Diet is vital for fertility. While couples can’t control all the causes of infertility, they can control their eating habits, so here are some of the latest evidenced baby-making dietary tips:

Choose higher fibre and plant-based foods – research shows women who eat plenty of high-fibre, slow-releasing, carbohydrate-rich foods (such as whole grains), more monounsaturated fat (olive oil and avocados), and a higher ratio of vegetable to meat protein were more fertile.

Choose more veggie-sources of iron. According to results from The Nurses’
Health Study, a diet rich in iron from vegetables and supplements (but not meat) lowers the risk of ovulatory infertility, which affects 25 per cent of infertile couples.

Get in trim – around a third of infertility cases are due to weight extremes, which in women can alter hormone levels and throw ovulation off schedule. In men, carrying too much weight lowers testosterone levels and can make sperm sluggish.

Last but not least, make sure your male partner has a handful or two of nuts daily. Men who ate about two handfuls of mixed almonds, hazelnuts and walnuts daily for 14 weeks increased their sperm count and had more viable ‘swimmers’, shows a study in the journal European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology.