POSTS WITH TAG: fertility

Healthy Living Health Check

Sperm Count Tests Take Fertility Pressure Off Women

Posted by Amy Reiter
on Feb 9, 2012 at 9:13 PM

spermFunny, isn't it, how it's often women who carry the brunt of worry and stress when it comes to fertility issues? Not funny ha-ha, of course. Because fertility problems, as anyone who has struggled to conceive a child can tell you, aren't even remotely a laughing matter.

But those of you who have wondered whether it might be your partner's fertility that's the issue will be relieved to learn that there's now an easy (relatively cheap) over-the-counter way to find that out. Mega-drugstore chains Walgreens and CVS have just announced that they'll carry a male fertility test called (not terribly poetically, if you ask me) SpermCheck Fertility.  The test will retail in stores for $40, which sounds like a lot until you think about how much a doctor's visit might set you back. It's already available online.

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Healthy Living

Michelle Duggar's Miscarriage Had Nothing to Do With Her Age

Posted by Jacqueline Burt
on Dec 12, 2011 at 4:47 PM

michell duggarFollowing last week's miscarriage of their 20th child, Michelle and Jim Bob Duggar have announced plans for a memorial service to be held Wednesday. They've also named the baby: Jubilee Shalom Duggar. Michelle, who was held for observation in the hospital over part of the weekend, is expected to be released today.

With Michelle's health in the spotlight, everyone is naturally speculating about what caused the 45-year-old mother of 19 to suffer a miscarriage. The most popular theory out there, it seems, has to do with Michelle's age: When a mom is older, the risk for genetic abnormalities is higher, and these defects often lead to miscarriage.

But after the way Michelle's pregnancy with now 2-year-old Josie went, it seems to me that her age has less to do with her body giving out than the fact that she's given birth 19 times.

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Healthy Living

Couples Trying to Get Pregnant May Want to Stop Surfing the Web

Posted by Adriana Velez
on Nov 30, 2011 at 5:17 PM

spermOh ladies, doesn't it seem like we always get the blame for our fertility problems? We're eating the wrong foods, we're waiting too long, we're too fat, we're too skinny. We're not sleeping upside-down in bat caves and slurping açai smoothies like we should be if we really, really want to have babies. But what about the guys? Can't we spread some of the blame to men -- you know, just as an equal opportunity measure?

Well thank you, Science, because yes we can! Guess what? Wi-Fi be killing sperm. An Argentine scientist found that when drops of sperm were placed under a laptop that was wirelessly connected to the Internet, a full quarter of the little spermy dudes stopped moving and 9 percent showed DNA damage! So ... that's nice. Now how can we make this still women's fault?

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Healthy Living

Egg Donor 'Horror' Film Dismisses Our Right to Choose

Posted by Amy Reiter
on Nov 16, 2011 at 4:18 PM

egg donationDoes egg donation exploit women and put their health in danger? That's what a new documentary film, Eggsploitation, claims.

I just watched a trailer, and it has left me feeling a little queasy. The melodramatic horror-movie music may have had something to do with my reaction, or it may have been the grainy images of hypodermic needles poking through skin or into some cells I can't totally identify (an ovary? an egg?), but it's also probably more than that.

The movie, subtitled ominously "The Infertility Industry Has a Dirty Little Secret," is now being screened around the country and is stirring up debate.

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Healthy Living

Maria Menounos Needs to Simmer Down About Freezing Her Eggs

Posted by Kim Conte
on Sep 26, 2011 at 5:22 PM

maria menounos freezing eggsIn case you hadn't heard yet, Maria Menounos is freezing her eggs in an effort to increase her chances of having biological children when she's older -- and she wants everyone to know all about it. The gorgeous 33-year-old TV correspondent and Extra co-host has gone on shows like Lifechangers With Dr. Drew and Good Morning America to talk about this very private fertility decision, and she plans to document the entire process along the way. It's nice that someone as successful as Maria is giving a voice to the fact that there are options for women who want to or need to wait to have children. But with respect to her personal decision to freeze her eggs, Maria needs to chill out.

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Healthy Living

Free Birth Control Will Make Women Healthier Than Ever

Posted by Maressa Brown
on Aug 1, 2011 at 1:21 PM

hhs secretary kathleen sebeliusVictory! The U.S. Health & Human Services (HHS) has announced new guidelines today that health insurance plans beginning on or after August 1, 2012 will cover various women's preventative services, including birth control, voluntary sterilization, and emergency contraception. Sure, we had sort of seen this coming after last month's scientific review by the Institute of Medicine, which noted that health insurance coverage of various preventative measures would bolster women's health in the U.S. But it wasn't definite that the HHS would approve those recommendations. And now, they have! Whoohoo!

HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said the decision is a part of the Affordable Care Act's attempt to curb problems before they even begin. In other words, these guidelines FINALLY recognize that controlling our fertility promotes our health and well-being.

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Healthy Living

Birth Control Pill Is New But Not Improved

Posted by Maressa Brown
on Apr 23, 2011 at 4:06 PM

birth control pillsThere's almost nothing I'm more passionate about than a woman's right to control her reproductive fate. Birth control pills factor in big to that equation. Unfortunately, though, there are quite a few cons associated with the pill that the pharmaceutical companies don't want us to know ... particularly risks and setbacks associated with newer, low-dose versions of the pill, like Yaz, Yasmin and Beyaz (the original plus folate).Thankfully, there's a lot of new research coming out that shines some light on what we should know about these newer pills before going on them ... or continuing to take them. (Yes, even if they clear up your skin, or keep your "periods regular," aka shut down your ovaries, so you don't have an actual period.)

First, there's the study that says newer birth control pills don't increase your risk of gallbladder disease or gallstones any more than old pills! Whew, right? No sigh of relief allowed.

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Healthy Living

'Biggest Loser' Recap: Moses Helps Olivia Have a Baby

Posted by Maressa Brown
on Apr 13, 2011 at 10:02 AM

biggest loser blue teamIn an amazing twist to probably end all twists, the final nine contestants were sent to NEW ZEALAND on last night's The Biggest Loser.

Given the incredible amount of weight they've collectively lost, Alison told them that they've earned the trip, and now they're going to go start their new life by doing death-defying stunts in a completely different, totally lush, world-class "mecca for adventure." Wow! Amazing! With the exception that they flew all of them "economy" class (What is this, NBC? You're suddenly too broke to spring for a decent 14 hour-flight for the contestants of one of your biggest shows? Lame!), it was a major treat.

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Healthy Living

Scarlett Johansson Knows Planned Parenthood Prevents Breast Cancer (VIDEOS)

Posted by Maressa Brown
on Apr 8, 2011 at 1:46 PM

scarlett johansson planned parenthoodFor some crazy reason, Planned Parenthood is at the crux of a looming government shutdown. Playing their usual dirty games, the Republican-controlled House of Representatives aims to hold the government hostage in an attempt to pass through a budget that would defund family planning services. They say it's about abortion, but Planned Parenthood doesn't allocate any federal dollars to abortion services; instead, the funds are funnelled to breast cancer screenings, cervical cancer screenings, screenings and treatment for STDs (including HIV), general reproductive health and birth control.

Usually I can't stand when celebrities mouth off about politics, because I figure they should just stick to entertaining us. But given what is currently happening in Washington today, I feel very grateful to hear from actresses like Scarlett Johansson and Gwyneth Paltrow who are speaking out on behalf of millions of American women by standing up for Planned Parenthood.

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Healthy Living

'Biggest Loser' Recap: The Parents Go Up Fighting!

Posted by Maressa Brown
on Feb 23, 2011 at 10:42 AM

On last night's Biggest Loser, we really got to see just how selfless -- or selfish -- the parents could be. How far would you go for your child's health and happiness? Would you go on a national TV show centered around competitive weight-loss, and then purposely GAIN weight to save not only your kid, but all the other competitors who happen to not yet be parents? If you're anything like the parents on this season of Biggest Loser, the answer would be a resounding "Yes!" 

Here's how all the self-sacrificial drama went down ...

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