Summer is the season of juicy fruit, lunches on the terrace, and... baby plans. And that's a good thing, because some typical foods of this time of year are real allies for fertility.
Pauline Gouth, a nutrition expert, recommends 5 gems to include in your daily diet , validated by science to increase your chances of pregnancy .
✅ What to remember:
- Red fruits protect oocytes.
- Omega 3 supports ovulation and fertility in couples.
- Green vegetables provide folates essential for conception.
- Oilseeds are real mineral bombs.
- Red pepper recharges your cells with protective vitamin C.
- Boome supplements help compensate for silent deficiencies.
🍓 Red fruits: powerful antioxidants for top oocytes
Fresh, colorful, tangy... These colorful fruits are especially ultra-rich in anthocyanins, the pigments that naturally protect your reproductive cells from cellular damage caused by oxidative stress. These powerful antioxidants help neutralize free radicals.
🔬 According to a recent study, anthocyanins help preserve the ability of hormonal cells to function well, even when exposed to intense oxidative stress. [1]
Tips:
- Ideally, you should pick your own organic berries or buy them from a local producer right after harvest. Their antioxidants are at their peak in the first 24-48 hours. After this time, vitamin C and anthocyanins drop dramatically, even if the fruit still looks beautiful on the outside. Fresh produce has a greater positive impact.
- Eat them raw to preserve their benefits.
- Avoid long cooking which destroys anthocyanins.
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🐟 Oily fish: Omega 3 for hormones and eggs
Mackerel, sardines and salmon (preferably wild) are the kings of a rich diet . These fish contain EPA and DHA, two fatty acids essential for oocyte maturation and female and male fertility.
🔬 A study found that Omega 3 supplementation combined with a balanced diet could increase the chances of conception in women of childbearing age [2].
Tips: Choose small, wild, oily fish (fewer heavy metals). 2 to 3 portions of oily fish per week . after gentle cooking (steam, oven, papillote).
For animal products, oils like fish oil or cod liver oil help meet the recommended intake of EPA & DHA.
For a more stable and complementary intake: choose Boome Vegan Omega 3 , derived from microalgae rich in EPA & DHA, they are perfectly dosed and formulated for fertility, pregnancy and postpartum.
Pssst, want to know more? Check out our article on the links between Omega 3 and fertility .
🥬 Leafy green vegetables: unlimited folates
Spinach, arugula, lamb's lettuce, chard... These green leaves are mines of folate (vitamin B9), a key nutrient to support oocyte maturation and prepare the body for a future pregnancy.
🔬 A study showed that dietary intake of folic acid positively influenced ovarian reserve in women [3].
Tips: These green leaves can be eaten raw or steamed to preserve vitamin B9. A squeeze of lemon juice increases the digestive absorption of folic acid.
For additional support, Boome Pregnancy Multivitamins contain natural folate, which is fully absorbed by the body. Folate is also essential in helping to prevent certain developmental abnormalities, particularly in the unborn baby's neural tube.
Vitamin B9 and its positive impact, is that a bit of a mystery to you? Not for much longer! Find out what vitamin B9 is used for .
🥜 Nuts and seeds: zinc and selenium for couple fertility
Fortunately, these foods aren't at their peak until summer. Pumpkin seeds, flax seeds, or oilseeds like Walnuts, almonds... these rich foods contain healthy fats and minerals essential for reproduction: zinc (spermatogenesis, ovulation) and selenium (cellular protection, thyroid) so we have to talk about them!
🔬 One study reported that zinc and selenium supplementation improved antioxidant parameters in sperm, suggesting a potential benefit for fertility [4].
Tips: A small handful a day (about 30g) is highly recommended. Choose them raw, organic, and unsalted (roasted = loss of nutrients).
🌶️ Red Pepper: Summer Vitamin C Bomb for Sperm and Ovulation
Crunchy, colorful, ultra-fresh… red peppers are THE summer champion when it comes to vitamin C. They contain on average 3 times more than oranges! Vitamin C supports ovulation and helps improve sperm motility and morphology. It also helps combat oxidative stress, which is responsible for many imbalances that can damage eggs and sperm, and therefore directly impact the reproductive process (yes, even when everything seems “normal”).
🔬 A study has shown that vitamin C supplementation, combined with a varied diet, could help improve the quality of sperm production [5].
Tips:
- Eat it raw to preserve all the vitamin C.
- Pair it with a drizzle of olive oil to promote the absorption of some of the fat-soluble antioxidants found in the pepper.
- Is it hard to digest? Remove the skin (with a peeler or after a quick pass through the oven) and the white seeds inside, which are often responsible for digestive discomfort. A pinch of cumin or fennel can also help.
Peppers, combined with lean meats and complex carbohydrates like steamed potatoes or legumes, make for a great fertility plate!
What if eating well isn't enough?
Even when eating as well as possible, studies show that essential micronutrient intakes are often insufficient today. Why? Mainly because of the depletion of agricultural soils.
🔬 A European study published in 2023 in Food Chemistry confirms that the content of essential nutrients in fresh fruits and vegetables has dropped significantly compared to several decades ago. This decline is linked to several factors such as modern agricultural practices, cultivated varieties , chemicals and environmental conditions, leading to an overall decrease in the nutritional quality of our food [6].
Conclusion: Even a healthy diet can leave invisible nutritional deficiencies, especially during preconception, pregnancy and postpartum when needs explode.
The solution? Suitable supplements before, during, and after pregnancy, such as Boome Pregnancy Multivitamins:
- 100% natural origin
- Formulated to support fertility, ovulation and embryonic development
- Dosages optimized for the key phases of the future mother
In a context where the baby project is part of a real lifestyle, diet and good habits play a central role. By focusing on fresh, colorful, and delicious summer products—not miracle foods but simply good for your health—you're giving your baby project the best chance of success... naturally. 💛
BIBLIOGRAPHY
[1] Zhang, H., Zhang, Z., Liu, Y., Ma, Y., & Shi, J. (2023). Anthocyanins prevent AAPH-induced steroidogenesis disorder in Leydig cells by regulating the cAMP/PKA/CREB pathway. Antioxidants, 12(2), 508. https://doi.org/10.3390/antiox12020508
[2] Gaskins, AJ, Toth, TL, Wright, DL, & Missmer, SA (2022). Omega-3 fatty acid supplementation and fecundability. Fertility and Sterility, 117(5), 1048–1055. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fertnstert.2022.01.039
[3] Gaskins, AJ, Mumford, SL, Chavarro, JE, Zhang, C., Wactawski-Wende, J., Perkins, NJ, & Schisterman, EF (2021). Folate intake and ovarian reserve among women attending a fertility center. Fertility and Sterility, 116(4), 1000–1008. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fertnstert.2021.06.042
[4] Khan, T.A., Aslam, M., & Qureshi, S.M. (2024). Effect of dietary zinc, selenium and their combination on antioxidant status and fertility in male rats. Journal of Trace Elements in Medicine and Biology, 79, 127329. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtemb.2024.127329
[5] Greco, E., Iacobelli, M., Rienzi, L., Ubaldi, F., Ferrero, S., & Tesarik, J. (2005). Reduction of the incidence of sperm DNA fragmentation by oral antioxidant treatment. Journal of Andrology, 26(3), 349–353. https://doi.org/10.2164/jandrol.04146
[6] Van den Broeck, A., Van den Eynde, M., & Van Camp, J. (2023). Nutrient composition of fresh produce—Assessing variability between European countries to substantiate nutrition and health claims. Food Chemistry, 405, 134973. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.2022.134973
