The Best Fertility Vitamins & Supplements

One of the questions I get asked the most about the fertility diet I followed when struggling to conceive is, “What supplements should I take to increase fertility? “. Everyone wants to know if there are any fertility vitamins that can make the difference for them.

In truth, there is no magic bullet that will miraculously fix any underlying infertility issues or guarantee you get pregnant this month. But I’m sure you knew that.

Are you asking yourself “what vitamins should I take when trying to conceive?”

If so, you need to look at it from the viewpoint of improving your chances of getting pregnant. This means being as healthy as you can possible be. No pill is a silver bullet for good health.

While the jury is still out on the effects of vitamins and other OTC products, many women (& health practitioners) feel that taking supplements to boost fertility can make a big difference in your ability to conceive.

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Just bear in mind that no vitamin or supplement can take the place of good nutrition so make sure to include lots of fertility superfoods in your daily diet too.

While I was going through fertility treatments, I searched for different vitamins to boost my fertility and ended up taking quite a few different ones.

I also had my husband taking a few extra things to boost things on his end. Don’t forget that male infertility is a growing issue so your man needs to make sure he is in tip top shape too.

For tips on how to improve your chances of getting pregnant naturally, you can download this free ebook on restoring fertility.

To find the best fertility supplements for my issues, I consulted with my doctor and did some research.

The books I found the most useful were for Making Babies and The Infertility Cure.

Here is a list of more bestselling books about infertility.

I recommend you do your research and speak to your own doctor before starting a new regime.

The One Fertility Supplement Every Woman Needs

Every woman who is trying to conceive should take is a good prenatal vitamin.

If you are wondering if prenatal pills will help you get pregnant, then the answer is no.

They won’t actually increase your fertility per se, but they will provide you with the recommended amounts of iron and folic acid as well as other vitamins that are essential for pregnancy.

The best prenatal to take when trying to get pregnant is a quality one with folic acid and DHA.

A good prenatal multivitamin will make sure your body is ready to get pregnant and maintain a healthy pregnancy for 9 months.

They also contain certain supplements like folic acid that can prevent birth defects in your baby.

The best prenatal supplements are ones with DHA such as Nature Made Prenatal Multi + DHA

While nothing will substitute a healthy, balanced diet, there are certain supplements that may give your body the fertility boost it needs.

I recommend consulting your doctor or naturopath before starting any of these supplements.

In the list of vitamins below, you will find the the following information:

The reported effects on fertility for each supplement
Studies to back up the fertility boosting properties
The recommended dosage where applicable (make sure to check the bottle or ask your doctor to be sure)

The Best Fertility Vitamins & Supplements

Co-Enzyme Q-10

Co-enzyme Q10 has been proven by numerous studies to have a positive impact on egg quality.

It is one of the most common fertility vitamins that it recommended by doctors.

Natural levels of Co- Q10 decrease as we get older so supplementation can help with cell renewal.

Both my family doctor and RE recommended it to improve my egg quality and increase my chances of getting pregnant.

I truly believe co-enzyme Q10 helped me get pregnant.

Most naturopaths suggest getting Ubiquinone Co-Q10 as it is easier to absorb than the regular kind (look for it on the bottle).

Recommended Dose: 600mg a day

Vitamin D

Vitamin D is an essential vitamin for everyone and there has been quite a lot of research that shows it can help prevent cancer and other illnesses such as MS.

There is also evidence that vitamin D can help increase the chances of implantation.

This article by USC Fertility in Los Angeles has many references regarding the impact of Vitamin D on fertility and notes:

“A recent study found that women with higher vitamin D levels were significantly more likely to achieve pregnancy from IVF compared to women with lower levels of vitamin D. “

The recommended dose is 1-2,000 IU per day. More than 50,000 per day can be toxic.

Selenium

This is an antioxidant that protects the reproductive system from free radicals. It can also support thyroid function and immunity.

Selenium is thought to have a positive effect on male fertility too.

Many fertility superfoods such as brazil nuts are rich in selenium.

You can find a list of selenium-rich foods and more information about the health benefits at the NIH website.

Recommended Dose – 200mcg a day

Zinc

According to a study from Northwestern University, your eggs need zinc in order to develop properly and be ready for fertilization.

Without sufficient levels of zinc, eggs seem to pause at a certain stage in their development and did not continue to prepare for maturation.

Zinc is also thought to be a key for optimal male fertility and sperm development.

Recommended Dose: 15-30mg a day.

Omega 3 Fish Oil

Time Magazine published a study showing that mice with higher levels of Omega 3 fatty acids had more available eggs than mice with a deficiency.

While not yet confirmed for human fertility, Omega 3s are an essential component of a healthy diet and may well be a good supplement to improve fertility.

If you don’t want to take an extra vitamin, this list of fertility-boosting foods has some of the best Omega 3 sources to include in your diet.

Recommended Dose: 2000-3000 per day. Do not take flaxseed oil (flax on cereal etc is ok).

Folic Acid

Every woman who is trying to conceive should take folic acid to protect their future unborn baby.

Most prenatal vitamins contain enough folic acid but your doctor may recommend an additional dose, or you may want to take it separately if the prenatal tablets are hard on your stomach.

You should also work to increase your intake of foods with folic acid.

Recommended Dose: 600-800mcgs a day

L-Arginine

This supplement helps thicken the uterine lining and improve the chances of implantation. It’s also been thought to increase male sperm count.

It should be noted that although studies have shown L-arginine to improve the success rates of poor responders in IVF cycles, it seems to have the opposite effect on normal responders. Read more about L-Arginine here.

Recommended Dose: This article from UC San Diego fertility clinic puts the L-arginine fertility dosage at 1-2gm.Consult with your doctor for the correct dosage.

Iron

According to research from Harvard, iron deficiency can affect fertility due to ovarian failure.

The good news is that most prenatal vitamins contain the recommended daily dose of iron so there is not usually a need to supplement unless advised by your doctor.

Iron can cause constipation so make sure to stay hydrated and eat plenty of greens.

Recommended Dose: 0.4mg

WheatGrass

Wheatgrass is a fertility super food that has a ton of health benefits. Farmers actually feed wheatgrass to sterile cows to reignite their sex hormones and restore their fertility.

You can do shots of fresh wheat grass or add the Powder to a smoothie.

Get the recipes:

Wheatgrass Smoothie For Fertility

The Ultimate Fertility Smoothie Recipe

If you are not a fan of the taste (personally I cannot stomach it), you can also get organic wheat grass capsules that do the trick too.

Royal Jelly

Royal Jelly is the fertility nectar of the Queen Bee.

It has a long history as a supplement for fertility and, although there is not much scientific evidence, it is definitely worth a try.

In addition to royal jelly, bee pollen and propolis are two other bee products that are thought to boost fertility and can be taken together in supplements such as Dr. Danielle’s Bee Wise.

Do not take royal jelly if you have asthma or a bee allergy.

Maca Root

Maca root is an ancient Peruvian plant that has been used for years to promote fertility.

My RE originally suggested it to my husband as it is supposed to be amazing for male fertility.

According to this article from the NIH, “Clinical trials showed efficacy of maca on sexual dysfunctions as well as increasing sperm count and motility. ”

My husband put the powder in his protein shakes every morning. I couldn’t stomach the taste so took the capsules instead.

Recommend Dose: The optimal maca powder dosage for fertility is 1500-3000mg a day.

Myo-inositol

Myo-inositol is is a naturally occurring substance belonging to the B complex family of vitamins.

By acting as an insulin-sensitizing agent, myo-inositol supports proper hormone balance, ovarian function, egg quality and menstrual cycle regularity.

It is normally recommended for women with PCOS.

Recommend Dose: 2mg twice a day

Other Supplements To Increase Fertility

One of the larger fertility companies, Fairhaven Health offers some fertility combination packs that can give you a lot of benefits in one pill. I did not try any of these myself but have heard great things!

Here are some of the most popular:

FertilAid for Women

The number 1 selling fertility supplement in the US, FertilAid has a combination of vitamins, minerals antioxidants as well as herbs such as chasteberry (vitex), red clover blossom and ginkgo biloba.

It claims to rebalance hormone levels to increase fertility with no impact on the chance of multiples.

There is also a male version, FertilAid for Men.

Learn more about Fertilaid here.

FertileCM

FertileCM contains L-arginine along with other ingredients to promote a healthy lining and cervical mucus. It can be used safely in combination with Fertilaid.

Get more information about FertileCM here.

OvaBoost

OvaBoost is one of the most popular ovulation supplements on the market.

It contains a combination of vitamins and antioxidants including myoinositol, folate, melatonin, coenzyme Q10, vitamin E, grape seed extract and alpha-lipoic acid, which have been scientifically demonstrated to help improve egg health and optimize ovarian function.

Learn more about Ovaboost at this link.

How To Save Money On Fertility Vitamins

When researching this post, I noticed that most of the fertility vitamins above are available in drugstores and Amazon.

Some of the more specialized ones that are not in drugstores are also available directly on the manufacturer’s own website.

I noticed that Fairhaven’s website – fairhaven.com had cheaper prices than Amazon plus free shipping over $30, especially for the supplement combos so it is definitely worth shopping around as these vitamins aren’t cheap.

Use Promo Code “SEASIDE” for 10% off your Fairhaven order.

For more information on the diet and lifestyle changes that can help you get pregnant, check out my book – Naturally Fertile

FREE Fertility Resources (Ebooks, Checklists and more)

Click the links to instantly download the following useful resources, at no cost!

More Fertility Tips:

The Fertility Diet That Changed My Life

Fertility Superfoods Worth Eating

The Ultimate Fertility Smoothie

Free 14 Day Fertility Meal Plan!

Boost your fertility with this 14 day kick start program

Sign up for instant access to this free plan & more fertility tips

The Best Fertility Vitamins & Supplements

The One Fertility Supplement Every Woman Needs