Category Archives: Informative articles

Chemical pregnancy is a type of early miscarriage which happens around the menstruation date, which is why many women never find out they were pregnant.

Symptoms

Symptoms are heavy bleeding and cramping. It is devastating to have a chemical pregnancy after a positive test. However, chemical pregnancies are a sign that you can get pregnant.

Embryos with chromosomal abnormalities are the primary cause of chemical pregnancies. Other causes include clotting problems (the so-called thrombophilia), thyroid problems, endometriosis, chlamydia, syphilis.

Many women who are trying to conceive experience a chemical pregnancy. If you have had 3 consecutive chemical pregnancies, you need some further testing. Other than that, this does not mean you’ll never be a mother and the good news is that you can continue with your attempts to get pregnant immediately.

When they hear the word “stress,” most people think of something bad and harmful. In many cases, however, stress is useful – it helps us better adapt to our environment and become better at what we are doing. A good example of this is working out, which subjects our body and muscles to stress but it is the only way to get stronger and more resilient. So, you should not be concerned about stress per se but rather about it becoming too much.

Pregnancy is accompanied by a number of changes, some of which invariably increase the level of stress in your life.

For pregnant women too much stress increases the risk of premature birth, low birthweight and high blood pressure. Stress hormones such as cortisol reduce your body’s ability to deal with pathogenic bacteria and viruses. This results in an increased risk of infections which lead to pregnancy complications.

HOW to DEAL with STRESS during PREGNANCY?

1. TALK TO WOMEN who HAVE GIVEN BIRTH! For many pregnant women, pregnancy itself becomes a source of stress. The baby’s health and delivery pain are among the most common causes of stress. Fortunately, a conversation with someone who has already been through it all can be very calming for most pregnant women.
2. DO NOT WORK TOO MUCH! If you decide to continue working while you are pregnant, it is better not to overload yourself with additional tasks. You are growing a whole new person inside of you and that is worth slowing down for.
3. EAT HEALTHY and WORK OUT REGULARLY (with your doctor’s permission). Proper nutrition and regular physical activity will improve your mood and ease the discomforts of pregnancy.

Beware and remember that the period of pregnancy is one of the most wonderful moments in life before birth. Have fun and enjoy every moment!

Dear friends,

Cancer is undoubtedly a very serious diagnosis. Prophylaxis and timely diagnostics are the best routes to successful treatment. We should not forget, however, that quality of life following treatment is not any less important. What contributes more to a

good quality of life than family and children?

That is why fertility preservation is especially important for patients who have not had children yet.

WHY CHEMO- and RADIOTHERAPY DECREASE FERTILITY?

Cancer treatments aim to destroy rapidly dividing cells. However, this group of cells is not limited to cancer cells. It includes the cells of the gastrointestinal tract, of hair follicles, the ocytes and the spermatozoa. Therefore, there are many side effects associated with chemo- and radiotherapy, including a decrease in fertility. The extent of this decrease depends on the medications and the dosages used, the doses of radiation used in the radiotherapy as well as the fertility status of the patient before the start of the therapy and her/his age.

In all cases, however, the safest way to preserve your fertility is to freeze your eggs/ sperm before the chemotherapy/radiotherapy commences.  The frozen samples can be used at a later time for in vitro fertilization or intrauterine insemination depending on the case.

If you or someone you know finds themselves in a situation like this, share this information with them! Unfortunately, it is still not common practice amongst oncologists in Bulgaria to refer their patients for gamete freezing.

Dear friends, most of you love the aroma and taste of coffee, but how it аffect over our body will be discussed in the following publication.

A cup of coffee in the morning?

Sure, but you have to be careful if you are trying to conceive.

HOW MUCH COFFEE is TOO MUCH?

According to a popular research article published in the prestigiousmedical journal the Lancet in 1988 “women who consumed more than the equivalent of one cup of coffee per day are half as likely to become pregnant, per cycle, as women who drank less”. This finding was explained by the fact that caffeine, present in coffee, tea and chocolate, is a vasoconstrictor (e.g. it makes your blood vessels constrict). This was thought to result in reduced blood supply to organs, including the uterus, which in turn meant lower chances of becoming pregnant.

The subject was further investigated in a number of research articles published more recently and none of them find scientific evidence for such a correlation between coffee and fertility. It has been proven, however, that women who consume more than 900 mg of caffeine per day are more likely to have an early abortion.

So, in conclusion, it would be wise to cut back on caffeine when you are trying to conceive. That way it would be easier for you to stay away from it once you are already pregnant.

What is the ALTERNATIVE?

Psychologists claim that decaffeinated coffee can work as a placebo and give you a boost of energy. In order to “trick” your brain, put decaf coffee in a “normal” coffee container. This way you can enjoy your drink without worrying it will affect your chances of getting pregnant.

Dear friends,

This week we decided to talk to you about vitamins, more specifically vitamin D. “Why is this vitamin important, how it affects your body and whether it can harm you” are some of the questions that we will focus on.

The most famous role of vitamin D is associated with absorption of calcium in the small intestine. But its benefits do not stop there. Deficiency of vitamin D plays an important role in the development of autoimmune diseases, cancer, and fertility problems.

Vitamin D receptors

The female reproductive system has vitamin D receptors. The active form of vitamin D (calcitriol) affects the genes involved in the production of estrogens. Calcitriol supports embryo implantation as well as immune cells in the uterine cavity that protect it from infections during pregnancy. Deficiency of vitamin D during pregnancy is associated with some complications such as high blood pressure.

Vitamin D is especially important for women who are about to undergo an IVF procedure. According to several studies, there is a correlation between the levels of vitamin D in the body and the success of the in vitro procedure.

Therefore, adequate levels of vitamin D in the body are a necessity. I stress the word “adequate” because vitamin D, as well as vitamins A, E and K, are fat-soluble and are stored in the liver. Excess of these vitamins cannot be excreted with the urine and they can be overdosed, which means that the prescribed dosage must be followed strictly.

Dear friends,

As many of you know an IVF procedure includes egg retrieval following hormonal stimulation, egg fertilization, culturing of the resulting embryos and return of the best embryos to the uterus of the patient (the so called “embryo transfer”). The maximum number of embryos that can be returned to the uterus of the patient is strictly defined and detailed in Ordinance №28 of the Law for Assisted Reproduction. That number is dependent on the patient’s age, the number of previous unsuccessful IVF procedures and the developmental stage the embryos (e.g. Day 3 or Day 5).

It is important to know, however, that the transfer of 2 embryos is done NOT in order to achieve a twin pregnancy but in order to increase the chance of a pregnancy, regardless of whether it is a singlet pregnancy of a twin pregnancy. The embryos with the best morphology are transferred during the fresh embryo transfer, in other word the ones that look best. However, the embryologist can never know which embryo will implant, because there is no 100 % correlation between embryo morphology and implantation potential. That is why transferring more than 1 embryo increases the chance of achieving a pregnancy but it also significantly ups the risk of a twin pregnancy.

Consult your obstetrician-gynecologist/ fertility specialist to help you decide what the best option in your case is!

In general, regular exercise decreases stress and helps maintain weight close to optimal values which is especially important when trying to get pregnant. Although weight loss and diet changes are recommended for overweight women. Before getting pregnant, that does not necessarily mean a restrictive diet and a heavy workout routine to get quick results. Those would not increase the chances for pregnancy, they would merely lead to skyrocketing levels of the stress hormone cortisol, fatigue and possibly even injury.

Too much or too intense

Too much or too intense exercise in normal weight/underweight women is also not a good idea. As well as the unnecessary stress for the body, heavy exercising could result in very low levels of body fat. Fat tissue is necessary for achieving pregnancy, because it is one of the sites of estrogen synthesis (family of female sex hormones). Low estrogen levels are related to irregular menstruation (oligomenorrhea) or the complete lack of menstruation (amenorrhea). Of course those are rare cases, which happen mostly to professional female athletes.

So, do not give up on sports, but be wise when practicing it!

Dear friends,

As many of you know New Life clinic has a contract with a European Bank for donor sperm, which gives you, our patients the opportunity to choose from more than 100 sperm donors.

HOW to CHOOSE the RIGHT DONOR FOR YOU?

All donors are young men, aged 18 to 40 years old, with excellent sperm quality and negative test results for common genetic diseases in the European population (e.g. Thalassemia, Cystic Fibrosis and others). Donors are also tested for the compulsory transmissible diseases (Hepatitis B and C, HIV and Syphilis).

The information provided about each donor on our list consists of:

–        Race/ Ethnicity

–        Blood type

–        Height and weight

–        Natural hair and eye color

–        Education/ Occupation

Although different things are important to different patients, if you have a partner, it is good for the donor to have the same blood type as your partner or you. If you and your partner are 0+ and A+ (the two most common blood types), for example, it is generally not biologically possible for you to have a child with a different blood type.

If the female patient is with a negative Rhesus factor (Rh –), the donor should also be Rh –. The idea is to minimize the risk of the so called Hemolytic disease of the newborn, where the immune system of the mother attacks the red blood cells of the baby due to the presence of a certain protein on their surface.

If you have any doubts or worries regarding the choice of a donor, do not hesitate to talk to us!

He changes in your body during pregnancy also affect your skin. It can get dry, oily or it can develop acne or pigmentation. Some of the products you put on your skin can affect the fetus, so it’s important to know which ingredients are safe and which are not.

HOW to DEAL WITH ACNE?

Popular solution: A product with salicylic acid that can be absorbed through the skin and, in high doses, harm the fetus.

Alternative during pregnancy: Products containing glycolic or lactic acid. For even better results, combine with procedures with blue light which has an antibacterial effect and is completely safe.

ANTI-AGING CARE

Popular solution: Retinoic acid (vitamin A), which stimulates cell division and is one of the most commonly used anti-aging products, also suitable for the treatment of acne. Unfortunately, it is also “on the blacklist”.

Alternative: Creams with vitamin C, which is a powerful antioxidant, brightens the complexion and smoothes the skin.

SUN PROTECTION

Popular solution: Chemical sunscreens with oxybenzone as the main active ingredient. Chemical sunscreens generally provide less protection from UVA rays compared to physical sunscreens. They also penetrate the skins and can harm the fetus.

Alternative: Physical sun protection creams (! not sprays!) with the active ingredients zinc oxide and titanium dioxide. According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration these compounds are not absorbed through the skin and are safe for you and your baby J.

WHICH COSMETIC PROSEDURES are SAFE?

Procedures such as laser hair removal, fillers, botox, peels with high acid percentage and microdermabrasion are contraindicated. Pamper yourself with a facial or various moisturizing treatments instead. Be sure to warn the cosmetologist that you are pregnant so the procedure can be tailored to your needs.

It is advisable to consult a specialist about skin care during pregnancy. If you have used any of the above mentioned “harmful” substances, do not worry too much, just replace them with a safer option

Is sunbathing allowed during pregnancy? Yes, but only if you follow some rules.

The hormonal changes that occur with pregnancy make the skin more sensitive to the sunrays, which means you can get sunburnt much faster. In addition, exposure to sun without proper sunscreen worsens  hyperpigmentation (eg, chloasma, acne scars). Use sunscreen with the active ingredient TITANIUM DIOXIDE that is not absorbed through the skin and does not reach the fetus.

Pregnancy predisposes the body to overheating and dehydration, which can reduce blood flow to the placenta and the delivery of nutrients to the fetus. The fetus also receives warmth from the placenta and the uterus, hence overheating of the mother can cause fetal overheating. How to avoid these problems? Stay in the shade between 12 and 16 hours when the sun is the strongest and drink between 2 and 3 liters of fluids per day. And if you cannot swim, now is the time to learn! Swimming strengthens the heart, muscles and is not hard on the joints.

Do not give up entirely on the sun! Vitamin D synthesis begins in the skin thanks to UV rays. Vitamin D is needed for the metabolism of calcium and phosphorus, the immune system and bones. Deficiency of vitamin D is associated with an increased risk of preeclampsia.

Even though summer heat and humidity are unpleasant, you can still enjoy the hot summer months while you are pregnant. Listen to your body for a healthy and relaxing summer.