Female Infertility – Why Does It Happen?
Infertility Women Causes – The Major Causes of Female Infertility
The female’s ovulation capability is a vital component of conception success. In short, a woman who has no means of producing an egg will have zero chance of conceiving. The primary indicators of a potential problem with ovulation are either totally absent or intermittent monthly menstrual periods.
Real Life Situations
Two common situations involving a woman’s ovulation are PCOS and POI. Polycystic ovarian syndrome affects the normal course of ovulation and is defined as a hormal problem. It is the highest recorded cause of female infertility.
Primary ovarian insufficiency can also happen; it’s a condition when the proper functioning of the ovaries fail before the female turns 35 years of age. POI is often mistaken to be early menopause, which is a different condition.
Other Related Causes
There are other uterine problems that also contribute to infertility.
- Uterual Fibroids (i.e. non-cancerous bumps on the uterine walls
- Congested Fallopian tubes because of ectopic pregnancy surgery, pelvic inflammatory disease or endometriosis
- Physical issues with the uterus
Factors That Increase Infertility Risks
Aside from problems with one’s health, genes and lifestyle factors can also contribute to female infertility. To include:
- Tobacco and alcohol use
- Lousy diet
- Getting older
- Too much physical activity
- Stress
- Under or overweight conditions
- Infections that are sexually transmitted
- Health issues that affect the body’s hormone producing abilities
Infertility Women Causes - The Age Factor
Many working women nowadays do not have children until their 30s and 40s…and one-third of the total number of fertility issues involve women who are more than 35 years old.
How Does Age Affect Fertility?
- Ovaries deteriorate over time, and this affects their egg-releasing capability
- Older gals produce less eggs
- The eggs of an older woman are less healthy
- Older women may experience healthy issues that interfere with her fertility
- Incidence of miscarriage increases with age
Drugs To Stimulate Fertility
These drugs are often prescribed for women who have fertility problems.
- Clomiphene citrate: Often recommended for women with PCOS and hormonal related malfunctions. You might recognize it as Clomid, its popular brand and is taken orally.
- Human menopausal gonadotropin: hMG is an injection used to stimulate the ovaries directly so that egg formation occurs. Popular brands include Repronex and Pergonal.
- Gonadotropin-releasing hormone analog: Gn-RH is a medication often prescribed for women who don’t ovulate regularly. It acts on the pituitary gland to influence the timing of ovulation. It can be purchased either as a nasal spray or in injection form.
- Follicle stimulating hormone: The FSH is also an injectable and acts on the ovaries to encourage ovulation. Common brands are Follistim and Gonal-F.
- Metformin: Metformin is recommended for women with either PCOS or insulin resistance. This drug, usually taken with FSH or clomiphene, is designed to balance out the male hormone levels in the female body and help women ovulate.
- Bromocriptine: Prolactin is a type of hormone that helps mammary glands increase its milk production. Medium to high levels of prolactin may affect ovulation and cause it to stop. Bromocriptine acts directly on prolactin, slowing it down, so that ovulation can occur.
Multiple Birth Risk
While fertility inducing drugs are highly successful at helping women have a baby, they also have a high chance of developing multiple fetuses. Females with multiple fetuses have the higher risk of developing pregnancy problems than women who carry a single fetus. More than one fetus in the womb increases the risk for premature birth…and a prematurely born baby is more at risk of having health problems as he or she grows older.
Fertility drugs can also cause ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome, a medical condition which has life threatening implications.
Because of the increased risks to health plus the rising cost of assisted reproductive technology, infertility problems have addressed with alternative methods minus the adverse effects. These remedies cover a range from natural treatments which are intended to assist the body in repairing itself. Some of the common alternative therapies include Chinese medicine, acupuncture and nutrition-based treatments.
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