Trying to Conceive: Does Relaxing Really Work?
If you haven't had a nosey spectator deliver this little gem of information about trying to conceive yet, consider yourself lucky! But unfortunately, it's one of most well-known pregnancy myths out there that you have to relax to get pregnant. Only, now it's been proven true by researchers at the National Institutes of Health and Oxford University.
It's been long known that a lot of stress can cause your reproductive system to work less efficiently. ItÂ’s a part of the "fight or flight" survival mechanism, whereby a substance called alpha amylayse secretes into saliva in response to stress. Until recently, there was no strong evidence that typical levels of stress will affect your ability to conceive.
But a new study found a link between stress and fertility that just might add some validity to the old myth. Researchers found that the top quarter of women with the highest levels of alpha amylayse were twelve percent less likely to conceive than the women with the lowest levels in their saliva.
Of course, the old myth implies that only totally mellowed out mamas can count on hitting the reproductive lottery—something that would seriously reduce the number of babies born each year. But the study proves that there just might be something to the idea that relaxing leads to pregnancy. So if you're trying to conceive, it won't hurt to lower your stress levels.
Check with your doctor whether stress-reducing methods like acupuncture, massage and/or exercise are right for you while you are trying to conceive.
report abuseIt's been long known that a lot of stress can cause your reproductive system to work less efficiently. ItÂ’s a part of the "fight or flight" survival mechanism, whereby a substance called alpha amylayse secretes into saliva in response to stress. Until recently, there was no strong evidence that typical levels of stress will affect your ability to conceive.
But a new study found a link between stress and fertility that just might add some validity to the old myth. Researchers found that the top quarter of women with the highest levels of alpha amylayse were twelve percent less likely to conceive than the women with the lowest levels in their saliva.
Of course, the old myth implies that only totally mellowed out mamas can count on hitting the reproductive lottery—something that would seriously reduce the number of babies born each year. But the study proves that there just might be something to the idea that relaxing leads to pregnancy. So if you're trying to conceive, it won't hurt to lower your stress levels.
Check with your doctor whether stress-reducing methods like acupuncture, massage and/or exercise are right for you while you are trying to conceive.
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