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When to start planning for a baby

If you thought nine months was long enough between boozy lunches for a healthy pregnancy, think again.

US author Heidi Murkoff has penned a new book, What to Expect Before You’re Expecting, in which she suggests at least an extra three months of diet and lifestyle tweaks are needed to help your body prepare for conception.

In Australia, one in six couples of reproductive age experience fertility problems. Sure, you know smoking is bad and folate is good, but there’s so much more you can do to boost your chances of healthy conception, says Murkoff.


Get a check-up

First up, you need a complete assessment of your overall health. Being even moderately overweight or underweight can significantly undermine your fertility so, if necessary, set a weight goal with your GP and decide on a plan to achieve it.

Get recommendations regarding any medications (prescription and OTC) and supplements you take – you may need to switch to fertility-friendly options or doses. And visit your dentist: pregnancy can do a real number on your teeth and gums, and serious periodontal disease can make complications more likely.


Work out smarter, not harder

Take your workout sessions down a gear, say boffins from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology. Their research suggests women who trained to exhaustion, or trained every day, were three times more likely to have fertility problems than moderate exercisers.


Tweak your diet

Adding a prenatal supplement is essential, Murkoff says. Research shows taking one daily for up to a year before you conceive reduces the risk of delivering prematurely, and taking one daily for three months before conception reduces the chance of birth defects.

Diet-wise, you already know you should be eating more lean protein, fruit and veg, wholegrains, low-fat dairy and healthy fats, and avoiding saturated fats, so do that now if you don’t already. This is also the time to cut down on caffeine. But before you collapse in a coffee-deprived quivering heap, take heart: you don’t have to go cold turkey – 200mg (no more than two regular coffees) a day during preconception and pregnancy is OK.


Reschedule your last hurrah

Preconception means phasing out alcohol, not loading up before your enforced nine-month stint as a designated driver. Too much alcohol messes with your cycles – and you want them fully operational and easy to predict when you start trying to conceive. Murkoff advises you limit yourself to “a drink here or there” while prepping. Cheers.