Rewinding Age in Eggs for Fertility

//Time and Eggs//

Advancement in fertility treatment research this week caught my interest and I decided to do some research around the issue. Fertility is a matter for both men and women and I could only offer my moral support when a family friend was struggling to conceive a baby. Bringing new life into this world is a difficult process, conceiving is just the beginning and sometimes fertility rates are not favorable. Fertility starts to reduce in women at the age of 30 and will continue to do so. Meaning it can be harder for to achieve pregnancy the older a person gets. It’s a matter of chance as egg held in the ovaries begin to drastically drop, making it harder for natural pregnancy to occur.

//Age Reversal//

Science has paved the way for various treatments to increase fertility and two main therapies include stimulation to promote egg production and IVF. The latter is the process of freezing ‘young’ healthy eggs for use later. This brings focus on the fact that the age of eggs will determine their quality, time begins to make these precious eggs in the early years a commodity. Studies have made a breakthrough in reversing the aging in mice eggs, restoring their qualities. Over the years, scientists have reached great levels of understanding of human biology and reproduction. While IVF might be useful to preserve egg quality, it is limited by the current age of the person supplying. The age reversal process makes use of Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NMN), a compound that’s simply ingested orally. The egg quality of mice were substantially improved and noticeable rate increases.

//More Chance//

While there is a long way to go for this to enter clinical tests, it is certainly a fascinating breakthrough in fertility treatment. The prospect of age reversal coupled with stimulation of additional egg production would effectively rewind time and boost chances of healthy pregnancies tenfold. In a society where life is fast moving, family planning is stressful and can impact the lives mother and fathers to be. Everybody deserves a choice in life and the chance to improve pregnancy and rollback time is certainly an opportunity that many would benefit from. Science has contributed greatly to improving life and scientists are even starting to identify potential disease before birth. It’s an exciting time and while many of the current generation may not be able to yield benefits from current research, I hope the future sees great impact.

PS – Happy Valentines ❤

Sources
https://www.cell.com/cell-reports/fulltext/S2211-1247(20)30083-8
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fertility
https://www.webmd.com/baby/pregnant-after-35