More women are postponing conception and pregnancy until they've achieved a few things in life that are easier without kids, like demanding careers and travel. Since your fertility naturally declines with age, it's no surprise that fertility advice is increasingly being sought by women in their 40s. If you're trying to get pregnant and looking for natural fertility boosters, you've probably heard about vitex.
Vitex Agnus-Castus
The chasteberry or chaste tree, sometimes called monk's pepper, is native to Asia. It's scientific name is Vitex agnus-castus, hence the nickname "vitex." Berries from the plant are used to make liquid extract, which can then also be formulated into capsules. You can also add the dried berries to food.
General Reproductive Uses
Vitex is one of several herbs that have become widely known in a number of female reproductive therapeutics. Vitex is reported by some to assist with symptoms and conditions from menarche to menopause. Vitex is said to relieve premenstrual syndrome, or PMS, irregular menstrual periods, recurrent first trimester miscarriage and discomforts of menopause.
Female Fertility Over 40
Your body's ability to conceive and carry a pregnancy naturally declines as you get older. The American Society for Reproductive Medicine says that by age 40, a healthy woman has only about a 5 percent chance of getting pregnant each month. This age-related infertility is primarily due to changes in your ovaries and related hormonal fluctuations. You have fewer remaining viable egg cells for fertilization, plus the cycle of hormones -- gonadotropin releasing hormone, or GnRH; follicle stimulating hormone, or FSH; luteinizing hormone, or LH; estrogen; and progesterone -- begins to vary. This happens gradually at first as you enter your late 30s and more dramatically toward your mid-40s. This is the period of time called "perimenopause" that occurs prior to actual cessation of menstruation. Your perimenopausal phase can take as long as 10 years and begin as early as your 30s. In general, depending on your medical history -- particular regarding any endometriosis, fibroid tissue, abdominal or gynecological surgeries, or pelvic infections -- your healthy uterus remains relatively intact and able to maintain a pregnancy so long as your hormone levels will sustain conception and then a growing fetus. But your ovaries are quite sensitive to passing time and health. Most fertility medications are specifically formulated to make up for ovulation disorders, regardless of the patient's age. If your body is in a perimenopausal state, you likely experience disrupted ovulation, whether occasionally or often, which decreases your ability to conceive.
Vitex for Fertility
In an article at OBGYN.net, naturopathic physician Nancy Dunne, N.D., lists several studies documenting vitex's uses for fertility issues. In one large sample, women with corpus luteum sufficiency reported significant improvement from the use of vitex. Sometimes called luteal phase defect, or LPD, this is a condition that can result if your body's hormonal balance is consistently out of sync. Dr. Dunne also reports that other studies demonstrate vitex's ability to help regulate women's reproductive hormones, notably progesterone. The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine notes that chasteberry may affect hormone levels, ease breast pain, called mastodynia, and "some types of infertility," but they add that not enough scientific evidence exists yet to conclusively say the herb has an effect.
Herbal Fertility Medication
If you're a woman over 40 years old and are already experiencing naturally decreased fertility, then the use of herbs to enhance your chances of pregnancy can be an inefficient treatment avenue. Fertility specialists who prescribe herbal treatments, such as traditional Chinese medicine or Ayurvedic physicians, recommend you engage in diagnostic testing before setting out on any therapeutic path. Time is the problem. Women who are in their 40s already have a lessened chance of pregnancy and statistically, their chances decrease rapidly. You can have disrupted reproductive hormones without noticeable symptoms. If the diagnostic process reveals that your situation warrants treatment, a health-care practitioner can advise you on what therapies will work best and fastest for your situation.
Caution
The mechanism of how vitex actually works is not clearly understand, as described by Boon and Smith in their book, "The Complete Natural Medicine Guide To The 50 Most Common Medicinal Herbs." The authors advise that neither children nor pregnant women should use vitex, nor should women taking hormones, whether as oral contraceptives or other replacement therapy. Also specifically contraindicated: dopamine antagonists haloperidol, an antipsychotic, and metoclopramide, a prescription medication for treating gastrointestinal reflux disease.
References
- National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine: Herbs at a Glance: Chasteberry
- American Society for Reproductive Medicine: Age and Fertility
- OBGYN.net: Vitex (Chasteberry) and Fertility
- Seattle Reproductive Medicine: Luteal Phase Defect
- "The Complete Natural Medicine Guide To The 50 Most Common Medicinal Herbs"; Chaste tree; Heather Boon, Michael Smith; 2004.
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