Swimming Upstream: The Challenge of Modern Fertility

Protecting the Sperm and the Egg

While fear is a mind-killer and you should not live in fear, the reality for many adults today is that they do not know whether or not they can have children until they start trying to conceive. I do not advocate for young men and women to be fearful of their fertility, but I believe it is the need of the hour for young adults to understand the context in which we are reproducing today.

Here are some points to consider regarding the context of modern childbearing:

• Gen Z and Millennials are half as fertile as their grandparents, which is true for males and females.

• The average age of first child for women in the US is 27.3, outside of the peak reproductive window of 20 to 24 years old.

• By age 30, a woman has 5-15% of the total egg reserve she was born with. This metric does not account for free radical and toxin exposure, which is an issue for women of all childbearing ages.

• Sperm motility (movement) and morphology (shape and structure) have declined in quality and function by approximately 50–60% since the 1970s.

• 10-15% of couples face infertility today, with female factors (including egg health) contributing to ~40-50% of cases, higher than in the 1950s due to delayed childbearing and environmental factors.

The big takeaway is that MILLENNIALS AND GEN Z HAVE HALF AS MUCH TIME AS THEIR GRANDPARENTS DID TO HAVE CHILDREN WITH HALF AS HEALTHY EGGS AND SPERM. Our grandparents could have stalled childbearing and conceived more easily than our generation can. We can promote or incentivize earlier childbearing, but this approach has repeatedly failed; global Total Fertility Rates continue to decline despite pro-natalist messaging and financial incentives. The reality remains that in a world of abundant economic, technological, and romantic options, women will continue to wait to capitalize on their fertility. That said, given the difficulty of modern dating, who can blame them? So, what is the most practical wisdom we can give to men and women today who will likely have children later than their ancestors?

If you're not going to use your eggs or sperm in your youth, protect their health as best you can holistically so you can avoid having to turn to the predatory Western medical fertility industry.

Regarding a person’s overall health, it is almost always a bad idea to depend on an industrial system for health or longevity if you can help it (e.g., big pharma, medical establishments, specialists). This is because your health and well-being would be impacted if the health industry or a component of it ever falters or fails. For example, imagine having Type II diabetes that was developed through poor lifestyle choices, and you now need insulin for it. This argument is a bit moot now that we have GLP-1 Peptides, but before that, diabetics had to budget for their insulin and rely on a supply chain for delivery. Their lives were on the line if they experienced supply-chain disruptions, a loss of finances, or insurance coverage lapses. This same principle applies to your reproductive health. If you are going to postpone childbearing into your thirties, you’ll want to be sure your reproductive system is capable of functioning independently of a complex and profit-driven industry.

The Western medical fertility industry is predatory because the ethnomedical¹ model is not a holistic one. Hippocrates taught that true healing means fixing the cause of a problem, not just the symptoms. Today's medical approach often does the opposite. Instead of getting the patient's body to perform a desired function naturally, the model treats symptoms over the cause of biological dysfunction. While treating symptoms is necessary, overlooking the underlying disease will lead to the recurrence of symptoms. Such is the case with the fertility industry. If you are lucky enough to get pregnant once with their interventions, this does not fix or eliminate the underlying infertility, should you choose to conceive again.

While I am critical of the Western ethnomedical model, it is phenomenal at treating acute conditions, eradicating infectious diseases, and developing life-saving technologies. In contrast, it ignores the most critical functional aspect: allowing the human body to do what it was designed to do by removing obstacles hindering the body's healing.

Embracing a holistic approach to my health and lifestyle evolved from the sudden onset of my autoimmune gastrointestinal disorder in my early twenties. I found myself “stuck” with wondering what to do about my chronic pain, which I eventually concluded was triggered by gut inflammation. I still have the disease to date, although I find significant relief in pregnancy.

In my experience investigating my illness, no doctor could help or explain what was wrong with me because their training didn’t give them the tools to find the actual cause of my problem. They prescribed multiple medications and issued standard wastebasket diagnoses. I often walked away with more questions than answers and a complete lack of progress during clinical exploration. Somewhere along my holistic journey, I discovered the carnivore diet, which I adopted for some months. I considered a carnivore diet partially due to its popularity on social media but also because, as an anthropology major, I knew I could get all of my essential nutrients from animal meats and products without becoming malnourished as many cold-weather ethnic populations lived that way. To my astonishment, going carnivore resulted in a near complete resolution of my debilitating pain, and eventually, I was able to reintegrate low-toxin foods without issue. Had I not experimented with an anti-establishment carnivore-based diet, I am convinced I would still be in significant chronic pain today and dependent on a medical system that would have likely made me far more ill with medications and ineffective treatments.

This experience parallels that of many women in reproductive crises who turn to Western medicine to cure their infertility. For example, Ferta² founder Preethi Kasireddy experienced similar frustrations when she sought fertility help from Western medicine with no resolution. Additionally, relationship coach and retired marriage and family counselor

Dr. Taylor Burrowes

not only experienced ineffective medical treatment for her fertility issues by standard Western medicine, but her body flat-out rejected the aggressive fertility therapy that was offered to her. It wasn’t until she gave up In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) protocols entirely that she was able to conceive naturally at age 44.

(A pregnant and majestic

Dr. Taylor Burrowes

)

Preethi was told that IVF was her only hope of having kids, but after she focused on healing her body naturally and improving her metabolic health, she became pregnant with two children without any medical procedures! After this, Preethi became so passionate about fertility that she and her husband

Alexander Cortes

³, respected biohacker and exceptional fitness professional, launched their concierge fertility medicine company Ferta to help others accomplish the same.

You can check out Taylor’s holistic mature fertility protocol linked HERE. Below, I will share some standard practices all four of us practice in our homes to protect our reproductive and metabolic health.

**The information provided in this content is for educational and informational purposes only and is based on the personal experiences and opinions of individuals who are not licensed medical professionals. It is not intended as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult with a qualified healthcare provider before making any changes to your diet, health routine, or treatment plan. Individual results may vary. Reliance on any information provided here is solely at your own risk.**

Holistic Protocol Protective of Fertility and Metabolic Health

• Considerable reduction or total omission of caffeine consumption. Substitution of caffeine for decaf coffee, matcha, or teas.

• Considerable reduction or total omission of alcohol consumption.

• Omission of traditional scented detergents for clothing and sheets. Substitution of scent-free or homemade detergents.

• Teflon and plastics should be omitted from the kitchen. Food cookware, containers, and utensils should be substituted with stainless steel, glass, or cast iron. Avoid using silicone cookware in high heat.

• Water that is consumed should be filtered. Reverse osmosis is the best filtration method. When drinking filtered water, it is helpful to either remineralize the water or consume electrolytes⁴ separately.

• Consumption of animal fats is encouraged.

• Increase protein intake with a goal of 0.8g of protein per pound of body weight. Ex: A 127 lb woman aiming to consume roughly 100g of protein daily.

• Increased exposure to sunlight and reduction of blue light and artificial light exposure.

• For Women: Cycle tracking and data collecting for general knowledge or conception purposes. You can opt for calendar tracking or basal body temperature tracking.

• For Men: Minimizing environmental exposure to high heat (ex: saunas, hot tubs, etc.) when Trying to Conceive (TTC)

• Stress reduction through decreasing psychological stressors and/or increasing resiliency.

• Avoidance of overtraining in the gym. Overtraining can cause physiological stress and inflammation counter to fertility and metabolic health optimization.

• Prioritizing sleep optimization with a goal of 5-8 hours of high-quality sleep.

• Use of air purification.

• Reduction in the use of synthetic fibers in clothing and sheets.

• Omission of artificial scents in the home (ex: candles, soaps, lotions, etc.)

• Reduction in dietary and environmental exposure to pesticides.

IVF in Reality

For readers who are seriously contemplating IVF or hoping to rely on it as a fail-safe, let’s discuss what IVF really entails…

Your average number of IVF cycles to result in a successful singleton pregnancy is about two to three cycles. Each cycle runs for $25K for the patient. At the minimum, you’re looking at a $50K financial investment for a singleton pregnancy. Remember that most insurance companies do not cover IVF treatment, so you must pay out of pocket for treatment or acquire a loan.

If you were to pursue the medical route for infertility, the overwhelming majority of doctors do not investigate infertility until a couple has tried to conceive for a year and failed. Often, when people are looking into their fertility struggles, the woman is older; men are half the equation when it comes to challenges in conception and gestation; however, what I am stating is that it is often women in their thirties⁵ who have yet to conceive or gestate a successful pregnancy who are looking to get infertility treatment. If a couple has to wait a year before a medical provider will send them to fertility specialists, that is twelve eggs a woman is spending to wait for intervention, and she’s already on a time crunch. This is not to suggest a woman’s fertility challenges are related to the number of eggs she has in reserve alone; egg quality matters considerably, but you can see there is a biological cost for the standard woman who is waiting for her reproductive struggles to be addressed by Western medicine.

Aside from financial and temporal costs to a couple, IVF takes a physical and psychological toll on women. IVF, in essence, is “pregnancy by brute force,” according to Ferta founder Alexander Cortes. An anonymous woman shared with me that in her IVF struggles, she experienced ovarian cysts and fertility dysfunction instead of a pregnancy. This is one of the more positive experiences surrounding physiological side effects and potential risks. There are many more, such as:

1. Ovarian Hyperstimulation Syndrome (OHSS)

2. Multiple Pregnancies (twins or triplets)

3. Ectopic Pregnancy

   1. This 2-5% increased risk may be considered negligible compared to traditional pregnancy.

4. Egg Retrieval Complications

   1. Egg retrieval carries rare risks (less than 0.2%) of bleeding, infection, or damage to nearby organs like the bladder or bowel. Anesthesia used during retrieval also has minor risks, as all anesthetic procedures do.

5. Emotional and Psychological Stress

   1. Stress from hormonal changes, financial costs, and uncertainty of success potentially leads to anxiety or depression for the couple involved.

6. Hormonal Side Effects

   1. Fertility medications may cause mood swings, headaches, hot flashes, or breast tenderness.

7. Pregnancy Complications

   1. IVF pregnancies have a slightly higher risk of miscarriage, gestational diabetes, or placental issues, particularly in older women or those with underlying health conditions.

Why Concierge Fertility Medicine?

Concierge medicine is currently unfamiliar to many, but it describes a privatized medical model in which a company provides near-on-demand medical consultation for a membership fee. As the Western medical industry continues to overlook blind spots in medical care, more and more of these businesses will pop up. A typical example of this pay-to-play medicine is holistic healthcare offices in the US, which can sometimes have subpar medical providers. These practices often have a competent DO or MD running a private practice for membership rates because the provider dislikes working within the standard Western ethnomedical model for moral, ethical, or personal reasons.

This describes what Ferta does for those seeking to solve their fertility health concerns holistically. You can learn more about Ferta HERE. I am bringing Ferta up to my readers to inform them of their reproductive options. I am always eager to share various strategies and resources to help you all achieve your romantic and reproductive goals.

I know what it's like to experience modern medicine's failure and turn to social media and personal research to find a solution. I remember what it was like to experience chronic and debilitating pain and getting diagnosed with the bare minimum, or worse… the nonexistent. For example, at one point when my autoimmune disease was being explored, I was confronted with a medical provider theorizing my diagnosis to be fibromyalgia. In response, I looked at him and said, "I don't believe in fibromyalgia," to which he quickly chuckled and told me, "Me neither." I was devastated. I knew to heal myself, I had to think outside of the box.

I am also no stranger to fertility struggles, although I believe mine were pretty standard and simply part of the human condition. At 27, I experienced my first and only miscarriage to date. To be completely objective, the overwhelming majority of human pregnancies throughout human history spontaneously abort if you consider the phenomenon of pregnancy from conception, and it's speculative whether or not I even conceived a human life during that pregnancy or if it was unviable human tissue. What I had is what is commonly referred to as a chemical pregnancy, and the cause could have been a subpar sperm, a subpar egg, problems with DNA replication, or implantation.

Despite knowing the science, no facts could ease the pain when my grief was of the heart. The physical pain of the miscarriage itself was among the worst uterine pain I have ever endured. Science offers no comfort to a woman mourning the loss of life within her womb. That reflection makes me weep for the countless women who experience this kind of loss repeatedly in their pursuit of motherhood. I am fortunate that infertility did not become a lasting struggle for my family; just a few months after my first miscarriage, I carried a healthy pregnancy to term. But for millions of women, the heartbreak is not a single event—their struggles with fertility are ongoing.

If I were struggling with infertility and/or metabolic health as a family today, it's not a question of whether or not I would turn to holistic professionals—it's an absolute. I am all too familiar with the limitations of Western medicine as it stands right now, and sometimes, the best person to turn to is someone who has healed themselves and others with replicated results.

Today, 1 in 6 couples experience infertility. Many women are on an emotional roller coaster between a monthly pregnancy test that never turns positive to experiencing positive pregnancy tests, only to later experience vaginal bleeding that not only causes them physical pain but significant emotional turmoil. Those women are not getting adequate treatment from the standard Western ethnomedical model, and they need help, as do the men in their lives, who are equally desperate for family creation. Miscarriage impacts these men as well. It is painful for men to witness the emotional and physical pain the woman in their life is experiencing, while being unable to do anything about it. However, there are some instances in which a man can do something about his woman's infertility struggles if his sperm is the problem in the equation.

To illustrate, fertility is not just a woman's issue. Sperm health matters just as much as egg health when trying to conceive. Male factor infertility contributes to nearly half of all fertility struggles. Men play a significant role and can have quicker results once applying holistic interventions, as sperm turnover is faster than egg rejuvenation. Men produce new sperm every day, and it takes about 2–3 months to generate a fresh batch. That means improvements in lifestyle, nutrition, stress, sleep, and supplements can quickly and significantly impact sperm quality.

For couples struggling with infertility who still have some time left in their fertile window, repairing their metabolic health from the inside out can be the game-changer they are looking for.

Sadly, many who pursue infertility treatment have no desire to take personal responsibility for their metabolic health and want the medical industry to force their body into a pregnancy it is already resisting. This is partially what makes IVF pregnancies inherently high-risk. But the times, they are a-changin’.

The Crunchification of America is well underway, and Ferta exemplifies a business emerging in response to this cultural shift toward proactive health management. Increasingly, adults are eager to take control of their well-being. As this movement grows and prospective parents become more discerning about fertility options, concierge fertility medicine is poised to become a booming industry, offering a personalized alternative to the conventional IVF model.

Suppose you strongly consider paying thousands of dollars out of pocket or through loans to force your body to do something unnaturally. Why wouldn’t you instead invest in healing your metabolic health for a fraction of the cost? It saves you both time and money if your hormonal struggles are such that lifestyle change could repair and reverse them.

With traditional medicine, you'll be forced to wait a year if you want a medical investigation of infertility. No such waiting period exists with concierge medicine.

With traditional medicine, you are one of hundreds or thousands of clients to medical providers and insurance companies. With concierge medicine, you will be one in a hundred (or hundreds) clients, enabling you to get better qualitative care instead of being lost in the bureaucracy's shuffle.

With traditional medicine, you receive care from a business that prioritizes insurance companies over the patient. With concierge medicine, you receive care from a business that relies on its reputation and results to acquire new patients. They must serve the patient effectively to stay in business. Traditional medical offices do not have that same incentive.

You all deserve to know your options and what you’re up against as couples trying to conceive today. While holistic health improvement is not a cure-all, it is a net positive to implement in your life because improving your metabolic health is never a waste of time. Arguably, if you’re forced to resort to IVF⁶ despite holistic changes, being in healthier shape for harsh medical interventions is a wise choice.

In closing, my aim with this piece has not been to sow fear or prescribe a one-size-fits-all solution but to shed light on the biological and cultural landscape that Millennial and Gen Z couples now face when building families. The reality is sobering: diminished fertility, delayed childbearing, and a medical model that often patches symptoms rather than restores natural function. But within that reality is also the truth that holistic, intentional stewardship of your health can stack the odds in your favor—whether you succeed naturally or ultimately require medical intervention. The question isn't whether modern medicine has its place; it does. The real question is whether you want to hand over complete control of your reproductive future to a system that was never designed to heal you from the inside out. The tools, wisdom, and pathways are there for those willing to take ownership of their metabolic and reproductive health. It's not about fear—it's about strategy, awareness, and reclaiming agency in a world where so much of health has been outsourced.

(Ferta co-founders are very metabolically healthy and have an adorable family.)

1. Ethnomedical = Cultural Medical

2. Ferta is a private company that offers fertility concierge medicine for men and women.

3. Follow AJAC on X HERE

4. Magnesium, sodium, and potassium. Please be very careful with potassium supplementation.

5. The thirties are "older" for women if we are discussing reproduction. Sorry.

6. I am not condoning IVF. Readers of this article will have differing viewpoints on the subject, and I am giving them objective information to make an informed decision.