Few experiences can compare to the joy of bringing a child into the world. And virtually nothing is as distressing as trying to make a baby—and failing.

 

Infertility is the inability to conceive a child within 1 year. A variety of factors contribute to infertility, including genetics, health conditions, and lifestyle choices. And while infertility may be traced to a single cause in either you or your partner, it can also be caused by a combination of factors, from infection to stress to medications.

 

If you and your partner have been unable to get pregnant, you're far from alone. Overall, 2.1 million married couples face infertility. About one-third of infertility cases can be attributed to male factors, and about one-third to factors that affect women. For the remaining one-third of infertile couples, infertility is caused by a combination of problems in both partners or, in about 20 percent of cases, is unexplained.

 

While you and your partner will want to see a doctor to determine the exact cause of your infertility, there's a lot that you can do on your own to increase your odds of conceiving a child. Try one or all of these tips.

It really is true: It's better to wear loose, baggy underwear that allows your testicles to "breathe," says Dr. Giudice. "Briefs raise the temperature of a man's testicles, which can kill sperm or can decrease the ability of sperm to fertilize an egg."

Hot tubs can be detrimental to a man's fertility because the intense heat can kill the sperm in his testes, says Dr. Stillman. Steam rooms are fine, however.

Men with low sperm count may want to try this dietary supplement, specifically designed to optimize sperm quantity and quality. It contains L-carnitine and acetyl-L-carnitine, which play a role in the process of sperm development, maturation, and maintenance. "Some urologists and infertility folks recommend that men with low sperm counts try it," says Dr. Giudice. "There may be something to it." Proxeed is available online, directly from the manufacturer.

Daddy wanna-bes should consider filling their plates with fresh fruits and vegetables. The nutrients they contain may help "grow" healthy sperm. Here's why. A preliminary study conducted at the Cleveland Clinic Urological Institute's Center for Advanced Research in Human Reproduction and Fertility suggests that abnormally high levels of free radicals may cause infertility in some men. Free radicals are "crippled" oxygen molecules that are generated naturally by our body processes. They damage healthy cells—and, possibly, sperm.

 

"Sperm require small amounts of free radicals to fertilize an egg," says study author Ashok Agarwal, Ph.D. "But too many free radicals can damage the sperm's cell membrane and DNA, compromising the sperm's ability to fertilize."

 

The researchers theorize that antioxidant vitamins, such as beta-carotene, vitamin C, and vitamin E, may benefit the sperm of men under high oxidative stress—for example, smokers and avid exercisers—because these vitamins may help neutralize free radicals.

 

Panel of Advisors

 

 

 

 

Robert Stillman, M.D., is a clinical professor in the department of obstetrics and gynecology at Georgetown University School of Medicine in Washington, D.C., and medical director at the Shady Grove Fertility Reproductive Science Center in Rockville, Maryland.