Women under 35 facing lower than normal ovarian reserve

New Delhi: Hormonal balance is necessary to get pregnant, carry to term and have a healthy baby. Hormonal imbalance does not happen overnight but slowly over time.

With fast paced world full of high demand, our body gets over stressed and our dietary habits are put at the bottom in the priority list. Most hormonal imbalances are a reflection of lifestyle choices over a long-period of time, perhaps months, years and decades.

Anti Mullerian Hormone is one of the important hormones for the women. Fertility problems are often directly linked to its imbalance. In order to bring our bodies back to a fertile state, we must change how we view our lives. We must take time to nurture ourselves.

"The developing egg follicles secrete this hormone and levels of this hormone are a good indicator of her ovarian reserve and reduction in the levels indicates poor reserve. Testing for AMH levels in the blood is a helpful marker in identifying ovarian functionality and onset of menopause. The average age for menopause is around 45 years, but with the changing lifestyle and ambience, the levels of AMH in the blood is found to be low that indicates the depleting ovarian reserve among urban women, well before time," said Dr Pooja Singh, IVF expert, Indira IVF Hospital.

The AMH levels are also important for any woman undergoing IVF procedure to know her responsiveness to the treatment. For a good correlation and comprehensive evaluation, it is usually done along with other hormone tests to count the number of follicles as a reflection of the woman's egg reserve.

"AMH is leading to new insights into ovarian function that is produced by small growing follicles which is distinct from ovulation and is a step closer to assess the actual ovarian reserve. It can be measured anytime since birth to menopause and a peak is seen during the early 20's. Changes in adolescence are likely to lead to new understanding of ovarian maturation at puberty. AMH is becoming a routine test in assisted conception, reflecting a decline in the primordial follicle pool during the later reproductive years, and also identifying women at risk of over-response," said Dr Mayuri Assudani, IVF expert from Nagpur.

Urban lifestyle has been known to deplete the number and deteriorate egg quality prematurely in women. With growing age, the body may be affected by poor dietary intake, poor blood circulation, and disturbance in hormonal balance, autoimmune disorders, and other health problems. Elimination of toxins and stress is equal to improving fertility and chances of conception.

"AMH is a hormone produced by reproductive tissues. Its role and the amount normally present varies depending upon sex and age. Women at childbearing age may opt for testing her ovarian reserve including estradiol and FSH levels test. It is also not affected by oral contraceptives or pregnancy. Some ovarian cancers produce increased levels of AMH," added Singh.