Yoga May Boost Fertility

Yoga May Boost Fertility

Two new research studies, presented at the 2017 American Society for Reproductive Medicine annual Scientific Congress, suggest that doing yoga may enhance fertility.  The research showed that infertility patients who did yoga had reduced stress and anxiety levels and higher pregnancy rates.

One study from New Delhi looked at pregnancy rates for women who previously had an unsuccessful IVF cycle.  Over 100 women undergoing frozen embryo transfers were included in the study.  They were randomly assigned to either a control group with no yoga or a treatment group that required 3 months of yoga sessions.  63% of women in the yoga group conceived compared to 43% in the control group.

The other study from a team in Chicago presented preliminary findings from a still ongoing research project.  They enrolled 26 infertile patients in online or in-person yoga training sessions.  The preliminary results showed a significant reduction in anxiety scores for patients in both the in-person and online yoga training groups.

American Society for Reproductive Medicine president, Dr. Richard J. Paulson, commented, “We know infertility patients suffer from very high stress levels.  These studies show that yoga represents a promising therapy for reducing patient stress during infertility treatment and even potentially improve outcome of such treatment.”

These studies add to the growing body of medical literature which shows that reducing stress can be beneficial for fertility.  In addition to a psychological benefit, yoga may also have a physiologic benefit for infertile patients.  Yoga can improve a patient’s overall health, which is always good for fertility.

If you’re suffering from infertility, joining a yoga studio may be one thing you can do to improve your chances of being successful with fertility treatment.  You should also speak with your doctor to see what other diet and lifestyle modifications may be helpful.  For more information, visit our Lifestyle & Fertility page.