If you are thinking of purchasing an a-gender plan NOW is a great time to buy one.

Until September 6^th 2010 if you buy a Platinum Plan- our most popular product- you will receive $50 off, reducing the price from $299 to $AUD249.

WHAT A GREAT PRICE REDUCTION!

This plan includes on-going email support from Cindy and Maree for 6 months, daily Personalized dates for this period as well as a Menu Plan, Menu Plan Assessment every time you attempt during the 6 months, a personalized summary and attempt plan advice.

This is a great offer. For one week only- so do not miss out!

Currently our success rates are over 87%.

Email maree@a-gender.com.au NOW and if you have a Silver or Gold Plan and wish to upgrade to Platinum email Maree now for a reduced price quote.

Good Luck

Age is not the only factor which can impact the health of the ovaries and quality of eggs produced. This can also be affected by a myriad of factors including if hormones are present in food you eat and environmental factors such as stress, as well as having good blood circulation around your body.

If you are over 35 and trying to conceive egg quality can be an issue and optimising egg quality can increase your chance of conception and reduce D.N.A. fragmentation which has a flow on effect of reducing miscarriage rates.

The egg cycle to prepare for ovulation is similar to the time frame of the sperm cycle- around 90 days. Therefore to achieve maximum impact these recommended changes need to be in effect for 90 days for best results however improvements are cumulative over that time frame so improvements will start from when changes are made.

Here are some recommendations to improve ovarian health:

1. Drink 6-8 glasses of water a day. Water is best for this- not juice, milk or other liquids.

2. Treat yourself to a relaxing massage as often as you can. Massage your lower tummy where your ovaries and uterus are every few days- you can ask your husband to rub some oil on there – do not do this when menstruating.

3. Get moving- exercise can oxygenate the blood and get it flowing which is important for good egg quality. Walk 30-40 mins 5 times a week or do what fulfils you but do not do strenuous exercise.

If you do need to sit down for long periods of time at work or on public transport regularly try to move your arms and legs or get up every so often and walk around to get the blood flowing. Acupuncture can also help with this.

4. Take chaste tree berry otherwise known as vitex to try and reduce follicle stimulating hormone levels which usually rise as you get older. Take as per manufacturer’s instructions. When you conceive wean off this slowly.

5. Take a mega-antioxidant, COQ10 and l’arginine. Buy an antioxidant from Complete Health or Organics Australia on this site or ask your pharmacy to recommend one when you purchase the others.

6. Reduce intake of cigarettes, alcohol, caffeine, sugar, soft drinks and processed foods.

7. Increase intake of fresh foods esp. fruit and veges- green leafy vegetables, sesames seeds and pumpkin seeds.

8. Avoid soy products and rinse dishes thoroughly after washing.

9. Do not expose yourself to strong odours such as petrol fumes and cleaning products, buy natural products when you can from Organics Australia on this site.

10. Do all you can to de-stress your life.  The massage suggested earlier is a good start. This really can make a difference. Take a long relaxing bath (not too hot) with bubbles, candles and a book whenever you can. Stress causes you to release hormones which negatively impact egg quality.

Do not expect to conceive immediately after making these changes but think positively. Consistently following this advice can increase your chance of conception every cycle and reduce your chance of miscarrying your precious bundle.

WHAT A GREAT OFFER!!

Those of you who know us, know that we rarely offer discounts or have sales as we are always so busy.

However to increase our profile on facebook we have decided to have a BIG SALE!

If you are a fan of our facebook page you will qualify for a massive 20% off ALL A-GENDER PRODUCTS purchased before Sunday midnight 11/7/2010.

All you need to do is find the code which we have written somewhere on our a-gender facebook site and use this code when you order through our online a-gender shop. While you are there why not join our forum for extra support and guidance?

Become a facebook fan now if you have not already and if you have been putting off ordering do not put it off any longer.

With OUR success rates consistently over 85%, this is a great discount offer, so now is the perfect time to purchase an a-gender product.

You can ORDER now for future months so this is still PERFECT for those not wishing to try and conceive just yet.

THIS IS AN OUTSTANDING OPPORTUNITY NOT TO BE MISSED!!!

Expectant mothers who eat excessive quantities of licorice during pregnancy could adversely affect their child’s intelligence and behaviour, say European researchers.

The study, of eight year old children whose mothers ate large amounts of licorice when pregnant, found they did not perform as well as other youngsters in cognitive tests. They were also more likely to have poor attention spans and show disruptive behaviour such as ADHD, say the researchers.

It is thought that a component in licorice called glycyrrhizin may impair the placenta, allowing stress hormones to cross from the mother to the baby. High levels of such hormones, known as glucocorticoids, are thought to affect fetal brain development and have been linked to behavioural disorders in children.

The study, carried out by the University of Helsinki and the University of Edinburgh, looked at children born in Finland, where consumption of licorice among young women is common. Women who ate more than 100g of pure licorice per week were more likely to have children with lower intelligence levels and more behavioural problems, the study noted.

“This shows that eating licorice during pregnancy may affect a child’s behaviour or IQ and suggests the importance of the placenta in preventing stress hormones that may affect cognitive development getting through to the baby,” said Professor Jonathan Seckl, from the University of Edinburgh. “Expectant mothers should avoid eating excessive amounts of licorice.”

Source: University of Edinburgh

For all Mums there is a new online Shopping Mall that you can visit from the privacy of your own home.

Pop over and have a look at our NEW page on facebook – the Mummy Tree Mall – Promote Your Products Here

Here we are showcasing a selection of businesses run by Mummy’s for Mummy’s so they know exactly what you want and need.  These Businesses  focus on goods and services for babies, children and family and also cover your pregnancy needs.

Become a ‘liker’ of this page and make it a favourite!

There are many talented, creative ladies who sell anything from children’s clothing and accessories to family photography to plus sized maternity wear. Facebook can be very difficult to navigate so by having a collective of businesses we are creating an online Shopping Mall which changes every day and every week.

Different Businesses are featured on different days. Have a look at the Welcome Page so you know what day to shop for the product you may need.

Saturday is SALE day so a great time to have a look for bargains!

If you are a Mummy and have your own Business which specializes in products or services that fall into these categories please read through the rules on the Mummy Tree Mall page on Facebook and make sure you meet the criteria and then you are welcome to promote your Business.

You now have a new place to market your goods! Don’t forget to also check out our other page – The Mummy Tree – Grow Your Business Here, for a place to network, promote and gain Business advice and tips.

There is something for everyone so pop in regularly for a convenient shopping experience and some great value products that are unique- a bit different to what you may find in a retail outlet…plus most of them have been made with that extra bit of love, or in the case of a service – with that extra caring and individual touch.

Thanks

When hoping to conceive a boy it is best to have lots of egg white cervical mucous and the opposite is true for a girl attempt.

Food and lifestyle can contribute greatly to the volume of EWCM you have.

Here is some information that may help you increase or decrease EWCM, dependent upon your circumstances.

These can increase CM

1. Freshly squeezed or concentrated Carrot juice
2. Large quantities of Garlic
3. Cauliflower and Asparagus
4. Salt, Pepper, Hot Peppers and Onions (spicy food)
5. Hot cup of ½ soy milk and ½ full cream milk
6. Eating large meals
7. Eating quickly and not spending time chewing your food
8. Dairy Products ( not recommended in large quantities for a boy attempt- cheese is high in potassium and sodium and the best dairy to have for this purpose)
9. High water intake
10. A lot of foreplay before lovemaking

These can reduce CM

1. Sucking on ice
2. Refrigerated cranberry juice and frozen cranberries (eat cold)
3. High quantities of Vit C (such as is found in cranberry)
4. Stress and lower Estrogen levels
5. Eating small meals and taking your time to eat
6. Not mixing lots of food groups in one meal
7. Regular douching (need to be careful of infection)
8. Decaf coffee (contains chemicals not always favourable to CM production)
9. Blander meals with lack of seasoning
10. Little foreplay before lovemaking

*Please Note: If you have an a-gender Platinum or Platinum Plus plan do not take any additional pharmaceutical supplementation without checking with Cindy and Maree, and please check with them if you wish to have foods not included in your Menu Plan.

ScienceDaily (May 31, 2010)  Researchers at Yale School of Medicine have discovered a method to select sperm with the highest DNA integrity in a bid to improve male fertility. The method is comparable to that of the egg’s natural selection abilities, according to the study published in the June/July issue of the Journal of Andrology.

“Our results could help address the fact that approximately 40 percent of infertility cases can be traced to male infertility,” said the senior author of the study, Gabor Huszar, M.D., director of the Sperm Physiology Lab and senior research scientist in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Sciences at Yale.

Huszar said that past semen analysis focused on sperm concentration and motility. It was assumed that if a man had a high sperm count and active sperm, that he was fertile. But there was no information on the sperm’s fertility or its ability to attach to its mark, the female gamete. In an ideal case, the egg naturally selects the optimal sperm, but during in-vitro fertilization treatment of men who had only a few sperm, clinicians did not know whether they were injecting the correct sperm into the egg for fertilization. “We have now found a biochemical marker of sperm fertility so that we can select sperm with high genetic integrity,” Huszar said.

Huszar and his colleagues tested the idea that binding sperm to hyaluronic acid selects sperm with high DNA integrity. They studied semen samples from 50 men, and a part of the sperm in the semen was allowed to bind to hyaluronic acid. These sperm were isolated, and the DNA chain integrity was compared to the original sperm in semen. The team used a reagent that stained sperm with high DNA integrity green, whereas sperm with fragmented DNA, and diminished DNA integrity were stained red.

“The sperm with fragmented DNA work like scratched CDs,” Huszar said. “They seem to be operational, but when you play them, some of the information is missing. These damaged sperm may also carry chromosomal aberrations that could be related to genetic diseases.” Huszar and his colleagues identified the nuclear and cytoplasmic attributes of various sperm. They also identified a key relationship between the ability of sperm to bind to hyaluronic acid and between high sperm genetic integrity, which enhances the sperm’s contribution to normal embryo development.

“When sperm is selected with hyaluronic acid binding, they are of comparable, if not better, overall quality than sperm chosen by the oocyte in the natural fertilization process.

Story Source:

The above story is reprinted (with editorial adaptations by ScienceDaily ) from materials provided by Yale University.

Journal Reference:

1.Artay Yagci, William Murk, Jill Stronk, and Gabor Huszar. Spermatozoa Bound to Solid State Hyaluronic Acid Show Chromatin Structure with High DNA Chain Integrity: An Acridine Orange Fluorescence Study. Journal of Andrology, 2010; DOI: 10.2164/jandrol.109.008912

Cindy posted this story on our Forum in April 2008, it was sent through to her from a past client and as our Forum is so busy and this story is so special, we thought we would post it again here for everyone to easily see.

It can apply to many situations in life, including when you are trying to conceive a baby of a specific gender and things do not go as planned, however I believe it was originally written by someone whose baby had ‘Down Syndrome’ and they wanted to share how much unexpected joy this baby bought into their life and how life, whilst different was still beautiful.

We cannot ALWAYS control everything which happens to us in life and this can bring many tears and frustrations, however take a little time today to read and remember this inspirational story…

When you’re going to have a baby, it’s like planning a fabulous vacation trip to Italy. You buy a bunch of guide books and make your wonderful plans. The Coliseum. The Michelangelo David. The gondolas in Venice. You may learn some handy phrases in Italian. It’s all very exciting.

After months of eager anticipation, the day finally arrives. You pack your bags and off you go. Several hours later, the plane lands. The stewardess comes in and says, “Welcome to Holland.”

“Holland?!?” you say. “What do you mean Holland?? I signed up for Italy! I’m supposed to be in Italy. All my life I’ve dreamed of going to Italy.”

But there’s been a change in the flight plan. They’ve landed in Holland and there you must stay.

The important thing is that they haven’t taken you to a horrible, disgusting, filthy place, full of pestilence, famine and disease. It’s just a different place.

So you must go out and buy new guide books. And you must learn a whole new language. And you will meet a whole new group of people you would never have met.

It’s just a different place. It’s slower-paced than Italy, less flashy than Italy. But after you’ve been there for a while and you catch your breath, you look around… and you begin to notice that Holland has windmills… and Holland has tulips. Holland even has Rembrandts.

But everyone you know is busy coming and going from Italy… and they’re all bragging about what a wonderful time they had there. And for the rest of your life, you will say “Yes, that’s where I was supposed to go. That’s what I had planned.”

And the pain of that will never, ever, ever, ever go away… because the loss of that dream is a very, very significant loss.

But… if you spend your life mourning the fact that you didn’t get to Italy,  you may never be free to enjoy the very special, the very lovely things… about Holland.

Thursday May 20^th

Attempt #2 – Self-sabotage

It’s been two whole months since I’ve written! I’ve been struggling with the same health issues I wrote about in March. You might recall me writing about possibly being low in iron…it turns out my symptoms were due to something more sinister, I have an autoimmune disease! I’m not yet sure which one but the blood tests showed a couple of indicators for lupus. My first appointment with a specialist isn’t until August but I’ve been advised that, while there may be a slightly higher chance of miscarrying (if the problem is lupus), there’s no problem with me continuing to try and conceive.

My husband and I had our first attempt in this gender swaying journey in the last week of March. I think we were slightly off with our dates and I ovulated a day outside of the good window for girl conception. This was probably just due to the fact that I’d come off a cycle of the pill (to shift my ovulation day and align with the ‘good dates’) and had no idea what my body was going to do. All went well though and a couple of weeks later both my husband and I were convinced I was pregnant! I was having IPS (imaginary pregnancy symptoms) all over the place but, for all the home pregnancy tests I took, only one looked promising. Then I discovered that taking anti-histomines can give false negative pregnancy tests so I went off them and waited a few days. Unfortunately I was still getting negative test results then so we accepted that I wasn’t pregnant and started planning for this attempt. I’m so glad I took the time to look up anti-histomines though, it had just slipped my mind that maybe it wouldn’t be great to be on them while trying to conceive (regardless of them giving false negative pregnancy results)! I’ve stayed off them since, to ensure there are no problems with our future embryo, I have very itchy hands and feet though (side effect of the autoimmune problem)! A couple of other health issues I’ve had for many years have disappeared completely while I was pregnant both times so it will be fantastic if the itching goes too!

So here we are in the midst of our second gender swaying attempt! It’s so exciting thinking that I could be pregnant very soon but we’re also a bit disappointed in ourselves because we’ve not been putting much effort into sticking to the diet this time around! We’re surprised at ourselves for this because our diets for the first attempt (from early January until the end of March) were perfect…we didn’t ‘cheat’ at all, and that was fitting with our commitment. I think we started ‘cheating’ this time around (we had a small window of time off the diet around Easter to ensure we had the necessary breaks) because we were so sure I was pregnant and that we wouldn’t need to go back on the diet. We took it upon ourselves to postpone starting the diet until we were 100% sure I wasn’t pregnant, which took longer than expected once we’d discovered that the anti-histomines I was taking could have been giving me false negative pregnancy results! This meant we were drinking coffee again as well as having excess amounts of sugar. My being tired has played a role too though I think because I just haven’t had the energy for food preparations and cooking meals that take longer than the quickest recipes I’ve been using for years. In the past week we’ve really stepped up in this respect and are doing almost as well as we were for the first attempt. I know it’s too late to make a difference for now but, if we don’t conceive this month, we’ll be all set for our June/July/August attempts (with regards to being on the diet for a set number of weeks prior to having the actual attempt).

There has been a kind of positive effect from our gender swaying self-sabotage…it’s forced us to really think about how happy we would be if our gender swaying results in another baby boy instead of a baby girl. We had to decide whether we would go ahead with this month’s attempt or skip it, knowing that we hadn’t done the right preparations. The diet is likely a big factor in our conceiving two boys too (as timing, lunar influences, and ph levels alone weren’t seen as being influential in our personal analysis of prior conceptions) so we know, in keeping with the attempt, that we’ll likely conceive a boy if we conceive this month. We do have lots of negative ions working for us to conceive a girl though, so not all hope is gone! Still, I was previously quite worried about feeling disappointed if we conceived a boy after gender swaying for a girl but now I can relax, we’re definitely very excited about a baby in our near future, regardless of gender.

It is very easy to get caught up when trying to conceive and/or gender swaying and be so busy with that as well as all of life’s other daily challenges that we do not make time for ourselves and our partner as a couple.

There are obviously only limited hours in the day and with all the demands on our time our relationship can sometimes take a back seat.

I think it is important to make a conscious effort to steal moments together when you can and it can be a great feeling to see the appreciation on your partner’s face if you make the effort to surprise them.

Here are a few ideas:

1. Make sure you do not just make love during your fertile days of the month when you are hoping to get pregnant. Sometimes attempting on these days can be a bit stressful so make sure you have PROTECTED sex throughout the month- following your individual plan if you have one as far as if frequent or non-frequent intercourse is recommended.  Give each other massages and explore each others bodies so there is other intimacy as well as lovemaking. Candles, music, rose petals, bubble baths are very cliché but try it occasionally.
2. Try to make time to talk every evening or as often as you can- when the children go to bed is a good time if you have children. Even if it is only for 15 mins- make an effort to sit down and connect without TV, radio and phone calls. Really listen to how their day was even though you may be tired.
3. If you can afford to, invest in some new bras, undies and lingerie. They need not be expensive- even K-Mart have some great options.
4. If you are feeling daring visit a sex shop – take your partner with you if you feel he would be willing. Bring something home that can add spice to your love-making. Something you would both be comfortable with- maybe even chocolate body paint – it need not be too out there!
5. When you make love surprise him on occasions by really focusing on pleasing your partner and maybe do something you normally may not do or may not do often that may give him pleasure. Ask him if he would like to try new positions or what his fantasies are if he has not shared this with you. Act them out if you feel comfortable doing so. Maybe he would like to make love somewhere apart from the bed for a change?
6. If you are concerned the children may interrupt, see if you can drop them off at your Mums or with a friend for a few hours and instead of going out schedule some lovemaking!  If this is not an option save up to book a cheap motel and get a babysitter as a treat.  It will make you feel like teenagers again!
7. If you see your partner in the shower- surprise him. Take of your clothes and jump in with him- even for a few minutes. Saves time and water!

Remember one day your beautiful family will grow up and have lives of their own. It will just be the two of you again. Look after each other and nurture what you have together. It is stating the obvious but it does not hurt to be reminded sometimes.