How to Take the Stress Out of Your Fertility Diet
Being on the fertility journey is hard.
Then you find out you have to give up most of your favorite foods such as coffee, wine, gluten and dairy! As if you are not stressed enough with daily life, the Pandemic and pregnancy woes now you are asked to give up some of your favorite foods. But don’t worry, I have some solutions for you.
As a Functional Nutritional Therapist and trained Chef who has been on the fertility journey myself and hates to give up pleasurable foods, I have developed some tasty alternatives.
Let’s begin with our morning routine.
When you first wake up you normally want a nice hot cup of coffee. As an alternative, try switching it out with a similar tasting brew that has all the roasted goodness of coffee but is much better for your liver. Some of my favorite coffee alternatives include; Dandyblend, which is an instant brew made from roasted dandelion, Rasa, Teeccino and Four Sigmatic which offers herbs blended with mushrooms. I know these sound a bit strange at first, but give it a try and see what you think.
Coffee
You can also craft your own herbal ‘coffee’ drink with herbs such as roasted chicory, dandelion, burdock and licorice. This blend of herbs gives you the rich taste as well as a nutty finish and is excellent for detoxing and reducing inflammation. A simple and pleasurable quick drink is to take your Dandyblend and whip it into a frothy latte with some ghee and coconut butter. Add in a pinch of cinnamon and this drink will rival any old cup of morning joe!
Alcohol
When the evening rolls around and you just want to relax with a nice glass of wine, instead reach for the sparkling water topped off with a flavored sipping vinegar. I know, I know, it's not exactly the same. But once you get used to this refreshingly tart drink that doesn’t leave you foggy the next morning you will want to have more. The benefits of sipping vinegars abound. Vinegar is great for the digestive system, decreases bloat and is perfect as a before or after dinner drink. If you enjoy the bubbles you can switch it up for a flavored kombucha, poured into a fancy wine glass and sipped on while you relax in a well deserved bath.
Gluten
Switching out gluten is a bit more tricky because you really should read all of the ingredients on any packaged gluten free food as they can be filled with a lot of sugar, soy and cheap oils like canola that cause inflammation. A great gluten free alternative for crackers are Mary’s Gone Crackers or Simple Mills. There are even rice based crackers and so many other options. Just be sure to read the fine print on the ingredient list so you are not getting in any added inflammatory oils like canola, soy, vegetable or sugars. If you love a crunchy snack, try the different varieties dipped in hummus or guacamole. They are the perfect gluten free snack. For a gluten free bread there are some keto brands that are pretty tasty such as Base Culture or for a tasty sourdough that is egg free try Bread Srsly, when you need a bread fix. In general though when you start to eat a nutrient dense diet of quality protein, fat and fiber you will not even miss the sandwiches!
Dairy
Dairy can be easier to switch out. Try making your own nut milks, which are much cheaper and whip up in a flash with a blender. The store bought ones often have preservatives and stabilizers in them, so you do need to read the ingredients or try making your own. The recipe is quite easy, just by taking a handful of soaked nuts and blending them with fresh water and a pinch of salt you have your nut milk all ready to add into smoothies, or splashed into your tea. Cashew milk does not even need to be strained and is rich and creamy. The other nut milks do need to be strained but you can save the pulp for use in muffins or other baked goods. You can even get creative and add in a pinch of cinnamon or a couple of dates to sweeten up your milks. Pour on top of your favorite oatmeal with added berries, cinnamon and pumpkin seeds! There are great yogurt alternatives such as coconut and some people can even handle sheep or goat milk yogurt versus cow milk which most people are more sensitive to. This is why testing is so critical as we are all unique and bio-individual. We all have different needs and it is best to test and not guess. For some people good quality grass fed dairy can be very nutritious, but for others it can be very inflammatory. Have you done any testing on this?
Each Person Is Unique
Each person is so unique in what food is best for them so instead of lamenting about what you have to give up, let this be an exciting time when you can get back into the kitchen and start to experiment with new creative combinations. The kitchen is a place where you might not have spent much time, so turn on some good tunes and pour a glass of bubbles, (kombucha that is) and let your creative juices flow. Remember to light some candles at the dinner table, take a moment to give thanks for all that you and your partner have and for the food you have created, then enjoy the fruits of your labor!
The best outlook is to find tasty alternatives to your favorite foods, this way you are not giving up anything, just simply replacing them with a better alternative for your body and your baby in the making! Once you start to make some of these changes, take note of how you feel. Are you more refreshed in the morning? Studies show that drinking alcohol at night will disrupt your sleep pattern and sleep is a critical time for our body to heal. How is your digestion? Do you feel less bloated after meals and more energized by eating a nutrient dense diet or are you tired and sluggish when eating a heavy carb loaded meal? Your body is always giving you signals and it is time to pay attention to what she is telling you. If you have not cut out the gluten, dairy, alcohol and caffeine yet, why not give it a try and see how you feel.
Let me know as I would love to hear about how you are feeling and what practices you have put into place to make this happen.