12 health and safety tips to follow when you’re trying to conceive

If you think the to-do list only starts once you become pregnant, think again. Even if you’re just in the very early stages of thinking about starting a family, there’s a number of things you should be across to help make the journey into parenthood as healthy and safe as possible.

In what may be an obvious one to start with - if you’re planning to start a family, reducing your alcohol intake (or better still, ditching the booze altogether) while you’re trying to conceive limits the risk of consuming alcohol in the early stages of pregnancy. According to Better Health Channel, no amount of alcohol is considered a ‘safe’ amount, and even small amounts of alcohol in the early stages of pregnancy can impact a child’s development.

Plus, being pregnant can take its toll on your body, so the last thing you’ll want is to feel hungover and dehydrated from alcohol consumption. Set yourself up for success.

Like alcohol, it’s best to quit smoking and vaping before trying to fall pregnant—and that goes for both parents. Apart from the health risks associated with smoking to yourself and an unborn child, it can also decrease your fertility, as the toxins in tobacco can harm sperm and eggs.

Have a chat with your GP about a pathway to quitting smoking before you try to conceive, to set yourself up for success and reduce the risk of any potential harm.

This one often gets forgotten about, but book an appointment to see your dentist before you try to conceive. Gingivitis (a.k.a. early gum disease) is common during pregnancy and can cause bleeding while eating or brushing your teeth, so it’s good to have your gums and oral hygiene checked out before you fall pregnant. X-rays are also a no-go if you’re in your first trimester, so it’s best to get any dental work out of the way beforehand.

Your healthcare practitioner can guide you as to which prenatal supplement is best for you, but taking a supplement ensures your body is getting all the necessary nutrients it needs to create the perfect environment for a baby. Folic acid is another key prenatal supplement, but again, chat to your GP before you start taking anything.

Author’s note: Avoid prenatal supplements that have loads of fish oil. They tend to have a very fishy aftertaste. Trust me.

Exercise is good for us anyway—it helps us move our body and is good for our mental health.

Australian guidelines recommend at least 30 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity (like a brisk walk, or dancing).

Not only that, but when it comes to Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART), Your Fertility, a government-funded health initiative, says moderate regular exercise can actually improve your fertility and the chance of having a baby through ART. 

“Studies of the effects of exercise on fertility have found that vigorous exercise reduces the risk of ovulation problems and that moderate exercise decreases the risk of miscarriage and increases the chance of having a baby among women who undergo ART.”

Plus, the fitter you are, the more it’ll help you on the big day—after all, birthing a child is a marathon in itself. Once you’re pregnant, it’s all about maintaining exercise your body is already used to—pregnancy is not the time to start long-distance running.

Author’s note: One of the best things I did for myself in the lead up (and during) pregnancy was to work on strengthening my pelvic floor. Childbirth can have some serious effects on this area, but doing regular exercise meant that after childbirth, I maintained a strong pelvic floor and didn’t require any kind of physio or recovery work. I recommend Core and Floor Restore with B for easy, engaging and helpful videos.

Falling pregnant is just a numbers game, right?

Wrong.

You can only fall pregnant when you ovulate—and this window occurs once per cycle. While you can hazard a guess as to when you might be ovulating, like tracking your period, testing your basal temperature and looking at changes in your discharge, getting an ovulation tracker can help take out the guesswork. It’ll show you your luteinising hormone (LH) and human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) levels, giving you accurate indications of when you ovulate and thus your fertile window.

There are a bunch of foods to avoid when you’re pregnant—think fish with a high mercury content, plus things like raw eggs, deli meat, sushi and pre-packaged food, each carrying risks like listeria and salmonella. Get yourself prepared for pregnancy and have a look at the list of foods to avoid. Some women will ditch these foods when trying to conceive so they don’t risk consuming any in the very early stages of pregnancy.

Your nan has probably told you ‘It’ll happen, just don’t stress!’ but of course, that is easier said than done sometimes. Still, this is a good time to take stock of any stressors in your life and consider any changes to your lifestyle to decrease these stressors. There’s not a lot of concrete, definite evidence to suggest that stress has a direct cause of infertility, but at the very least, being stressed all the time doesn’t exactly put you in the mood for the, erm, technical side of starting a family.

Don’t wait until you’re pregnant to see your doc, book an appointment when you decide you would like to start a family so your GP can go through any concerns and questions you might have. They’ll likely organise some tests too, like checking for any STIs you or your partner might have. STIs can affect your fertility, so it’s best to check for these beforehand and get onto any required treatment asap.

A GP will also look at any prescription medications you’re currently taking and make sure they’re suitable to take during pregnancy.

When you book that appointment with your GP, they’ll go through which vaccinations you’ll need to make sure you’re up to date and protected. When you’re pregnant, your immune system is weaker, so every bit of extra protection helps. Whooping cough and COVID will likely be on the list if you’re not up to date, as will vaccinations for Hep B, measles, mumps and rubella.

Not everyone does this, and it does come with a price tag, but a genetic carrier screening tests for any genetic mutations in you or your partner that could cause health concerns for any future children. It’s done by either a blood test or saliva test and looks for several possible conditions, like cystic fibrosis, though it doesn’t pick up all health conditions.

This one can be quite confronting, but some would-be parents prefer to be armed with any knowledge of potential health issues down the track beforehand. Chat to your GP about whether you would like to do a genetic carrier screening before conceiving.

We’re not saying go on some crazy diet—in fact, far from it. But this is the time to nourish yourself with foods that make you feel good—lots of veggies and fruit, whole grains, legumes, lean meat and fish. Not to sound corny, but you are what you eat, so if you eat nourishing, delicious balanced meals, that’s how you’ll feel.

Starting a family looks different for everyone. Some people will find this journey easy and stress-free, while for others it will be more challenging and complex. Remember to look after yourself, be realistic about the timeframe for conceiving, and chat to your GP if you have any concerns.

Author’s note: After 12 months of being unable to conceive, we booked an appointment with a fertility specialist, who suggested I may have Endometriosis. Turns out, I did! After the surgery, I was able to fall pregnant within 5 months. If you feel like something isn’t right (especially pain) chat to a doctor or fertility specialist to try and get to the bottom of it, and listen to your instincts.

NOTE: This article is general information only. For detailed personal advice, you should see a qualified medical practitioner who knows your medical history.