide variety of treatment methods. We’ll sit down with you one-on-one to discuss your fertility goals and help you plan a treatment protocol that suits you.

Book an appointment with us today

The path to conceiving after 40 can be challenging, but effective natural solutions do exist. Even for women who have struggled with infertility for years, it's not too late to potentially improve egg quality through holistic therapies and with the help of acupuncture.

At Integrative Healing Arts, we develop customized natural fertility plans that integrate acupuncture, herbal medicine, mind-body coaching, nutritional counseling, and other services. Book a consultation at our clinic today to get started on your customized natural fertility plan.