Family Health Matters

Top 3 Biggest Mistakes To Avoid When Trying To Conceive By Lauren Risberg / Getting Pregnant / June 10, 2015 If you're having trouble conceiving, you're not alone – chances are someone you know is having trouble too. Fertility problems are on the rise in the United States. As of the CDC's 2010 National Health Statistic Report,  1 in 6  American couples have trouble getting pregnant or sustaining a pregnancy compared to  1 in 10  couples in 1990. Most women spend decades of their lives trying to avoid pregnancy.  When they decide to conceive, many women are surprised and frustrated to learn that it’s not so easy for them to get pregnant after all. “Many of us conflate our self-worth with our ability to reproduce, so we perceive failure to conceive as a central failure to our personal identities as men, women, husbands, and wives.” A couple is generally diagnosed as "infertile" after twelve months of unprotected intercours...

How Many Days can Sperm Live in a Woman's Body? By Kati Bicknel / Women's Health / February 21, 2013 Dear Kindara, How many days can sperm live in a woman’s body? -Summer, 24 Boston, MA Hey Summer!The lifespan of sperm in a woman’s body is largely dependent on one thing:  cervical fluid . A woman’s cervical fluid provides the sperm with the nutrients they need to survive during their journey to the ovum. The typical lifespan of sperm in a woman’s body while fertile cervical fluid is present is three days, but in the right conditions sperm can even live up to five days. This is an incredible feat compared to the brief lifespan of a mere few hours when there is no cervical fluid present. This is why tracking cervical fluid is crucial to understanding your fertility. With nutrient-rich, fertile cervical fluid, sperm can live longer in the woman’s body. Therefore they have more time to reach the egg or just hang out until the egg is released. This means...