Women and fertility

"How are babies made?" The traditional interviewing children is supposed to be set at an age when we are about to establish itself a family. But if the basics are learned, the more specific knowledge of the factors that promote or not the conception of a baby are not known to all women planning to become mothers. Sometimes significant gaps, according to a U.S. study published Monday in the journal Fertility and Sterility.

According to the survey, conducted among a thousand Americans interviewed by telephone in March, one in two women of childbearing age (18-40 years) had never broached the subject with her fertility doctor. Yet they are 40% say concern about their ability to get pregnant.

The study also reveals that many are unaware of what can influence their chances of getting pregnant. Thus, only one in ten knew he better have sex in the days before ovulation rather than those who follow. More than one in four did not know that smoking, obesity, irregular cycles or some sexually transmitted infections (gonorrhea, chlamydia) reduce the success rate of each month. But the effect is far from negligible: a woman smoking 10 cigarettes per day sees his chances of getting pregnant halved. If obese, 1.5. Conversely, some misconceptions are common: one in two women thought that having several reports per day increases the chances of conceiving, and one in three believes that certain positions are preferred.

Preconception consultation

A survey conducted in France there are five years on the same subject, the National College of Gynaecologists and Obstetricians French had also demonstrated "a certain ignorance of French in fertility or at least a good number of ideas received, "according to the findings of the BVA.

For example, respondents (989 men and women) felt that a woman of 30 years had a 55% chance of getting pregnant each month, while the actual rate is 12%. Respondents also stared in about 40 years the age at which becomes more difficult to get pregnant, when in reality the odds drop from 35 years. Overestimation of the same chances of pregnancy was found for couples using medical assistance to procreation.

These results hardly surprise Dr. Gilles Grange, obstetrician-gynecologist at the Cochin Hospital in Paris. "Women themselves unfamiliar with the operation of their cycles, perhaps because school education on this subject is inadequate, he says. Now this is the minimum that is to put the odds on his side. "

Until 2008, the bride and groom were required to premarital medical examination, which allowed usefully address certain issues before pregnancy. "For example, for diabetics, epilepsy or suffering from certain psychiatric disorders patients, it is necessary to change the treatment before conception to prevent fetal malformations," says obstetrician Figaro . Now, no preconception consultation is dedicated officially recommended, but "it does not mean that everything goes well most of the time" puts Dr. Grangé. Especially the anticipation is not always possible: "40% of pregnancies in France are not programmed," he says.

On average, it is recommended that couples seek medical advice if their attempts to have a child have not worked for a year.