Diet & Lifestyle Tips to Boost Fertility

By PULSE Clinical Content

Clinically reviewed Dr Sim Beng Joo TCMPB T1303003A

Updated 22 Aug 2026 Published 7 Nov 2023

In brief

Cut sugar-sweetened drinks first: regular intake is linked with up to 50% lower fertility in men and women. Start diet changes about three months before conception, fill lab-proven nutrient gaps, and pair TCM plus stress care with BMI windows before IVF or pregnancy. In Singapore about one in six couples are affected; a dietitian or fertility consult personalises the plan.

Context

What infertility means in clinic language

WHO · Singapore prevalence · both partners

The World Health Organisation defines infertility as a couple’s inability to conceive after one year of regular, unprotected sexual intercourse.

Globally, about 15% of couples are infertile. In Singapore, about 1 in 6 couples are affected. Among those cases, roughly 39% relate to female factors, 20% to male factors, 26% to a combination of both, and 15% have no obvious cause (unexplained fertility).

Risk factors span lifestyle, diet, weight, age, medical conditions, stress, and sleep. After age 35, egg numbers and egg quality often decline, yet infertility can still appear in the early twenties and deserves investigation. In men, a low sperm count is defined as fewer than 15 million sperm per ml; abnormal sperm function or blockages also matter. Diet and weight levers below apply to both partners, not only the person carrying the pregnancy.

Singapore infertility factor split often cited in clinic education
Factor	Share of affected couples
Female factors	About 39%
Male factors	About 20%
Combined male and female factors	About 26%
Unexplained fertility	About 15%

For the TCM seed-and-soil map behind these numbers, see understanding fertility from a TCM perspective.

01 · Diet

1. Change your diet

Diet is the first lever dietitians review before conception or beside IUI and IVF. These moves are clinic levers, not a one-size meal plan.

1. Sugar-sweetened drinks and fertility

Regular intakes of sugar-sweetened beverages have been associated with reduced fertility in men and women by up to 50%. Cutting back is often the first diet change worth making, whether you are trying to conceive on your own or beside fertility treatment.

2. Start about three months before conception

Begin diet adjustments ideally about three months before conception. That window gives time for habits, supplements when needed, and lab follow-up to settle before an embryo or pregnancy asks more of the body.

3. Check labs and fill nutrient gaps

A fertility check or blood analysis may reveal nutritional deficiencies that can affect fertility and carrying to term. Supplements belong in that window when labs show a gap, not as a generic stack copied from a forum.

4. Integrative TCM and Western diet framing

During fertility prep, diet and lifestyle still matter for internal balance. PULSE dietitians advise an integrative diet approach from both TCM and Western perspectives, matched to your pattern, labs, and treatment timeline rather than a fixed food list.

Dietitian meal-plan consult for fertility nutrition at PULSE

Programme

Personalise diet with Medical Nutrition Therapy

A clinical dietitian can set labs, supplements, and meal structure before conception, from both TCM and Western perspectives.

Explore Medical Nutrition Therapy Book Appointment

02 · Alternative treatments

2. Consider alternative treatments

TCM · acupuncture · herbs · moxibustion · stress care

In TCM, infertility is often framed as imbalance of the kidney, liver, and spleen. That imbalance can affect conception for both partners and disrupt the menstrual cycle. Irregular cycles often travel with ovulatory dysfunction. Male infertility commonly presents with forms of Kidney deficiency, including with ageing.

Unexplained fertility still benefits from a constitution and internal-balance assessment. Care may include acupuncture, herbal medicines, and moxibustion while preparing to conceive. One TCM treatment cycle typically lasts three menstrual cycles. Some people need two to four cycles (up to about a year) to support IVF or IUI success or to boost chances of natural conception. Cold-womb patterns are one common fertility map; see what it means to have a cold womb.

During preparation, diet and lifestyle still matter for balance. Pair TCM care with the diet levers above, or book Medical Nutrition Therapy when labs and meals need a dietitian plan.

TCM patterns

Six patterns often linked with infertility

This list is not exhaustive. A physician names the pattern that fits your pulse, tongue, cycle, and history.

1. Kidney yin deficiency (肾阴虚)

Less nourishing Kidney yin can leave heat signs, thinner lining support, and poorer seed quality in clinic language.

2. Kidney yang deficiency (肾阳虚)

Cold, low energy, and weaker Kidney yang often sit with colder extremities and slower reproductive warmth.

3. Blood and qi deficiency (气血虚)

Weak Blood and qi can show as fatigue, pale flow, and less stable nourishment for follicles and lining.

4. Blood and qi stagnation (气血瘀滞)

Stuck qi and Blood may bring clots, sharp pain, or poorer local circulation that physicians watch when assessing uterine readiness.

5. Liver qi stagnation (肝郁气滞)

Stress and negative emotion commonly stagnate Liver qi. In Singapore, work stress is a frequent driver. Stress management sits beside TCM when this pattern leads.

6. Phlegm and dampness (痰湿)

Phlegm-damp patterns can cloud ovulation clarity and sit with weight, bloating, or heavy, sticky presentations in clinic notes.

Stress management

IVF stress needs a safe space

Psychology · Liver qi · IVF load

Unmanaged stress can reduce the ability to conceive. IVF adds daily hormonal injections, repeated transvaginal scans, partner strain, relationship load, and cost.

A psychologist or therapy offers couples a place to process feelings, build strategies, and regulate emotion while medical protocols continue. Care can sit beside TCM when Liver qi stagnation and stress stack together.

Book a psychologist when fertility stress will not settle, or read the TCM stress and fertility guide for body signs physicians watch.

03 · Lifestyle

3. Change your lifestyle

Overweight and underweight both alter hormones that regulate ovulation in women and sperm production in men. Body-fat quantity and distribution can disrupt reproductive hormone balance.

1. BMI windows for women

Higher body fat can raise insulin resistance and estrogen, thicken periods, and raise anovulation risk. Women with a BMI above 27 are about three times more likely than women in the normal weight range to be unable to conceive because they do not ovulate. Egg quality can still suffer even when ovulation occurs. Underweight can bring irregular cycles or amenorrhea, leaving fewer ovulatory months.

2. IVF and time to conception

IVF is often not recommended when BMI is below 19 or over 30. Being overweight (BMI 25 or above) or underweight increases conception duration by about 2 times and 4 times respectively, and can worsen IVF success. Excess weight also makes ovarian monitoring harder and raises egg-retrieval complication risk.

3. Male lifestyle load

In men, excess weight can reduce sperm quality and change sperm structure. Smoking, excess alcohol, heat exposure, inactivity, pollutants, and radiation add further load on sperm health.

4. Sort weight before pregnancy load

Sort out weight and lifestyle first, in a healthy way, before the added complications of pregnancy. A dietitian and physician can set a safe pace that fits fertility timelines. Book a fertility consult below when diet, TCM patterns, and weight need one coordinated plan.

Clinically reviewed

Reviewed by Dr Sim Beng Joo

Advisor (Science & Strategy) / Consultant Physician · TCMPB T1303003A

MOH-licensed TCM physician and biomedical scientist, with clinical work in digestion, pain, sleep or fatigue, and women's health patterns.

View full profile

Educational information based on clinical experience, nutrition guidance, and TCM principles. Not a substitute for personalised consultation, reproductive medical care, or urgent attention. Speak with your physician, dietitian, or fertility specialist before starting supplements, herbs, or major diet changes in pregnancy or with a chronic condition.

FAQs

Fertility, diet, and lifestyle

Common questions before a first dietitian or fertility-support visit.

Do sugar-sweetened drinks reduce fertility?

Regular intakes of sugar-sweetened beverages have been associated with reduced fertility in men and women by up to 50%. Cutting back is one of the first diet levers dietitians often review before conception or beside fertility treatment.

When should I change my diet before trying to conceive?

Start diet adjustments ideally about three months before conception. That window may include supplements when a fertility check or blood analysis shows nutritional gaps that can affect fertility and carrying to term.

What TCM patterns are linked with infertility?

TCM often frames infertility as imbalance of the kidney, liver, and spleen. Common patterns include Kidney yin deficiency, Kidney yang deficiency, Blood and qi deficiency, Blood and qi stagnation, Liver qi stagnation, and phlegm and dampness. One treatment cycle typically spans three menstrual cycles; some people need two to four cycles (up to about a year) beside IVF, IUI, or natural conception plans.

Can a psychologist help during IVF stress?

Yes. IVF routines (daily injections, repeated scans, cost, and partner strain) can raise stress that further weighs on conception. A psychologist offers a safe space for couples to process feelings and build emotion regulation strategies alongside medical care.

Which BMI ranges affect IVF and natural conception?

Women with BMI above 27 are about three times more likely not to conceive because they do not ovulate. IVF is often not recommended when BMI is below 19 or over 30. Overweight (BMI 25 or above) or underweight can increase time to conception by about 2 times and 4 times respectively, and can worsen IVF success and egg-retrieval monitoring.

References

Selected sources