I recently did a consultation with a young woman with a history of PCOS who was working with a reproductive endocrinologist to assist her with conception. I explained to her that even though she had chosen this route of treatment, nutrition could still be important to her overall success. Here is an important reason why.
Homocysteine is a marker of inflammation when elevated. High homocysteine levels can also interfere with brain development and promote congenital malformations in the developing fetus.
In a study done on rats in which elevated homocysteine levels were induced, the use of melatonin, a powerful anti-inflammatory/antioxidant, helped to reduce the incidence of learning disabilities seen in the offspring of rats with high homocysteine levels.
I cannot recommend the use of melatonin supplements during pregnancy as this is a preliminary study. However, I do know that the dietary pattern you see discussed on this blog is one that is correlated with reduced homocysteine levels. And…you know how much I talk about the importance of adequate sleep. If supplemental melatonin ends up to be beneficial, you can't deny that paying attention to your sleep patterns is a natural way to encourage the same outcome.
So we're not here just talking about how to get pregnant. It doesn't stop there, not at all! If you're going to go through all the expense and trouble to become pregnant, we want to be sure that once you get there, your pregnancy and the baby it produces are equally healthy.
Baydas G, Koz ST, Tuzcu M, Nedzvetsky VS. Melatonin prevents gestational hyperhomocysteinemia-associated alterations in neurobehavioral developments in rats. J Pineal Res. 2008 Mar;44(2):181-8.