Clinic Blog

The role of chronic inflammation is a topic of great interest to us here at Acubalance. A big part of what we try to do every day is reduce inflammation to improve egg and sperm quality. We have lots of tools at our disposal for this, but first, let’s have a closer look at why.

One of the most common misconceptions (pun intended) that I come across in patients who have recently started trying to conceive is that pregnancy is relatively easy to achieve.

It’s the time of year where people are making or editing their new year’s resolutions. However studies show that about 80% of new year's resolutions fail. If one of your goals this year is to get healthier or have a healthy baby, the following tips can help keep you on track and solidify those healthy habits we know can make a difference.

If you think about it, the brain is often considered the master commander of the body and is involved in reproduction. It is the hypothalamus in the brain, that releases gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) that communicates to the anterior pituitary gland (also part of the brain) to release follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) which then stimulates the follicles in your ovaries to grow follicles each menstrual cycle. It is also the brain (anterior pituitary gland) where luteinizing hormone (LH) is released which is required for the final maturation of your follicle and for it to be released (ovulated) from the ovary.

Many people are struggling right now and not feeling well both emotionally and physically. The January Blues are a real thing for many of my patients and they seem to hit a wall.  The craziness of the holidays, covid fatigue and other factors seem to pile up at this time of year. The good news is that there are some easy things we can do to help pull us out of this funk to allow us to feel good again.

I sat down with Dr. Paul Magarelli of CNY Colorado to ask him what he is doing for his IVF patients to help improve embryo quality and IVF success. These tips can be used for those of you TTC naturally or through medicated cycles like IVF.

I have shared a timestamp below of what we discussed in our interview.   

Your eggs and sperm need fuel. Once an egg and sperm fertilize, they start to rapidly divide into numerous cells. Each time, the genetic/DNA info needs to be copied identically. This requires a lot of energy.

For a menstruating body, we also need to build a lining that is ready and receptive for an incoming embryo to implant. Building a lining (just like building pretty much anything else) requires energy. 

How Many Eggs Based on Age Should You Freeze to Assure Success?

To give you an idea on how many eggs you may want to freeze, I have posted data on predicting live births from egg freezing cycles by age.

IVF Fertility Treatments are more accessible and affordable in BC. That is the goal and I cannot think of anyone more equipped to help make this happen than Penny.

I sat down over Zoom with Penny Blesch, Chief Operating Officer of Olive Fertility Centre and Founder of The Fertility Coalition of British Columbia (The FCBC), where she shared her story of cashing it all in to pay for her IVF to achieve her dream of having her baby.

The short answer is yes.