Chemical contaminants in the environment can have negative impacts on reproductive health and fertility. Here we’ll discuss some actions you can take to reduce the amount of harmful chemicals you come in contact with. From products you use in the bathroom, to the foods you eat, taking the steps below can reduce the chemical contaminants in your environment and may help to improve your fertility, and overall health.

Chemicals in the Kitchen

Here are some ways to reduce the amount of potentially harmful toxins in your kitchen:

1. Buy organic foods as much as possible. Un-organic crops are sprays with pesticides containing many toxic compounds that may interfere with your fertility hormones and contribute to infertility. If you can’t buy organic produce, you can peel the fruits or vegetables (if peel-able) and soak them in filtered water with a bit of apple cider vinegar, then rinse. This will help to remove some of the pesticide residues. 
2. Filtered water. Without a good water filter there may be traces of chemicals, heavy metals and hormone residues in municipal water supplies. Ideally, have an under-the-counter water filter system installed. At the least you can also use a filter jug, pictured on the right.
3. Natural cleaning products. Many mainstream cleaning products contain a lot of nasty chemicals which could be affecting your chances of having a baby. It’s worth switching to natural cleaning products from brands such as EcoStore, which leave out the potentially harmful chemicals. 
4. Use glass instead of plastic. Fake oestrogens, which disrupt hormone balance, can leach from plastic packaging into drinks and food. The softer the plastic the more likely these chemicals are leaching into the contents of the packet. Microwaving food in a plastic container may also cause more of the chemical to enter into the food. Use glass containers as much as possible to store food and use a glass or stainless steel water bottle, not a plastic one. 

Chemicals in the Garden

Steer clear of herbicides and pesticides. These are designed to kill hardy insects and plants so are full of some nasty toxic chemicals. These chemicals don’t just harm their targets, and can have a negative impact on your fertility which is not worth it at all. Deal with weeds without using herbicides and opt out of pesticide use for alternative “pest control” methods which are harmless (for you and the offending little creatures). These can include using barriers like:

• Fencing to keep rabbits out
• Fruit cages or netting (but be careful birds don’t get caught in them if you use nets) to keep birds off fruit trees and bushes.
• Netting over structures to keep butterflies off brassicas.
• Horticultural fleece or mesh to prevent tiny insects and other creatures like flea beetles or carrot root fly (as well as butterflies and larger critters).
• Barriers to deter snails and slugs such as ash, human hair, or lines of rough sand or fine gravel around raised beds and pots.
• Cloches to protect plants – plastic bottles cut in half and placed over individual young brassicas or squashes work well for single plants.

You can also look into companion planting to deter unwanted insects and (carefully) collecting and relocating slugs and snails to at least 100 meters away.

If you live in close proximity to horticultural land, be extra vigilant of when crops are sprayed. Make sure to close all windows and doors. If you can, stay inside or away from home when the pesticide/herbicide vapor is in the air. If it hasn’t rained since the spraying, you may want to hose down the walls of your house and outside areas to reduce the concentration of toxins.

Other Toxins at Home

1. Use eco-paint. If you are painting the interior of your house always use eco-paints when possible to limit your exposure to so many chemicals. Non-eco-friendly paints and solvents contain chemicals which can be particularly harmful to your fertility and unborn child. Additionally, make sure to only paint in the spring and summer when you can leave all the doors and windows open for the fumes to “out gas”.
2. Use second hand furniture. Many brand new furniture items will carry toxic chemicals from the manufacturing process. These take a decent while to “out gas”, so it is safer to buy second hand or antique furniture instead.

Chemicals at the Workplace

Some workplaces regularly spray pesticides. Try to find out if your workplace does this, and which chemicals are being used. Then conduct an online search into the effects of this chemical on fertility. If you find it to be harmful, raise concerns with those in charge at your workplace and take every reasonable measure to limit your exposure to the pesticide sprays at work. 

Electromagnetism

Mobile phones, iPads, laptops, TV’s, microwaves and other electronic devices all expel their own electromagnetic fields which may be interfering with our own and could be negatively impacting our fertility. Here are some steps to take to limit your chance of having your fertility harmed by electromagnetic stress.

1. Avoid using a mobile phone as much as possible and opt instead for good old landline phones to make calls.
2. Limit time in front of a computer or TV. Fertility is thought to be damaged after more than 20 hours a week of exposure. Make sure to turn devices and TV’s off when you are not using them.
3. Remove electrical appliances from the bedroom. This includes electric blankets, TV’s and other electronic devices. Turn phones off overnight. This will allow your body’s electromagnetic field to recover overnight. 

Conclusion

Toxic chemicals lurk in many everyday products from dishwash detergent to new furniture to pesticides in the garden. However, as you have read, there are also many chemical free alternatives you can use instead and other easy steps you can take in order to limit you exposure to harmful toxins and electromagnetism. Taking care to follow these precautions and use chemical free alternatives wherever possible will help protect and improve your fertility, and give you and your partner a better chance of conceiving a baby. 

If you are struggling to get pregnant, acupuncture may be able to be of huge benefit in helping you conceive. It can be used as an alternative treatment or alongside Western medicine treatments like IVF and may be able to improve the results. Call 0800 221 224 to book an initial exam and one of our experienced practitioners will work out the best treatment plan for you. Find out more about how acupuncture can treat fertility here.

References:

This article was based off the book “The Fertility Diet” by Sarah Dobbyn

Dobbyn, S. (2008). The fertility diet: And how to maximize your chances of having a baby at any age. Simon & Schuster. 

Vegan Organic Network. (2023). Dealing with Pests. Vegan Organic Network. https://veganorganic.net/dealing-with-pests/#:~:text=Horticultural%20fleece%20or%20mesh%20to,around%20raised%20beds%20and%20pots