Chasteberry may enhance fertility

September 3, 2004

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Women who have difficulty conceiving may benefit from

taking an herbal supplement—a much more inexpensive

and less invasive way to induce conception than in

vitro fertilization—if the results of a small study

are borne out.

Researchers conducted a pilot study involving 30 women

ages 24-46 who had attempted to become pregnant for

6-36 months. Some of the subjects had been diagnosed

with specific disorders that impaired fertility while

others had no explainable causes for being infertile.

While the sample size was small, the trial was

randomized and double-blinded. Subjects were given

either a placebo or a supplement made of chasteberry,

L-arginine, green tea, and numerous vitamins and

minerals.

At the beginning of the study, a group of researchers

monitored the women’s progesterone levels, basal body

temperatures, and menstrual cycles at baseline; these

parameters were measured again at three months and six

months. After three months, the supplement-treated

group had increased progesterone levels and

experienced more days in their menstrual cycle during

which their basal temperatures were lower than 37

degrees C—both indicators of better ovulation. The

placebo group experienced no notable changes in these

parameters.

At four months, five of the supplement-treated women

became pregnant while none of the women on placebo had

conceived. Later on, four women had healthy babies and

one woman miscarried. The study’s lead researcher said

that she believed that the chasteberry had most likely

been the critical factor in helping the women to

become pregnant.

Journal of Reproductive Medicine 49:289-293, 2004

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