Apart from having sex there are a range of factors that can affect your ability to conceive. If you want to boost your fertility here’s what you need to know.

1. Eat more healthily

“The nutrient depletion of much of our food with pesticides and additives has left many of us deficient in the vitamins and minerals that we need in order to conceive,” says Dr Marilyn Glenville author of Natural Solutions to Infertility (www.marilynglenville.com). For this reason, she suggests putting healthy dietary advice into practice at least four months before you start trying for a baby.

Diet musts:

• Eat a wide range of fruit and vegetables – this will add essential fibre to your diet, which reduces excess oestrogen levels, and help clear out old hormone residues.
• Eat more nuts, seeds and oily fish – essential for Omega 3 and 6 essential fats, which are vital hormonal balance and selenium – a powerful antioxidant for optimum fertility.
• Eat less meat – this is because the saturated fat in animal products stimulates oestrogen production reducing your chance of conceiving.

2. Quit smoking

Cigarette smoke has been shown to decrease fertility levels by as much as 50%. This is because couples that smoke have high levels of cadmium, a heavy toxic metal that stops zinc (essential for fertility) from being absorbed into the body. Cigarette smoke also increases the risk of miscarriage, stillbirth, and placental damage.

3. Cut your alcohol intake

Alcohol has been shown to poison sperm and damage ovum before conception has even taken place. Researchers in Denmark and at Harvard University have also found that women drinking five or fewer units of alcohol a week were twice as likely to conceive within six months as women drinking double that amount. Experts suggest restricting alcohol to 1 -2 glasses of wine a week for maximum benefit and giving up smoking for good.

4. Lose weight

Being overweight lowers fertility, plus puts you at a greater risk of gestational diabetes, which is dangerous for your health and that of your unborn baby. Losing just a small amount of weight can reverse this and stimulate ovulation plus increase your chances of conception. For more help see Health for Parenthood and Eating well - for your baby and for you leaflets from MIDIRS (midwives information resource service www.choicesforbirth.org)

5. Gain weight

On the other side of the coin, a low body weight, with low body fat, lowers fertility because ovulation is hindered. Research also shows dieting and over exercising interferes with the balance of hormones in the body making it harder to conceive. The good news is one study showed that nearly three quarters of women with unexplained infertility managed to conceive naturally once they returned to a normal weight.

6. Reduce your stress

Studies have shown that stress can affect a man’s sperm count and the quality of his sperm and in women it can affect your ability to conceive and even stop you ovulating. If stress is a factor for you, then it’s worth learning some form of relaxation, or stress management.

7. Get your man in on the act

Infertile and sub-fertile men are often deficient in the antioxidant selenium, which helps make healthy sperm. Get your partner to take a supplement that gives him 100 mcg a day. Make him avoid tight underwear and prolonged sitting as this can raise the temperature of his testicles and so reduce the quality and quantity of sperm.

8. Cut out the lattes

A study in the medical journal The Lancet showed that drinking more than four cups of coffee a day decreases your fertility and can halve your chance of conceiving.

9. Avoid recreational drugs

That’s both soft and hard drugs. Taking recreational drugs infrequently or only at weekends will still have an effect on your fertility.

10. Exercise, but not too much

“Exercising to excess or not exercising at all is not good for fertility,” warns midwife Zita West. “The benefits of just 30 minutes a day is by comparison countless. Not only will regular help reduce stress levels and regulate blood sugar, but it will also promote good blood circulation to the reproductive organs.”