What is the two-week wait?

The ‘two-week wait’ is the name given to the time between ovulation (or embryo transfer) and your pregnancy test. A time when you are likely very anxiously waiting to see if your attempts to conceive have been successful. If you’re trying to conceive (TTC) it can be a time of heightened anxiety while you wait for test day especially if you have been on this journey for a little while.

What about nutrition?

While there is no magic food that guarantees pregnancy, choosing the right foods can support your body and potentially increase your chances of conception. In this blog post, I have included five nutrients that might be worth considering having in your diet during the two-week wait (but please know that there are many more to be considered).

Please note: It’s important to start thinking about optimising your nutrition before this time. Nutrition to optimise your chances of falling pregnant and having a healthy baby should be started at a minimum of three months before you even start trying to conceive.

ONE. Omega-3

Omega-3 fatty acids have been shown to:

Reduce inflammation
Improve egg quality
Enhance implantation rates

Sources of Omega-3 include:

Fish - salmon, tuna and mackerel
Seafood - crab, prawns and oysters
Seaweed/Nori
Chia seeds & Linseeds

Aim for 2 - 3 servings of oily fish per week, if you can't meet this then supplementation should be considered.

TWO. Nitric Oxide

Nitric oxide is produced from nitrates which naturally occur in foods. These foods have the potential to support implantation as they increase blood flow and nutrient delivery to the endometrium.

Nitric oxide food sources include:

Beetroot
Dark Green leafy vegetables
Spinach
Radishes
Lettuce
Celery
Mushrooms

THREE. Vitamin B6

Vitamin B6 plays a key role in our hormones, one in particular is progesterone (a key fertility hormone). Progesterone is responsible for thickening the endometrium and promoting the implantation of the embryo.

Sources of Vitamin B6 include:

Lean meat and poultry like veal, chicken and pork
Vegetables such as eggplant, cucumber and chickpeas
Grains such as quinoa and fortified breakfast cereals
Herbs and spices like paprika and rosemary
Fish like salmon and trout

FOUR. Bromelain

You might have heard that pineapple is a "fertility boosting" food due to an enzyme called 'bromelain'. At this stage there is actually little evidence to suggest that bromelain increases implantation rates, however, it has been shown to have blood-thinning and anti-inflammatory properties which may be beneficial for implantation.

There is no harm in including pineapple in your diet but since the evidence isn't all that strong around implantation it might not be something to bank on.

FIVE. Soy

There has been some controversy around soy but the truth is that soy is a perfectly healthy food to include in your diet, with studies showing that it is beneficial for fertility. One particular study showed that those who consumed soy foods had higher rates of fertilisation, pregnancy and live births when undergoing assisted fertility treatments. This is thought to be due to the oestrogenic effect of soy that thickens the endometrial lining, which in turn supports implantation.

Try to include more foods like:

Tofu, Tempeh, Edamame and soy products like soy milk and soy yoghurts

Feeling overwhelmed? Let’s start here.

Foods to include during the two-week wait.

Whole grains – contain a whole heap of nutrients that support fertility like fibre, B vitamins and iron. Plus, intake of wholegrains has been shown to increase endometrial lining thickness which in turn can optimise implantation potential. Aim for brown rice, whole grain bread and quinoa.
Beetroot - contains nitric oxide which as we already touched on has the potential to improve nutrient-rich blood flow to your uterus promoting implantation. One study recommends the inclusion of beetroot juice from embryo transfer day may improve embryo implantation into the uterus.
Broccoli - is a great green vegetable to include as it contains lots of folate and vitamin C. Studies have shown that higher intakes of folate and vitamin C intake are associated with higher progesterone levels during the luteal phase which is supportive of implantation.
Salmon - is an excellent source of essential omega-3 fatty acids which contain anti-inflammatory properties, plus, consuming omega-3 fatty acids has been associated with higher chances of implantation and higher pregnancy rates.

Foods to avoid during implantation.

There are also some foods that should be avoided during implantation due to their negative impacts on implantation rates.

Limiting foods which are high GI and sugary foods - these types of food are broken down quickly and cause our blood sugar levels to rapidly rise. There has been evidence to show that regularly eating these types of foods may interfere with our hormone levels which can in turn negatively affect fertility.
Avoid alcohol as alcohol can disrupt your hormone levels which in turn can have an impact on implantation
Reducing the intake of red meat as a high consumption of red meat can have a negative effect on implantation rates.

Feeling overwhelmed?

Do you want some one-on-one support?

Feel free to book in.

References:

DOI: 10.1097/AOG.0000000000000477; DOI: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2016.02.015; DOI: 10.1093/humrep/dex335; DOI: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2014.12.104; DOI: 10.11648/j.ijnfs.20150401.22; DOI: 10.1007/s00404-012-2237-2; DOI: 10.3390/nu7064911; DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fertnstert.2019.07.1334; DOI: 10.1097/AOG.0000000000000477; DOI: 10.3945/jn.115.217620; DOI: 10.1093/humrep/dex233; DOI: 10.1016/j.rbmo.2015.03.007; DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2018.00211; DOI: 10.1093/advances/nmab068; DOI: 10.1093/humrep/deab121; https://www.eatforhealth.gov.au/nutrient-reference-values/nutrients/vitamin-b6