Fertility Boosting Salad Tips

Have you been trying to conceive for longer than 6 months? Have your test results come back with normal results? You could be one of the 1 in 8 couples that get diagnosed with unexplained infertility.

I was one of these people, but after I took on the role as my own fertility coach, I fell pregnant and now have 3 beautiful children. Diet played a key role in helping me fall pregnant, so I’ve outlined some tips for you.

Salads are an easy way to get a good variety of superfoods into your diet.

Tweaking your diet slightly, can increase your chances of conception by lowering FSH, balancing your level of the progesterone, lowering inflammation, and balancing your thyroid hormones.

When trying to conceive, you have to be careful in how you prepare a salad, you don't want to lose the most important micro-nutrients.

Here are my top tips:

DON'T EAT RAW VEGETABLES - Such as broccoli, cauliflower, kale, cabbage, arugula, brussel sprouts, parsley, radish, spinach, zucchini, asparagus, leek, beetroot, sweet potato as your body will lose energy for digestion which is needed for good blood flow to increase the quality of your ovaries and uterine lining.

THE BEST WAY TO PREPARE RAW INGREDIENTS IS TO STEAM THEM - This helps to preserve all of the micronutrients and makes them easy to digest

ADD SEEDS TO YOUR SALAD - The most important fertility booster, seeds are small in size but big in vitamins and minerals. And you can enjoy so many in salads.

Here are a few of our favourites:

• Sunflower seeds (high in magnesium, vitamin B6, Vitamin E and boosting progesterone level)

• Sesame seeds (boosting fertility seeds, rich of calcium, Omega 6 fatty acid , supporting progesterone production and zinc)

• Flax seeds (high in calcium, Omega 3 fatty acid, reducing an ovulary cycles, helping lengthen the luteal phase)

• Pumpkin seeds (high in minerals for hormonal balance and boosting the healthy estrogen level and moderate the bad estrogen (estrogen, hydroxyestrone)

YOU NEED HEALTHY FATS AND PROTEINS - It’s advisable to choose organic ingredients for your salad.

Protein - organic chicken - organic beef - organic turkey - organic salmon - shrimp - lentils & pulses

Fat - walnuts, almonds, walnut oil, virgin olive oil, pecans, macadamia nuts to mega superfoods - organic avocado (natural folic acid, balance endocrine system) - olives (lower inflammation, balance hormone, special PCOS and endometriosis issues can add double portion of olives to the salad).

CHOOSE THE BASE

Green lettuce like romaine, red lettuce, green lettuce, butterhead lettuce. Minimise iceberg lettuce as it has a lower amount of micronutrients.

USE A GLASS OR PORCELAIN BOWL FOR YOUR SALAD

Avoid plastic silicone bowls

ADD PINEAPPLE TO THE SECOND HALF OF YOUR CYCLE

If you try to conceive add pineapple to your salads in second part of your cycle (bromelain, an enzyme mixture present in pineapple, helps the implantation of an embryo).

RECIPE > Kale, chickpea, avocado salad with lemon virgin dressing

Easy recipe rich in fertility vitamins, minerals, healthy fats and decreasing FSH

Ingredients :

• Kale salad - rich in folate, vitamin A

• Chickpea - plant based protein and fiber, balancing blood sugar, and increasing healthy oestrogen

• Avocado - balancing hormone levels, natural folate Olives - lower inflammation, balancing hormones

• Egg - vitamin A, vitamin B5, vitamin B5, vitamin B12, vitamin B2 selenium, zinc, vitamin D, choline, calcium, folate

• Sunflower seeds - magnesium, vitamine E, vitale B6 Walnuts ( magnesium, heathy fat, supporting hormone balance )

Instructions:

1. Steam kale for 3 min, put in the glass bowl. Add 5 tablespoons of chickpeas, cut slices of avocado. Boil for 7 min.

2. Boiled Eggs - cut slices and add to the bowl between chickpeas and avocado

3. Add organic olives cut them half , mix them with the chickpeas

4. Add 7 walnuts, chop and sprinkle on top of the salad

5. Add 2 tablespoons of sunflower seeds

Dressing Ingredients:

• Virgin olive oil

• Walnut oil

• Fresh lemon juice from one lemon

• Parsley

• Garlic

• Salt and pepper

Instructions:

1. 3 tablespoons of olive oil plus one tablespoon of walnut oil

2. Squeeze in the lemon juice

3. Finely chop or crush the garlic into the mixture

4. Add the parsley, salt and pepper

5. Mix all the ingredient together

Dress the salad and enjoy. Bon Appetit.