Could Your Poor Sleeping Habits Be Impacting Your Fertility?

We are living through the most chronically sleep-deprived generation in human history, and that’s bad news if you’re hoping to have kids soon.

There are a number of contributing factors to leading a healthy lifestyle. Many people believe that eating well, working out, and staying positive are a few of the main ones, and it’s true. But while these behaviors can help a normal person on a day-to-day basis, what about women who are trying to conceive?

Women are most fertile between the ages of 20 and 24. But even young women may experience issues with infertility. Those struggling may try to eat healthier, work out, and stay positive to move the process along, but there is actually another behavior that can impact infertility. That additional factor is sleep and the lack of it.

Couples looking to get pregnant have probably heard something along the lines of “get as much sleep while you can now” a time or two over the course of their journey. According to the Reproductive Resource Center of Kansas City, new research has proven that getting sleep now isn’t only important because there will be a lack of it in a few months. The research shows that there is actually a pretty direct connection between sleep deprivation and infertility.

If you’ve been struggling to get pregnant and have visited an infertility clinic, you’ve probably heard the term “FSH Levels” or follicle-stimulating hormone levels. These levels control the menstrual cycle, and FSH is at its highest levels immediately before a woman ovulates. Research has recently shown that the fewer hours of sleep you get, the lower your FSH levels are going to be. In fact, if a woman gets about seven to nine hours of sleep a night (which is generally recommended for anyone), their levels may be as much as 20% higher than a woman who gets less sleep than that.

Women who tend to work the night shift, or what has come to be known as the “infertility shift”, have a harder time getting pregnant due to their lack of sleep. Attain Fertility says their menstrual cycles tend to be irregular, making it harder to conceive. But if a woman is working the night shift and still gets decent hours of sleep, their infertility may suffer due to their circadian rhythm. Since a woman working that shift isn’t actually dealing with the standard patterns of light and dark, their circadian rhythm will not function normally.

Getting the proper amount of sleep is key for anyone. Lack of sleep can cause accidents or hinder your performance on the job, claims Harvard University. But getting ample sleep is key for a woman trying to have a baby. Without a normal sleep pattern or enough sleep, major issues regarding infertility can rise. Read more or visit our website or normal sleep pattern.