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The feminine · Before a new beginning
The Fertility Edit.
Begin with the whole person.
Preconception care makes space for nourishment, your menstrual story, your medical history, and the life you hope to create. My Fertility Edit gathers nutritional and targeted selections to consider within that wider conversation. Your plan should be as individual as your story.
Opens the collection on Fullscript. Choose individual products; current labels, availability, and prices are shown there.
Fertility & Preconception Nutrition · Medicine Wild
From the doctor · A naturopathic perspective
A note from Dr. Michele.
Preparing for conception is a deeply personal chapter. I begin with nourishment, daily rhythms, and your reproductive story: your cycle, your health history, and the questions that matter to you. That foundation shapes the conversation about nutrients, botanicals, and testing.
This edit brings together selections I consider through a naturopathic and functional medicine lens. My intention is to make their different roles easier to understand, so you can build an individual plan with your care team and revisit it as your needs change.
Regular meals and a varied diet are the starting place. Review your prenatal with your clinician, including folic acid, iron, iodine, choline, and any dietary needs. The same label will not suit everyone.
Know your cycle and history
Bring cycle length, changes in bleeding, previous pregnancies, conditions, medicines, and supplements into the conversation. If you have a partner, their health belongs in preconception planning too.
Leave room for timely care
Sleep, movement, and support matter, but supplements should not delay a fertility evaluation. Age, irregular cycles, known conditions, and time trying to conceive help determine when to seek care.
02 · Inside the edit
Nutrition, then a more individual layer.
The collection includes prenatal nutrition and targeted products. Choose around your diet and care plan; multiple overlapping formulas can duplicate nutrients.
Preparing for pregnancy begins with nourishment. Folate supports cell division and early neural-tube development; choline contributes to cell membranes and nervous-system signaling; DHA is a structural omega-3 fat in the brain and retina.
I look at these nutrients together with food intake and the full prenatal label. Choline and DHA may sit in separate products, so a thoughtful plan starts by seeing what is already covered.
The research on Prenatal nutrition, choline & DHA
Folic acid before conception and in early pregnancy has established benefits for preventing neural-tube defects. Choline and DHA have important nutritional roles, while supplementation decisions depend on diet and the complete prenatal plan. Review folate, iron, iodine, and other nutrients together to avoid unnecessary overlap.
CoQ10 helps carry electrons through the mitochondria, where cells produce usable energy. It also has an antioxidant role. Because developing eggs have substantial energy demands, these functions have made CoQ10 an area of fertility research.
In selected IVF populations, studies have reported improvements in ovarian response and embryo-related measures. I consider it a targeted addition to a fertility conversation, separate from the prenatal foundation.
The research on CoQ10
A randomized trial in younger women with reduced ovarian reserve undergoing IVF-ICSI reported improved egg retrieval, fertilization, and embryo measures after CoQ10 pretreatment. Pregnancy and live-birth differences were not statistically significant. These results do not establish a universal fertility benefit or predict an individual outcome.
This formula brings together acetyl-L-carnitine, R-alpha-lipoic acid, green tea extract, and PQQ. Carnitine participates in fat metabolism, alpha-lipoic acid works with mitochondrial enzyme systems, and green tea supplies polyphenols. PQQ is included for its role in the formulation’s cellular-health rationale.
I look at this as a combination of ingredients with different functions, rather than treating “egg quality” as a single nutrient need. The current formula, fertility plan, and timing around pregnancy all belong in the decision.
The research on Egg Quality Support · Needed
Needed combines acetyl-L-carnitine, R-alpha-lipoic acid, green tea extract, and PQQ. The formulation rationale concerns antioxidant activity and mitochondrial biology. It does not establish that the finished product increases pregnancy or live-birth rates. Review the exact current label and whether to continue any formula once pregnant.
Probiotics introduce selected living microorganisms. Their role depends on the strain, the preparation, and the reason for use: a digestive question and a vaginal-health question are different conversations.
I keep the wider ecosystem in view—food, digestive comfort, symptoms, and the changing needs around pregnancy—then look for a product whose specific organisms match the question.
The research on Prenatal probiotics
A probiotic label should identify the organisms and the intended use. Evidence for one strain or preparation cannot automatically be applied to another. A probiotic is not a fertility treatment or a substitute for evaluating vaginal or digestive symptoms.
My women’s health lab collection includes options that may be relevant during preconception care. A clinician can help select useful tests and avoid repeating information you already have.
Dried-urine testing explores sex-hormone levels, the metabolites produced as those hormones are processed, and cortisol patterns across the day. I consider this profile when looking more closely at menstrual changes, midlife symptoms, sleep, and stress physiology. The results belong within the story of your cycle, symptoms, and hormone use; follow the collection instructions for timing.
Comprehensive stool analysis
A stool-based look at digestive function, intestinal inflammation, and selected organisms within the gut microbiome. This can add detail when I am investigating persistent digestive symptoms or looking at how well the foundations of nourishment are working. I consider the findings alongside your food intake, bowel patterns, medication history, and symptoms when deciding which questions to explore next.
Comprehensive metabolic panel
A foundational blood panel that measures glucose, electrolytes, calcium, proteins, and markers related to liver and kidney function. It brings several connected systems into view at once. In my approach, these results help establish context before adding more specialized testing, and I look at patterns and changes over time alongside hydration, nutrition, and your health history.
Iron studies & ferritin
Looks at iron circulating in your blood, its transport and binding capacity, and the iron held in reserve as ferritin. I consider the full pattern when exploring fatigue, heavy menstrual bleeding, or possible nutritional depletion. These measurements help distinguish different iron patterns and inform a more thoughtful conversation about food, absorption, blood loss, and whether iron supplementation is appropriate.
Thyroid screening
Begins with thyroid-stimulating hormone, the signal that helps regulate thyroid hormone production. Free T4 is added automatically when the TSH result meets the laboratory’s criteria. This is a starting point for exploring thyroid function in the context of energy, temperature tolerance, bowel patterns, or menstrual changes; it does not automatically include thyroid antibodies or every thyroid measurement.
Apolipoprotein B
Measures apolipoprotein B, a protein found on cholesterol-carrying particles that can contribute to plaque in the arteries. It adds information about particle burden beyond the amount of cholesterol reported on a standard lipid panel. I consider it alongside blood pressure, glucose, family history, nutrition, and movement as part of a broader cardiovascular and longevity assessment.
Hemoglobin A1c & estimated average glucose
Measures the proportion of hemoglobin with glucose attached, providing a view of average blood sugar over approximately two to three months. Estimated average glucose translates that result into familiar blood-sugar units. I use the longer view to explore metabolic patterns alongside nourishment, movement, sleep, and other relevant markers; it does not show individual meal-related spikes.
Vaginal microbiome profile
Examines microorganisms present in a vaginal sample, offering a more detailed view of the intimate microbiome. I consider this information when exploring recurring changes in discharge, odor, irritation, or vaginal comfort. The findings are interpreted alongside symptoms, hormonal changes, and treatment history; the presence of an organism alone does not tell the whole story.
Anti-Müllerian hormone
A blood measurement of a hormone produced by small ovarian follicles, used to add information about ovarian reserve. I consider it within a wider preconception or fertility conversation that includes age, cycle history, and other findings. It can help inform expectations about response to fertility treatment, but it does not measure egg quality or predict whether you will conceive.
References & further reading
Research, product information, and clinical guidance address different questions. Product pages describe formulations; they do not establish every claimed benefit.
Educational guidance, not an individual treatment plan. I may earn income from purchases through my Fullscript storefront. You do not need to purchase supplements or tests to explore Medicine Wild or take The Foundations.
About this article & supplement statements
These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
This Medicine Wild article is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment, and should not be relied upon for individual medical advice. Reading this article or purchasing through the Apothecary does not establish a patient–physician relationship with Dr. Michele Burklund.
The editorial perspective is Dr. Michele Burklund’s unless another source or expert is identified. Linked studies and product information are provided for context; they do not replace advice from a qualified healthcare professional who knows your health history. Consult your clinician about symptoms, medicines, pregnancy or breastfeeding, and the suitability of any supplement or test.
