Guest Author - Melissa Marshall

Does it seem like no matter what you do, you can’t seem to get pregnant? Are you charting and finding that your luteal phase is abnormally short? Many women are going through much the same thing. Fortunately, there are natural herbs, minerals, and other concoctions that have been found to have a positive impact on the female reproductive system. All of the reproductive aids for women I’ll discuss here are available without a prescription.

One of the more promising of these aids is the oil from a tiny flower, called the Evening Primrose. Evening Primrose Oil, often abbreviated as EPO, is taken in the first 14 days of your cycle to produce the thin, watery, stretchy cervical mucus many people describe as “egg-white”. It is this thin mucus that is the most fertile of the entire cycle, allowing sperm to easily navigate up to the fallopian tubes where they can live for up to five days. This is very exciting, because the egg is only viable for about 24 hours after it is released. Essentially, you could have intercourse four or five days before ovulation and still become pregnant. However, you should not take it after ovulation since it causes contractions in the uterus. For obvious reasons this would be a bad thing if you were to become pregnant.

Vitex (also know as chaste berry) is another exciting herb that helps to regulate hormone levels, specifically lutenizing hormone (LH). This increase in lutenizing hormone increases progesterone. It also increases the length of the luteal phase, which is of utmost importance in women with a short luteal phase. When a woman has a short luteal phase (less than 10 days), she will find it very difficult to achieve clinical pregnancy. Lengthening the luteal phase in these women will increase their odds of achieving a successful pregnancy. However, once you know you are pregnant, you should stop taking this herb.

Wild Yam: An exciting aid for women who have a history of recurrent miscarriage, the wild yam increases progesterone levels which may have contributed to the issue.

Dong Quai: This is an herb that has been used for centuries for many different uses. The use we are most interested in is its assistance in regulating the menstrual cycle. Begin taking this herb on the first day of your period until ovulation. Please take care to avoid the Dong Quai Oil, as it has been found to have cancer-causing properties. The herb does not have the strong concentration that the oil has, and is considered safe. However, it is worth mentioning that fact so you can make a more informed decision about the use of this herb.

Licorice Root: Taken at the first day of your period until ovulation, it helps to regulate hormones.

Red Clover: Increases a low estrogen level

*Please note that these aids have not been approved by the FDA, and this article should not be used as medical advice.