KissMeGoodnight Article Series: Fertility
Fertility & Conceiving A Baby Explained

What Are The Infertility Signs In Women And Men?

Are there signs of infertility that can help you know if you might be infertile without taking any tests at the doctor's office?

Keep in mind that the chances of getting pregnant in a particular month for a normal, fertile couple who are having unprotected sex is only 25%. This means that on average, fertile couples will conceive after 4 months.

But that's statistics - it does not mean that every couple with no fertility problems will conceive after 4 months. Some women get pregnant the first time they have sex. Others, statistically, will not conceive for many months. It does not necessarily mean that they have fertility problems.

80% of the time, pregnancy happens within a year. That is for fertile couples where the woman is between 18 and 25, who are trying for a baby but not doing anything special to increase fertility (like tracking ovulation, changing their diet, etc). But that means that 20% - one in five - will take longer than a year to conceive, even if there is nothing wrong.

If you are older than 25, the chance of conceiving reduces. At age 30 it is 20% per cycle instead of 25%. At age 40, it is only 5%. Male fertility decreases with age too, but not so sharply.

Most doctors recommend trying for a year before taking infertility tests, but if you are older or have other signs of infertility, you may not want to wait that long.

But maybe you are not trying for a baby yet. You may just want to know whether you have any signs of infertility so that you can plan for the future. In that case, there are some indications of infertility that you should be aware of.

Signs Of Infertility In Women

Signs of infertility in women include:

• irregular cycles with infrequent periods (more than 35 days apart)
• very short cycles (less than 24 days)
• very light or heavy bleeding
• certain health problems, including polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), endometriosis, and fibroids in the uterus.

Signs Of Infertility In Men

There are not so many signs of infertility in men. Sperm analysis is required to discover whether a man is infertile. Impotence and ejaculation problems can make it difficult to conceive a child, but they are not always related to infertility.

For both sexes, you are also more likely to be infertile if you are underweight or overweight, if you have diabetes, cancer or other serious illnesses, if you drink or smoke heavily, or if you have had sexually transmitted diseases in the past.

Some people put off getting pregnant until they are older, but if you have signs of infertility it might be better not to do that. The earlier you begin trying to get pregnant, the more likely it is that you will be successful. It also gives you more time to try infertility treatments if you need them.

The only way to be sure about your fertility, whether you are male or female, is to go for tests. If you are at all concerned about symptoms that you think may be signs of infertility, that is what we recommend that you do.

Click here if you or someone you love is struggling to get pregnant (or simply want to increase the odds). Don't let anyone tell you that you cannot have kids naturally. It's my KissMeGoodnight recommendation.

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by KissMeGoodnight.com : 2011

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