A bowl of cereal for breakfast like porridge could help a woman conceive. Research has found that eating foods rich in vitamin B6 can more than double the chances of becoming pregnant.

Women who have plenty of B6 in their diet are also only half as likely to miscarry during those critical first 12 weeks of pregnancy. This study adds to the growing evidence of vitamin B6’s role in reproductive health as millions of women already taking vitamin B6 supplements to combat premenstrual syndrome and alleviate morning sickness.

It is thought that vitamin B6 plays a key role in the development of the placenta. The U.S. researchers looked at how levels of vitamin B6 affected the reproductive health of more than 300 healthy young women who were trying for a baby. Scientists measured levels of vitamin B6 in the women’s blood and checked their hormone levels every day for a year. The results revealed a clear link between vitamin B6 and fertility.

Those with the highest levels of the vitamin were 2.2 times more likely to conceive than those with the lowest levels. The women were also half as likely to miscarry in the first six weeks of pregnancy, the American Journal of Epidemiology reported. Earlier work by the same researchers showed that vitamin B6 appeared to ward off miscarriages later in pregnancy and halve the risk of premature birth.

For fertility, it is better to take additional vitamin B6 in supplements, the easiest way to do this is to take a multi-vitamin and mineral which contains B6 along with folic acid and other nutrients which are known to help fertility. The one I use in the clinic is called Fertility Plus for Women.

This entry was posted on Sunday, July 1st, 2007 at 3:10 am and is filed under Fertility, In the News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.