With infertility on the rise, women continue to seek fertility assistance in their reproductive journey, exploring options such as IVF, testing or medications. Northside Hospital has various experts throughout the women’s health system who offer comprehensive care and support to women navigating fertility-related conditions and challenges.
In this Q&A, Dr. Alyssa Liguori, gynecologist, discusses the importance of getting ahead of and treating your reproductive health before, during and after fertility. With her expert insight, all mothers — new, hopefuls, seasoned or future — can feel understood and cared for throughout their journey.
Why is infertility increasing within the United States?
The CDC reported that 13.4%, or roughly 9.7 million women, experience infertility issues each year, and there are many factors that play into that, including an increase in awareness. Though the population rate is not changing, more women are open to sharing their experience with fertility issues via social media. This includes their experiences with PCOS, Endometriosis and fertility-assistance such as IVF.
Because of this, women feel more empowered to look after their reproductive health earlier and visit their doctor to identify, treat and manage a diagnosis well before they are ready for motherhood.
What are some of the biggest causes of fertility issues?
It’s important to note that not all fertility issues come from the mother. In fact, infertility is about 50/50 for males and females. Men should also have their reproductive health checked just as much as their partners.
The biggest cause stems from environmental factors, such as change in diet, rates of obesity and metabolic symptoms. Certain syndromes affect a woman’s hormone levels and ovulation cycle, which can be a huge factor in infertility.
Why are fertility issues hard to recognize/diagnose?
Most women don’t realize they have fertility issues until they are actively trying to get pregnant. If a woman discovers she has trouble naturally conceiving, she needs to be tested and treated accordingly and educated on how to manage the issue before seeing results, which in turn pushes back her pregnancy timeline.
What are the main concerns of women when dealing with fertility issues and what advice do you share?
It’s anxiety-provoking to think about the likelihood of infertility and getting ahead of it. I always tell my patients to look at the loose numbers and follow the process your doctor has put in place. Identify the risk factors for both you and your partner in order to optimize your health and consistently move forward.
What can women do to prevent fertility issues or improve their reproductive health?
Overall health optimization is the answer. Talk to your doctor about your concerns. Pursue lab work and ultrasounds, as recommended. Sometimes dietary changes and weight loss are the answer, and sometimes it’s medication. You can never go wrong with relieving the body of extreme stress, maintaining a normal BMI, exercising regularly and eating clean.
What are the long-term implications of fertility issues?
It all depends on the cause of the fertility issues. However, if you aren’t ovulating on a regular basis, your body could suffer from a hormonal craze, which could cause ovarian cancer. All women, no matter their stage in life, should seek help from their doctor if they are not ovulating normally. Our periods do more than tell us when we’re pregnant, they also tell us when our bodies are not right. It’s important that we listen to what our body is telling us and take action in a timely manner.
Where do you see reproductive health going in the future?
With continuous studies taking place, my hope is that we will have an advanced understanding of what causes fertility-related issues and how best to treat those issues that will optimize a woman’s care.
Learn more about Northside's reproductive health programming.
