Preparing for Egg Freezing

We suggest patients be as healthy as possible at the time of egg freezing, as studies suggest a positive link between fertility and healthy diets. We encourage you to consume a healthy diet where possible prior to starting your egg freeze cycle, including:

• Fresh fruit and vegetables each day
• Good quality protein, such as lean meat, fish, eggs or pulses like beans or lentils
• Complex carbohydrates, like whole grains
• Plenty of calcium, preferably from low fat dairy products
• Healthy fats, like olive oil

It's also best to avoid excessive additives such as colours, flavours and preservatives.

We recommend patients aim to reach a healthy body weight prior to freezing eggs. Being overweight can make the egg retrieval procedure more difficult, while being underweight can lead to irregular or long period cycles. This may impact your outcomes from an egg freeze cycle.

Every person is different, so it's important to speak with your clinician about what a healthy body weight looks like for you. Many factors can affect weight, such as thyroid conditions, PCOS and some medications. That's why we recommend a holistic approach, including seeing a dietitian for individualised advice, psychological support and treatment of underlying conditions.

Depending on your fitness levels, you may benefit from increasing the amount of exercise you do prior to an egg freeze cycle. This can be a brisk walk, run, Pilates or whatever feels right for you.

Australian Government Guidelines recommend 2.5 to 5 hours of moderate intensity exercise each week, or 1.25 to 2 hours of vigorous intensity exercise each week.

Through your egg freezing cycle, you can continue to exercise at an intensity that feels right for you. It's best to avoid any exercise that puts pressure on your ovaries, such as abdominal exercises or weighted hip thrusts.

Smoking can affect fertility and increase DNA damage to eggs. We recommend you stop smoking for at least three months to improve your egg quality prior to freezing your eggs. Call 13 QUIT (7848) for help quitting smoking.

We understand that stopping drinking completely might not be feasible prior to or during your egg freeze cycle. We recommend reducing your alcohol intake to current safe drinking guidelines, which suggest no more than 10 standard drinks per week and no more than 4 standard drinks on any one day (health.gov.au). Ideally, the less alcohol consumed in the three months prior to your egg freeze, the better. If you have concerns, speak to your doctor about what's best for you.

Aim for less than 200mg of caffeine a day prior to and during your egg freeze cycle. This equals a maximum of one to two coffees or glasses of cola or energy drinks, or two to three teas. If you need to cut down, do so slowly to reduce the impact of withdrawal symptoms.

Freezing your eggs can be a huge relief and provide hope for a future pregnancy, though some people may find the process unsettling. Maintaining a positive state of mind can improve your health and wellbeing.

At Monash IVF we provide counsellors for individuals and couples. We know your fertility journey can be emotionally challenging, so we're here to support you. Our counsellors have extensive therapeutic experience and specialised skills and knowledge in the field.