Your TTC Strategy 6: Separate Fertility Myths from Fact

Fact: There are couples who require in vitro fertilization in order to achieve a pregnancy, such as those with blocked tubes or few sperm. The truth is, most couples do not require IVF, especially if they have participated in preconception preparation.

Fact: IVF provides the safest way to avoid multiple pregnancies by limiting the number of embryos that are transferred to the uterus. If a couple does not want more than twins, only two embryos will be transferred. Other types of fertility treatments, such as fertility drugs combined with intrauterine insemination, do not offer a way of controlling the number of eggs produced, fertilized, or implanted.

Fact: Sperm don't like heat. One of the reasons that the testicles hang outside the body cavity is that they function better for sperm production if they remain below core body temperature. This might lead one to believe that boxers would be better than briefs. The one study that compared scrotal temperature and sperm quality between the two types of underwear found no difference. There is no harm in making the switch, but stay out of hot tubs in either case.

Fact: While you may feel perfectly fit and healthy on the outside, feeling this way is no indicator of your fertility. Many men and women have severe fertility problems and show no outward signs. Of course, being unhealthy can be a risk factor for infertility, but it does not necessarily work the other way around.

Fact: While it is true that a woman's fertility dramatically decreases once she is older than age 35, women in their 20s can also have fertility problems.