- Busy, stressful lifestyles are ‘one of the main reasons women can’t get pregnant’
Lack of regular intercourse is one of the most common problems for couples not conceiving, according to Dr Geetha Venkat, consultant gynaecologist and director of Harley Street Fertility Clinic.
Busy couples tend to plan to have sex when they are ovulating, but don’t realise they could be incorrectly predicting when the woman is most fertile, missing opportunities to conceive, she has warned.
They should actually have sex one day before and after their ‘ovulation window’, as it takes a day for the sperm to reach the egg.
This will also ensure there is always a supply of good sperm in the womb, ready to fertilise the egg and create a baby.
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Couples struggling to conceive should ensure they are having sex at least three times a week, according to Dr Veetha Venkat, consultant gynaecologist and director of Harley Street Fertility Clinic
Dr Venkat told MailOnline that people working longer hours, with stressful jobs and worrying about their finances mean many are too tired to have regular sex.
She said: ‘The typical patient are highly achieving couples with professional jobs.
‘Their life is so busy. They say “we have to look at our calendar to have sex around the time of ovulation”.’
Then, there are other patients where one of the pair travels, and so it is difficult for them to have intercourse more often.
Often, busy, modern life means sex for pleasure is not a priority, Dr Venkat said.
She said: ‘People are so busy, they are tired. They just want to collapse in front of the television.
‘They have mental stress, they might have a stressful time in the workplace. So they lose that sexual feeling.
‘Modern life is leading to these infertility problems for this reason.’
Around 84 per cent of couples will conceive naturally within one year if they have regular unprotected sex, studies show.
Some 92 will conceive within two years, and 93 per cent will become pregnant within three.
The average amount of time it takes fertile couples to get pregnant is 6 months.
Dr Venkat said many couples are simply not aware that to increase their chances of conceiving, they should have sex more often, not only just when they believe the woman is ovulating.
This is because methods used to predict ovulation can be wildly inaccurate, she said.
Many busy couples schedule having sex when the woman is ovulating. But methods of predicting ovulation can be inaccurate, meaning couples miss out on their chance of conceiving
She told MailOnline: ‘It’s actually very difficult to time ovulating. Women look at their temperature or the viscosity of their cervical mucus.
‘Some women don’t have these changes and they use an ovulation predictor kit.
‘But it doesn’t work very well in 100 per cent of the population. It can be deceptive.’
She added that the kits don’t take into account for the fact that some women have irregular cycles, so it’s impossible to time ovulation correctly.
‘Women count 12 days after her period and thinks she’s ovulating, and have sex,’ she said.
‘But she might actually be ovulating on day 25 as her cycle is longer. Then they are missing the chance to fertilise the egg that month.’
She said couples should have sex three times a week in order to have the best chance of conceiving.
‘If they only have sex three days a month they could get the wrong day and miss their chance,’ she said.
Moreover, couples should have sex more often so there is always a supply of sperm in the womb, ready to fertilise the egg.
Sperm is deposited in the vagina near to the cervix, and then starts moving into the cervix and travelling into the uterine cavity (the womb), she explained.
‘The cervix is like a filter or a barrier, so some weak sperm can’t get through,’ she said.
Having sex regularly ensures there will always be a supply of sperm available in the womb to fertilise the egg, increasing the chances of having a baby
The fast-moving, stronger sperm get into the uterine cavity and travel into the fallopian tube – this journey takes about a day in total.
The egg, when it is released, travels along the fallopian tube, and the sperm fertilises it, creating an embryo.
Having sex regularly ensures there will be a supply of sperm available during this time, increasing the chances of having a baby, she said.
Ideally, couples should have sex up to four times a week and also try to plan intercourse one day before ovulation, during the ovulation period, and one day after.
Dr Venkat said: ‘Sperm survives for 48 to 72 hours in the womb.
‘We ask couples to try one day before and one day after so they always have a supply of sperm in the womb ready to fertilise an egg.’
The more sex a man has, the better quality sperm he will have, she added.
Better quality sperm will be able to move through the cervix when it acts as a filter.
She said: ‘Having sex regularly flushes out the old sperm and improves sperm quality.
‘Old sperm contain abnormal sperm, which is not good for fertilising the egg.
The more sex a man has, the better quality sperm he will have. Good quality sperm is better able to fertilise an egg and create a baby, Dr Venkat said (file photo)
‘If men ejaculate more regularly, they release fresh sperm, which collects in the storehouse if sperm in the testicles, and is faster and stronger, better at fertilising the egg.’
If a couple trying to conceive has been having regular sex for more than six months during ovulation and are above the age of 35, it’s vital they see a specialist to check whether there are any underlying fertility issues, she said.
Last year, British scientists crunched data on fertility data on more than 58,000 women and gave definitive on when a woman should start trying to conceive, depending on how many children she wants and whether she will consider IVF.
Women who want to have a big family should start trying for a baby by 23, the study found.
Trying at this age means she will have a 90 per cent chance of having three children, if that’s what she wants.
If she waits until she is 31, her odds of becoming a mother-of-three fall to 75 per cent.
And if she holds on until 35, they drop to just 50 per cent.
A woman who wants two children should start by 27, to have the best chance of success, while 32 is advised for those who would be happy with just one baby.
