Bringing a new life into the world is a life-changing journey, one filled with excitement, anticipation, and sometimes, a few bumps along the way.
For countless couples across Malaysia, the path to parenthood begins with the hopeful journey of Trying to Conceive (TTC).
This year, Clearblue, a trusted name in pregnancy and ovulation testing, is taking its commitment to a whole new level by spreading awareness and essential information about TTC.
But their mission doesn’t stop there.
They are highlighting the crucial role that nutrition plays in this transformative process.
To emphasise this initiative, Clearblue has collaborated with Motherhood to guide couples on their TTC journey in an episode of Try to Chill.
One of the most important aspects of conceiving is adjusting your diet to include foods and ingredients that help boost fertility, support pregnancy and balance hormones.
We invited celebrity chef and fellow mum, Ili Sulaiman and nutritionist Syaza Lyana to share some recipes and tips that are especially catered for TTC mums who are on the verge of their parenthood journey.
Here’s a recap of the episode.
Nutrition Advice by Syaza Lyana
Syaza said that the most important part about healing your fertility is to stabilise your hormones and manage your weight. Especially if you suffer from PCOS, endometriosis, and thyroid imbalance, which are some of the more common fertility issues among women.
Taking fruits and veggies are important, as they are like a natural medicine.
Foods rich in antioxidants and high in folate are great for improving ovum quality.
Fish are always the better option, because they are low in fat and high in omega-3.
So those who are TTC should opt for healthy proteins and fats like fish or eggs to ensure they get plenty of omega-3 fatty acids.
Syaza also mentioned that TTC individuals should avoid skim milk and low fat as this may affect their hormones much worse than normal full cream milk.
Recipes by Ili Sulaiman
Ili prepared for us PCOS-friendly and fertility boosting dishes chosen by the audience.
A delicious Thai-style baked fish and overnight oats!
Ili also shared some of her experience in her journey of healing her fertility issues as she cooked.
Some of her advice included cutting out processed foods, cutting out dairy, sugar and gluten.
Also, rewarding yourself with a cheat meal every once in a while.
But above all, to take care of your mental wellbeing and your marriage to ensure a happy and healthy TTC journey.
For the fish, Ili made a marinade with anti-inflammatory and antioxidant ingredients like chili, garlic coriander, serai, ginger and lengkuas, blended with good oils: extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil.
Siakap fish which is rich in omega-3 fatty acids was the main star of the recipe.
It was accompanied by a sauce made from fish sauce, oyster sauce, lime juice, and a pinch of sugar.
Ili also mentioned that she sometimes strains her rice like pasta.
This is also known as parboiled rice, to get rid of the excess starch if she’s using white rice.
Next, came the overnight oats for dessert.
This quick and easy dessert can be eaten as a breakfast or a light but filling snack.
Ili included fertility-friendly ingredients such as chia seeds, flax seeds, rolled oats (not quick oats), raisins, cranberries, blueberries and mixed nuts (walnuts, cashews, almonds), plant-based milk (oat milk or almond milk).
Tune in to the live recording to get the full recipes.
Include Clearblue in Your TTC Journey
Aside from diet, a mum-to-be needs a reliable way of tracking her fertility, whether that’s her ovulation window if she’s TTC, or her conception, if she’s confident that she is pregnant.
Clearblue offers this convenience with accurate, speedy and sophisticated results for your Trying to Conceive efforts.
With the Clearblue Ultra Early Pregnancy Test, you can get results 6 days before your missed period.
The digital feature ensures there’s no confusing lines for you to interpret.
The floor guard design ensures a mess-free and error-free process.
Trust in Clearblue for a smooth sailing TTC journey.
Find all Clearblue products including ovulation tests on the Clearblue’s marketplace on Motherhood.com.my.
For more insightful stories and fun recipes, stay tuned to Motherhood Story!