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Alcohol hinders having a baby through IVF, couples warned

Couples who share a bottle of wine a week reduce their chances of having a baby through IVF by more than a quarter, according to a study by American fertility specialists.

Research into alcohol consumption among couples being treated at a fertility clinic found fewer successful pregnancies when the women drank several glasses of wine a week, or the man had a daily beer.

Doctors at Harvard medical school, in Boston, asked 2,574 couples about their drinking habits shortly before they embarked on a course of IVF treatment.

A little over half of the women (56%) and a third of the men had less than one alcoholic drink a week, while 4% of women and 5% of men consumed at least one drink every day.

Dr Brooke Rossi, who led the study, said men and women who each drank six units of alcohol a week each or more "significantly reduced their likelihood of pregnancy".

At these levels of consumption, women were 18% less likely to have a successful IVF baby, while men reduced their chances of fatherhood by 14%.

The effects were particularly strong for women who drank white wine and men who preferred drinking beer, Rossi told the American Society of Reproductive Medicine annual meeting in Atlanta, Georgia last month.

"In general, women are told they should stop drinking when they are trying to achieve pregnancy," Rossi said. The men and women who took part in the study had average ages of 37 and 34 respectively. They were all from the Boston area and completed questionnaires about their drinking habits between 1994 and 2003.

Tony Rutherford, chairman of the British Fertility Society, said guidelines from the society and the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice) advise women to stop drinking completely throughout their pregnancy. "The link between alcohol and conception is an area where the evidence is not clear-cut. It may well be that couples who are already subfertile are more affected by alcohol that those who are perfectly fertile," he said

"If you are going to have IVF, my recommendation would be that it makes sense to avoid alcohol all together, from three months beforehand."

A previous study, published in the British Medical Journal by Tina Jensen at the National University hospital in Copenhagen, Denmark, found that women were less likely to conceive if they drank moderately.

But other studies have found that alcohol had little effect on the time it took women to conceive.

Rutherford added: "This is further evidence to suggest that alcohol does have an impact and that those women who try for a baby should think about their lifestyle choices.

"Eggs and sperm take at least three months to develop so women have got to stop smoking, reduce alcohol consumption or, if you are overweight, correct that weight, that far ahead if you want to maximise your chances of conception."

Little Mohamed

Little Mohamed entered his classroom in France.
- What is your name? asked the teacher.
- Muhammad.... answered the kid.
- Here we are in France, there is no Mohamed. From now on your name will be
Jean-Francois, replied the teacher.
In the evening, Mohamed returned home.


- How was your day, Mohamed? asked his mother.
- My name is not Mohamed, I am in France and my name is Jean-François.
- Ah, are you ashamed of your name, are you trying to disown your parents,
your heritage, your religion? Shame on you .. and she beat him.
Then she called the father and he too beat him savagely.


The next day Mohamed returned to school. When the teacher saw him with all
the bruises she asked:
- What happened my little Jean-François..
- Well Miss, just two hours after becoming French I was attacked by two
Arabs!

Celine Dion determined to try IVF again

Celine Dion is "determined" to continue with in-vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment after learning she is not pregnant after all.The Canadian superstar, 41, confirmed she was expecting her second child with husband Rene Angelil in August (09) amid reports she was carrying an embryo that had been frozen in liquid nitrogen for the past eight years.

The couple had embryos frozen for in-vitro fertilization while trying to conceive her first child, Rene-Charles, now eight.Dion had embryos implanted in her womb in August (09) and again in October (09), but both attempts proved to be unsuccessful.

Reports Dion was no longer pregnant broke on Wednesday (11Nov09), but the sad news has not put the My Heart Will Go On singer off trying for another baby. Angelil, 67, tells Canadian newspaper Journal de Montreal, "Dr. Zev Rosenwaks believed that the procedure/pregnancy took, but that wasn't the case. We found out some days later. We were shocked...

"We are living the reality of the majority of couples who have to use (IVF). The process can be long and arduous. But today, we are full of confidence. Celine is more determined than ever... You know Celine. She doesn't let go."Angelil admits his famous wife has been through so much in her bid to fall pregnant again, but the couple is not deterred and will travel to New York again to undergo further IVF treatment.

He adds, "I admire all the women who go through such a tough process. Since April, she has undergone numerous examinations, multiple hormone injections and blood tests. Celine and I didn't get discouraged... we put our faith in life and in the stars."

Pakistan Today