Ayurveda- Preventing Early Pregnancy Loss
Early pregnancy loss is a disastrous event in the life of a couple trying to start a family. It is heartbreaking and emotionally tumultuous. It can also leave a negative impact on the woman’s body and health.
The Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology of India conducted a five-city study about spontaneous miscarriages or early pregnancy loss. The study involved 2400 patients, and 32% of those women had lost their pregnancies in the early stages.
Do you know the global average for early pregnancy loss?
The global average for early pregnancy loss without the use of any medical means is only 10%.
The high Indian average clearly gives us cause to worry.
Poor Focus on Overall Conception Process
Overcommercialition of healthcare has led to some dangerous developments. People have started looking for quick fixes for every problem in their lives and the inability to conceive is not an exception.
Hormonal treatment for most reproductive health disorders has become the norm. This leads to a dangerous turn of events. While you might experience some symptomatic relief, the underlying issues keep simmering. These lead to poor egg quality, hormonal imbalances and endometrium inefficiencies, resulting in early pregnancy loss.
It is therefore important to understand what one needs to be aware of and what they need to avoid.
1st Trimester Is Crucial
More than 80% of all early pregnancy losses occur in the first trimester. The first 12 weeks after conception are the most important for the survival of the pregnancy.
When successful implantation occurs after conception, the embryo only has the endometrium to survive. The placenta doesn’t form until the start of the second trimester. Once the placenta forms, the embryo starts drawing nutrition directly from the mother’s blood. It forms a strong bond, and the pregnancy is settled. Whatever the mother eats, it also provides nutrition to the child through the placenta. Pregnancy failures are rare after the second trimester.
However, until that happens, the child must survive on the endometrium. The endometrium is around 7mm thick. It is a jelly-like inner layer of the uterus that supports the embryo for the first 12 weeks.
In the first trimester, many factors can be responsible for pregnancy failures:
Egg Quality: This is one of the primary reasons why pregnancies don’t hold on for long. The embryos formed with poor-quality eggs don’t have the strength to multiply fast enough and implant themselves firmly on the endometrium bed. That’s why chances of chemical pregnancies are higher in their case.
Hormonal Imbalance: This is one of the biggest causes of early pregnancy losses. Most women think that hormonal imbalances only disturb their egg growth or ovulation process. They ignore the impact of hormonal imbalance on the endometrium which can cause unstable pregnancies.
Implantation Failures: Artificial hormonal boost can make the endometrium nutrient deficient. Either the endometrium becomes unreceptive, or it cannot supply enough nutrition to the embryo to survive for the entire first trimester. It can eventually lead to early pregnancy loss. Once the embryo enters the uterus from the fallopian tube, it must strongly attach to the endometrium layer. Detachment at this stage will result in implantation failures. Early pregnancy failures at this stage are hard to detect. These are called chemical pregnancies.
Gynaecological Issues: Some gynaecological issues like the shape of the uterus or fibroids can also lead to early pregnancy loss. Fibroids occupy the available space on the endometrium layer. Space required for the new embryo to grow is therefore reduced, leading to early pregnancy failures. Endometriosis, PCOS and PID can also cause early pregnancy loss.
Structural Deformities: If the uterus has structural problems like a bicornuate shape or a didelphys shape, it might reduce the space for the embryo to grow, leading to early pregnancy loss.
If we leave the problem of structural deformities aside, most early pregnancy loss cases are avoidable. The most important thing is to prepare the body and the mind well to bring a new life into this world.
Before you plan to bring in a new life, you must ensure that your body is healthy and fit. Your hormonal balance should be ideal, and your reproductive system should function well. This might not be the case for every woman. Whatever problems you may have with your period cycle, hormonal balance or reproductive organs, must be addressed before you decide to move ahead with family planning.
Rectifying these issues before conception is easy. You can easily restore your hormonal balance or issues with your reproductive system through healthy lifestyle changes, diet and Ayurvedic herbs.
Unfortunately, this is a factor completely ignored in conventional medicine. It only focuses on treating the symptoms and helping a woman conceive regardless of her hormonal and reproductive health status. At most, some hormones are given to balance the hormonal imbalance in the body, but these are just temporary measures.
On the other hand, Ayurveda focuses on improving the quality and environment of the reproductive system. It tries to strengthen the overall reproductive system for healthy and sustained pregnancy.
However, it must be kept in mind that even Ayurveda can’t help in the case of anatomical deformities like a bicornuate uterus or blocked fallopian tubes.
Specific fertility measures like IVF have been designed to counter physical deformity issues like a blockage in the fallopian tube. But when they are used as a general fertility measure, they prove to be not as effective.
Ayurvedic Herbs Can Prevent Early Pregnancy Loss
Ayurveda has several herbs like Jeevanti, Shatavari, Lodhra, Shivlingi, and Putranjeevak that can help improve endometrium, egg quality and overall hormonal balance. These herbs can help even if you have suffered more than one early pregnancy loss.
It must be kept in mind that Ayurvedic herbs are best suited for prolonged treatment. You must take these herbs for at least 90 days before planning a conception to prepare your body for the pregnancy.
Key Learning
The first trimester of the pregnancy is crucial because more than 80% of early pregnancy loss cases occur in this period.
Ayurvedic herbs like Jeevanti, Shatavari, Lodhra, Shivlingi, and Putranjeevak can help improve egg quality and endometrial nourishment. Such herbs can balance the hormones and help your body prepare for pregnancy.
