January 15, 2018

Each month a woman’s body goes through a number of hormonal and physical changes.
If you’re a woman, learning to recognize changes in your body can alert you to the workings of your menstrual cycle and ovulation. Tracking changes to your body’s temperature can help you identify ovulation and time intercourse to improve your odds of becoming pregnant. By tracking your cycle, following a pregnancy-friendly lifestyle and obtaining optimal nutrient levels, you can support positive pregnancy outcomes.

Tracking Ovulation

If you are trying to become pregnant, it’s helpful to use a calendar to track the length of and changes during your cycle. Most women track the start and ending dates of their periods, the appearance and consistency of their cervical mucus, and their basal body temperature (BBT).

Your BBT is your body’s lowest temperature during rest. Most women find that their BBT is slightly lower right before ovulation and slightly higher during ovulation.1 By determining your window of ovulation, you can increase your success in becoming pregnant.

For best results, follow these best practices when taking your BBT:

• Consistency of Timing – Take your BBT at the same time every day using the same
  thermometer. You may want to purchase a special BBT thermometer for a more precise
  reading.
• Before You Get Out of Bed – It is best to track your BBT after you first wake up. For
  accurate readings, take your BBT every day and before you get out of bed or eat breakfast. Once you get out of bed, eat breakfast and start moving around, your body temperature naturally rises. So by taking your BBT first thing, you are getting your true “at rest” body temperature.
• After 3 Hours of Sleep – Take your BBT after you’ve gotten several hours of sleep to
  ensure your body has had time to enter rest mode.
• Consistency of Method – You can take your BBT either orally or vaginally. Both methods work. But it’s important to keep your method consistent.
• Keep BBT Thermometer By Your Bedside – Keep your thermometer in the same place, by your bedside. This will help ensure it’s where you need it, when you need it.
• Track It – Be sure to record your BBT throughout the month for several months. Seeing the trends over several months can provide a better picture of your ovulation cycle.

Keep in mind that several factors can influence your BBT. Those include: illness or fever, stress, alcohol, travel, medications, interrupted sleep or oversleeping.¹ Also, some women ovulate without a clear rise in BBT.¹

In addition to tracking your BBT, pay attention to other physical signs, such as your cervical mucus, that can provide clues to transitions in your monthly cycle. Look for your cervical mucus to become clear and stretchy, similar to the consistency of egg whites, as you approach ovulation.²

Prenatal Vitamins for Conceiving

If you are trying to conceive, following a pregnancy-friendly lifestyle and practicing good nutrition is critical. Managing stress, getting proper sleep, staying physically active and eliminating toxins from cigarettes and alcohol will aid in preparing your body for carrying a baby. Staying on track with a healthy diet and recommended nutritional guidelines will ensure that you give your baby the best possible start in life.

The Prenate^® Vitamin Family offers two prenatal vitamins that may support conception and help fill nutritional gaps that aren’t met by diet alone. Prenate Mini^® and Prenate Pixie^® are small prenatal vitamins suitable for preconception but robust enough to carry you through pregnancy. Talk to your doctor to see if Prenate Mini^® or Prenate Pixie^® is right for you.