Weight Loss Should Be The First Treatment For Obesity Related Infertility!
On 5th May 2017, Ms Sarika Shukla, 30, 5 feet 2 inches tall, 93 kg young lady came to me, looking for my help in losing weight that apparently was preventing her from conceiving even after 3 or 4 years of expensive and frustrating fertility treatments that had failed completely, under a well known Pune gynecologist. After spending a few lacs and undergoing two expensive laparoscopies, a doctor relative severely admonished her and sent her to me.
She had also spent huge amounts on trying to lose weight on a few heavily advertised, self-styled slimming centers in Pune, without any success, before coming to me.
I had hoped against hope that she would lose at least 25 to 30 kg weight before she conceived.
No such luck!
Put on a healthy nutritional plan and regular walks, she lost some 4 kg and conceived naturally in a month’s time.
She delivered a healthy baby, absolutely safely, without any complications during pregnancy or delivery.
A few years earlier, a 28 year old, 5 feet tall, 70 kg young lady was referred to me by a top infertility expert in Pune. The lady, whose name I am not at liberty to disclose, is the daughter in law of a famous construction family in Kothrud, Pune and both husband and wife are ayurvedic doctors. She was unable to conceive even on extensive fertility treatments as well as ayurvedic treatments, after suffering from nine miscarriages! Needless to say that she was more sad and depressed than Sarika.
I assured her that we would overcome her problems in a few months and that she should relax, get happy and positive and stop worrying about pregnancy and that everything will fall in place when she loses weight healthily.
She lost 18 kg with me, lost all her gloom, became happy and positive and conceived naturally, without any fertility treatment. This time the slim and fit young lady had no complications of pregnancy and delivered a healthy baby safely.
She too had spent a fortune on many obesity clinics in Pune, without losing weight.
Today millions of women all over the world are suffering from PCOD, menstrual dysfunctions and anovulation, lower conception rates, infertility, higher miscarriage rates and a higher rate of complications during pregnancy.
Most ladies suffering from PCOD are overweight or obese, many of them also suffer from hyperinsulinemia and insulin resistance, some of them also suffer from hypothyroidism and many have difficulty in conceiving or are infertile.
The easily perceivable common condition running in most of these ladies is obesity. What is less easily perceivable is that many of these ladies may eat bad and may have sedentary lifestyles.
I have been helping young ladies all over the world, overcome obesity, often with PCOD, history of one or more miscarriages and also infertility, for three and a half decades.
In actual practice, I have found that the root cause of obesity and PCOD, and obesity-related miscarriages and infertility, are bad eating and sedentary lifestyles with an almost complete absence of any physical activity.
World over, most such ladies are directly put under hormonal fertility treatments, without being told to eat better, take up some exercise and lose weight before taking up infertility treatments.
I am sure, most of these ladies will conceive naturally, without any fertility treatments, if only they ate well, at least walked regularly, stopped thinking about pregnancy constantly, became happy and positive and lost weight healthily.
I have demonstrated this fact in my practice repeatedly over the decades!
Unfortunately, most times, such ladies either come to me directly, or a few are referred to me by their gynecologist or infertility specialists, only after all possible fertility treatments have failed.
Once they are put on healthy, balanced nutrition and they start walking regularly, most of them conceive naturally, most often much before they have lost all the weight they need to lose, often by the time they lose 8 or 10 kg, sometimes much less!
Ideally, they should slim down optimally, but since they are not taking any preventive measures, many conceive naturally in a month or two. Losing maximum excess weight protects them from miscarriages and complications during pregnancy and childbirth.
Since obesity, hypertension, diabetes, heart disease, strokes and all the above diseases that accompany obesity, have assumed epidemic proportions in our country too, obesity clinics, slimming centers, weight loss treatments of every hue have sprung up in Pune and all over India.
Few selling these so-called weight loss treatments really know what works long term and either force starvation or painful exercises on their hapless victims! Neither works long term!
It is vital that the lady aspiring to be a mother loses weight on completely healthy, balanced nutrition and gets fit, happy and positive.
A bad weight loss treatment with bad nutrition is also most likely to harm the health of the fetus and also cause miscarriages on its own.
It is wonderful for the pregnancy and the mental and physical health of the baby if both parents are happy, healthy, positive, slim and fit and are free of addictions like smoking, drinking or drugs, at the time of the conception.
I always strive to help couples struggling with obesity-related infertility to achieve these goals, the rest falls in place automatically!
Also read the ‘Testimonials’, ‘Health Problems Of The Young: PCOD’ and the ‘Slim Women Are Healthy Women’ articles on this website.