If you're planning to become pregnant, schedule an appointment with your doctor to discuss your current health and ways you can prepare your body. Eating a healthy diet increases your chances of conceiving and of having a healthy pregnancy. Being overweight or underweight may cause fertility problems, and your eating plan should help you reach your ideal weight. This is also an important time to avoid nutritional deficiencies and remove harmful substances from your diet.
Healthy Eating
Poor nutrition can cause problems with ovulation, leading to irregular periods and difficulty conceiving. Make sure that you eat several servings of fruits and vegetables daily, along with lean protein, whole grains and foods high in calcium. Nutrition is important for your partner as well. Men need sufficient amounts of vitamins C and E, zinc and folic acid to produce healthy sperm.
Supplements
A healthy diet can provide all the essential vitamins and minerals your body needs, but a supplement is a good way to fill in any gaps. While trying to conceive, you should take a daily multivitamin that includes 400 mcg folic acid. You can also increase your consumption of foods rich in folic acid, such as dark green leafy vegetables like spinach or kale, citrus fruits, nuts, legumes, whole grains, and fortified breads and cereals. This vitamin is critical for the earliest stages of development that occur in an embryo. Boost your levels of folic acid before becoming pregnant to decrease the risk of neural tube defects and miscarriage.
Caffeine
The research on caffeine and conception is mixed. Moderate amounts of caffeine appear to be safe, while higher levels may place you at risk for miscarriage. If you consume more than 300 mg caffeine per day -- the equivalent of three small cups of coffee -- you may need to cut back. Remember to consider all sources of caffeine in your diet, including coffee, tea, chocolate, soft drinks and sports drinks.
Alcohol
Drinking any type of alcohol can decrease fertility and make it harder for you to get pregnant. Doctors have not been able to establish any safe levels of alcohol for pregnant women. Drinking during pregnancy can cause fetal alcohol syndrome, low birth weight, as well as many birth defects, so you should eliminate alcohol from your diet before conceiving.
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