Babies are the greatest blessings and the most precious gifts to us. Their cries and laughter make our life brighter. They are our pride, and give us strength, and add our dreams new colors. More than that, they help establish stronger personal and familial relationships.
Every parent hopes for a healthy baby. But how? Before answering it, let us look at how pregnancy happens from Western Medical perspective first. When a sperm cell from a fertile man joins with a woman’s egg cell in one of the fallopian tubes, it is called fertilization. Then when the fertilized egg moves down to the uterus and is implanted there, the pregnancy starts. Good quality and quantity of sperm and egg cells are critical for successful pregnancy and a healthy baby, and they count on the overall health of the father and the mother.
From Chinese Medical perspective, Tian Gui plays the most important role in fertility. It is a material, which translates as “heavenly water”. For a female, the ripening of the Tian Gui heralds the filling of the Chong Vessel with blood and the Ren vessel with Qi and periods begin. Its quality is foremost in all the menstrual cycles that follow, and in conception and pregnancy. For a male, its ripening indicates the filling of semen in his body and its quality affects the quality and quantity of semen very closely. When a male sleeps with a female, pregnancy can take place.
Generally speaking, the age of Tian Gui’s ripening for a girl is about 13 years old and for a boy is about 15 years old. As we grow older, it is slowly exhausted and the reproductive ability is lessened gradually. The turning point for a woman is about 34 years old and for a man is about 39 years old. One day when there is no Tian Gui, the reproductive ability is lost completely. That time is around 48 years old for a female and around 63 years old for a male.
What is the source of Tian Gui? It is Kidneys essence, stored in Kidneys which is located at either side of the lumbar. Kidney essence consists of two parts: congenital and acquired. Congenital essence is inherited from the parents and acquired essence is transformed from the nutrients of food and drink. They rely on and promote each other. Before birth, the former has prepared the material base for the latter. After birth, the latter constantly replenishes the former. Thus acquired essence is relatively more important, though both of them are.
Kidney essence is the most responsible for not only a human being’s reproduction, but also the growth and development. Aging and physical, psychological, physiological loss are due to the exhaustion of Kidney essence.
To safeguard one’s health, what can be done? Choosing whole grains and other unrefined carbohydrates; eating more vegetable protein like beans and nuts, avoiding trans-fats, using more unsaturated vegetable oil, keeping hydrated, drinking coffee, tea and alcohol in moderation and skipping sugared sodas, excising, managing weight and counteracting the stress, having enough sleep, and staying away from pollution from air, water and electromagnetic fields as much as you can. NO drugs and smoking. Especially when a woman is preparing for pregnancy as it is well recognized that a mother’s nutritional status at the time of conception can have significant implications on the health of the future baby and the adult it will grow into.
Being self-disciplined and self-controlled about your diets and lifestyle are of importance. Doing so can maintain and improve your health. Adding to this, it can slow the process of aging and functional loss. It is outstanding for you, and for your offspring as well.
Moreover, age has the significant impact on fertility. The relationship between them has been discussed in Western Medical literatures as well as in Chinese Medical ones. A research concluded that after adjusting for female age, conception during a 12-month period was 30% less likely for men over 40 years old as compared with men younger than 30 years old. (1) Another research showed that naturally, there is an age-related decline in fecundity of women, the decrease usually starting at the age of 32 with a dramatic fall after the age of 37. Spelt differently, the natural monthly female fecundity rate which is about 25% between 20 and 30 years of age decreases to below 10% above the age of 35. (2)
To summarize it, a healthy baby comes from healthy and young parents with good diets and lifestyle.
(1) Ford WC, North K, et al. Increasing Paternal Age Is Associated with Delayed Conception in A Large Population of Fertile Couples: Evidence for Declining Fecundity in Older Men. The ALSPAC Study Team (Avon Longitudinal Study of Pregnancy and Childhood). Journal of Human Reproduction. 2000; 15:1703-1708.
(2) Spandorfer SD, Avrech OM, et al. Effect of Parental Age On Fertilization and Pregnancy Characteristics in Couples Treated by Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection. Journal of Human Reproduction. 1998; 13:334-8.