Appendix

image A Week of Meals image

We’ve laid out a week’s worth of meals below so you can get a feel for how to fit in your fertility foods with ease.

SUNDAY

Breakfast: Sourdough or sprouted toast with avocado and a fresh seasonal fruit salad

Lunch: Bacon Tomato Quiche with Cauliflower Crust

Dinner: Basic Roast Chicken and Root Veggie Purée and a simple salad

MONDAY

Breakfast: Thick strained yogurt with fresh berries and raw honey

Lunch: Bacon Tomato Quiche with Cauliflower Crust

Dinner: Slow Cooker Beef and Mushroom Stew

TUESDAY

Breakfast: Mini-Frittatas and Creamy Delight Smoothie

Lunch: Leftover Slow Cooker Beef and Mushroom Stew

Dinner: Monica’s Chicken Liver Pâté and raw cheese on crackers

WEDNESDAY

Breakfast: Creamy Egg Drop Soup

Lunch: Monica’s Chicken Liver Pâté and raw cheese on crackers

Dinner: Simple Veggie Soup with homemade chicken stock (made from Sunday’s chicken bones)

THURSDAY

Breakfast: Hard-boiled eggs and sourdough or sprouted toast with butter

Lunch: Leftover Simple Veggie Soup

Dinner: Mustard-Crusted Salmon and Wilted Dandelion Greens with Lemon and Feta

FRIDAY

Breakfast: Green Soup with leftover Mustard-Crusted Salmon

Lunch: Green salad with hardboiled eggs and Ranch Dressing

Dinner: California Burgers

SATURDAY

Breakfast: Bacon and eggs with a side of sauerkraut

Lunch: Ceviche and Coconut Oil Tortilla Chips

Dinner: Eat out and relax! (Order oysters, pâté, or bone marrow if it’s on the menu!)

image Glossary of Medical Terms image

AMH (ANTI-MÜLLERIAN HORMONE): In women, AMH is a hormone secreted by the granulosa cells in the ovary. AMH levels predict ovarian reserve and decline with age.

ART (ASSISTED REPRODUCTIVE TECHNOLOGIES): This is a term used to describe methods of achieving pregnancy by artificial or partially artificial means, including IVF, IUI, and ICSI.

D&C (DILATION AND CURETTAGE): This is a surgical procedure wherein the cervix is dilated and the uterine lining is scraped with a tool called a curette. This performed in the case of missed miscarriage, abortion, or other uterine conditions.

E2 (ESTRADIOL): A female steroid hormone produced by the mature ovarian follicles and the adrenal cortex, it prepares the uterine lining for implantation and plays a significant role in maintaining reproductive health. It is used synthetically in ART.

FSH (FOLLICLE STIMULATING HORMONE): This is a hormone produced by the pituitary gland that signals the ovary to develop a follicle. Numbers tend to climb as we age because the ovaries’ ability to produce estrogen declines.

GNRH (GONADOTROPIN RELEASING HORMONE): This is a hormone produced by the hypothalamus, which signals the anterior pituitary to secrete LH and FSH. It is also referred to as luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone.

HSG (HYSTEROSALPINGOGRAM): This is a radiologic procedure used to visualize the shape of the uterine cavity and to check for tubal patency.

ICSI (INTRACYTOPLASMIC SPERM INJECTION): This is a laboratory procedure wherein a single sperm is injected directly into an egg, for the purpose of overcoming male infertility.

IUI (INTRAUTERINE INSEMINATION): This is a procedure wherein sperm is deposited into the uterus via a fine tube (catheter) threaded through the cervix.

IVF (IN VITRO FERTILIZATION): This is a procedure wherein a woman’s ovaries are stimulated to produce multiple mature eggs, followed by their removal. Once removed, they are fertilized in a laboratory and returned to the uterus three to five days later as embryos.

LH (LUTENEIZING HORMONE A.K.A. LUTROPIN OR LUTROPHIN): This is a hormone produced by the anterior pituitary. In women, an acute rise in LH (the LH surge) triggers ovulation and the development of the corpus luteum. In men, it stimulates the production of testosterone.

OB-GYN (OBSTETRICIAN-GYNECOLOGIST): This is a doctor who specializes in delivering babies and in the treatment of female gynecological conditions, including surgical procedures.

P4 (PROGESTERONE): This is a hormone secreted by the corpus luteum during the luteal phase that stimulates the uterine lining to prepare for pregnancy.

PRL (PROLACTIN): This is a hormone released by the anterior pituitary gland that stimulates the production of milk following childbirth.

RE (REPRODUCTIVE ENDOCRINOLOGIST): This is a surgical subspecialty of obstetrics and gynecology. Where physicians are trained to evaluate and treat hormone function as it pertains to reproduction and infertility.

TSH (THYROID STIMULATING HORMONE): This is a hormone secreted by the pituitary gland, which controls the release of T4 by the thyroid.

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