Customer Reviews

The Garden of Fertility: A Guide to Charting Your Fertility Signals to Prevent or Achieve Pregnancy--Naturally--and to Gauge Your Reproductive Health

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Fertility Awareness-a method for preventing or achieving pregnancy based on daily charting of the waking temperature and cervical fluid-is the answer for those who want to space their children, become pregnant or even regain reproductive health without the use of hormones or drugs. For those couples conscious of Dr. Price's discoveries about the importance of spacing children, this book lights the way.

In Garden of Fertility, Katie Singer dovetails step-by-step instructions, including excellent sample charts and diagrams on how to gauge fertility patterns, with fascinating testimonials. This is much more than a how-to book; it presents a model of relationships that partake in the natural rhythms of the earth and moon. In many of the book's testimonials, women describe how participation in Fertility Awareness helped them achieve an unexpected sense of femininity at once peaceful and strong. Even more moving are the remarks of men, who describe an increased sense of belonging in the reproductive process, and increased closeness to their partners when they are aware of fertility patterns in a relationship. One important benefit of joint participation in Fertility Awareness is increased communication between partners.

Singer does not ignore the influence of diet on reproductive health. Happily, her advice is based on the teachings of Weston Price. She explains the fundamental importance of fat-soluble vitamins A and D, as well as vitamin E, iodine and zinc for reproductive health. Dietary suggestions include cod liver oil, egg yolks, butter, liver, seafood and lard. She also warns against commercial vegetable oils, trans fats, sugar, white flour, soy, caffeine and foods grown with pesticides. She even includes a wise caution against too much protein in the diet, noting that energy bars, protein powders, milk powders added to lowfat milk, and lean meats can deplete the body of vitamin A. Singer also describes the frequent problems she sees in women who are vegans. Women with reproductive problems who are charting their cycles can often see immediate beneficial effects by eliminating one or more bad foods from the diet (like caffeine, sugar or trans fats) and adding butter, eggs and organic greens.

Another excellent chapter describes common products that can be hazardous to reproductive health, starting with the various drugs used in assisted reproductive technology. Depo-Provera (an injectable hormonal method of preventing pregnancy), the pill and even progesterone creams and gels can seriously disrupt a woman's long-term fertility, making it difficult and sometimes impossible to become pregnant once they are ceased. Other problematic products include bras (which increase a woman's chance of getting breast cancer), mercury, especially in vaccines and dental amalgams (which can accumulate in the ovaries and testicles), phthalates in plastic containers and coverings for food, most commercial tampons (which contain dioxin) and even disposable baby diapers (which contain estrogen-mimicking chemicals that may interfere with sexual development later on, especially in boys). Singer provides practical alternatives and suggestions for all these industrial products.

Garden of Fertility is a wonderful book to give to your teenage daughters and it deserves a place in every home, right next to Nutrition and Physical Degeneration, the classic book on nutrition by Weston Price.

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Good points: While its coverage of fertility awareness is somewhat perfunctory compared to the other major books on the subject (by Toni Weschler and the Kippleys), it explains it in a new way. I particularly liked her comparison of vaginal sensation to sensation inside your nose - you can tell whether your nose is wet or dry just by paying attention to it, with no need to stick a finger in there. The same is possible with the vulva.

Singer takes fertility awareness beyond birth control or pregnancy acheivement. She gives examples and tools for readers to use the awareness aspect of FA to become aware of many other aspects of their lives, including both physical and psychological health. I found the presentation and explanation of Susan Weed's Six Steps of Healing particularly inspiring.

This is also the best presentation of fertility during breastfeeding that I have read (others I have read are "Taking Charge of Your Fertility" and "The Art of Natural Family Planning"). Though I have heard good things about "Breastfeeding and Natural Child Spacing" and it might be technically better, many might be turned off by its religious content.


Bad points: Singer mixes up theories for which there is strong scientific evidence and growing support (such as the dangers of phthalates), theories that have weak or no support in the scientific community (bras cause cancer), and statements that are outright false (pre-ejaculate contains viable sperm - the only three studies ever done found no such thing).

She mixes up sound nutritional advice (excess refined flour and sugar is unhealthy) with false nutritional advice (plant oils, which contain high levels of omega-3 and omega-6 essential fats, she says are unhealthy. She also says that no historical human community has long, healthy life with low levels of animal fats - ignoring the entire Meditteranean region.) and with advice that just doesn't make any sense (to absorb the fat-soluble vitamins in cod liver oil - remember, oil is a fat - she says you have to take it with butter.)

Some of her advice is just out-of-date. It was published before many of the studies exploring the huge number of benefits to including moderate amounts of tea, coffee, and chocolate (especially dark chocolate). She advices to completely avoid all these substances. She also goes on at length about how low temperatures are a definite sign of all sorts of problems - while a recent mouse study found that mice with lower temperatures live significantly longer than mice with "normal" temperatures.

She integrates Chinese medicine theories throughout the book. To me, this was worse than the religious theories in "The Art of NFP", because those are easily identifiable as dogma. The Chinese medicine in this book is presented as scientific fact, when its theories have actually never been tested in clinical trials.

I'm giving it three stars because its good points are pretty strong. But I would never recommend this book as a stand-alone reference for any of the subjects it covers, only as a supplement.

Around the time I began using The Pill, a friend mentioned the fertility awareness method, FAM, to me. I wrote it off as the infamous "rhythm method." A year later, desperate to come off the Pill (not a good experience for me), I decided that FAM might be worth looking into.

So I went to the book store and bought The Garden of Fertility.
I have read it and re-read it. I've discovered that FAM is NOT the rhythm method. The rhythm method is based on average days of ovulation, which few women fit into. FAM is based on YOUR OWN CURRENT, RELIABLE SYMPTOMS TO KNOW YOUR FERTILE DAYS.

I thought at first that charting my temp would be a pain and that I'd be too squeamish to check cervical mucus. These things have turned out to be a breeze, and I have a comfort with my body that I've never know before. I LOVE to chart, it tells me so much other than when I am ovulating (the book will explain).

Not only is this book good for preventing pregnancy, but when it is time to make babies, we'll know the fertile days.

The book also has great information about improving your reproductive health (nutrition, night-lighting, etc.).

I wish I'd discovered this book earlier. It has changed my view of birth control in so many ways...

I bought this book when I recently attended a class given by Katie Singer on Fertility Awareness. I have been wanting to learn Fertility Awareness/Natural Family Planning for a long time for several reasons: to know more about my body and how exactly my cycles work, to gauge my gynecological health & have a tool for discovering problems, and to adhere to my church's teachings on birth control (I'm Catholic).

I think this book is a fantastic resource for non-Catholics wanting to learn this tool. The Catholic organizations that are the main teachers of FA/NFP couch this information (naturally) within Catholic theology on marriage and sex. "The Garden of Fertility" teaches FA in a totally secular way and shows why any woman in any situation should be interested in learning this tool. As an example, she quotes lesbians who use FA, even though they obviously aren't interested in
conceiving or preventing pregnancy.

I also enjoyed the sections about strengthening and improving your gynecological health through diet and other natural means. I think she is right on the money that poor diet and overuse of pharmaceuticals are the root of many women's problem cycles. And you will KNOW when you have problem cycles by looking at your charts!

Highly recommended! Thank you for making this information available to all women.

I purchased this book after reading taking charge of your fertility, and i felt like it was no where near as informative. There is a lot of non-sensical things like writing down made up stories about your ancestors fertility problems... i thought that was kind of odd. Overall there are much better books out there about fertility and cycles.

Fertility Awareness is more than a reliable, low-tech way to prevent or achieve pregnancy based on changes in body temperature and cervical mucus. It's a wise way for women to become aware of the rhythms of their own bodies and for their partners to share in this awareness. This essential first step will help solve America's epidemic of reproductive problems ranging from painful menstrual cycles to loss of sex drive to infertility. Singer profoundly understands the myriad ways that diet, lifestyle and environment affect reproductive health and provides an excellent discussion of the vital role that traditional animal products and healthy fats play in reproductive health and the risks of supposedly healthy low-fat products, soyfoods and other highly processed modern food products. As a Clinical Nutritionist, I have worked with many infertile female clients, many of whom were "health conscious" vegetarians or near vegetarians. Nearly all of these women regained their fertility, strengthened their overall reproductive health and just plain felt better after removing soy foods from their diets and adopting a varied, omnivorous diet rich in both protein and fat. Men also benefit from eliminating soy foods because the plant estrogens lower testosterone levels, diminish the libido and adversely affect both the quality and quantity of sperm. In short, if you value your sexuality and reproductive health, follow ALL the excellent advice in this book.

This book is extremely helpful if you are looking to understand your fertility at greater depth. I think that this book should be required reading for anyone who is sexually active. Knowing how to prevent pregnancy without using hormonal contraceptives is so important. I also love Katie Singer's comments on health and diet. I have been studying health for over 15 years and have found that the diet discussed in this book to be one of the most grounded, well rounded and practical diets around. I like that Singer gives sound advice on how to use supplements and diet modifications to balance your body that you would know about by observations form charting. I charted my cycles for 6 months and noticed that I was showing signs of low progesterone levels. I followed Singer's suggestions for increasing progesterone levels and have had several cycles in a row now with no signs of low levels. I have used this method of birth control combined with condoms at my peak fertility times successfully for over 10 years. I am now going to use the information in this book to help me achieve pregnancy. I have recommended this book and method of birth control to anyone who will listen.

I really enjoyed reading this book. I had been questioning staying on birth control pills for a while and this book helped me to comfortably come off the pill. I am still learning how to chart but knowing that I am gaining more knowledge about my body is a great experience in itself. I think too many times we rush to a doctor for pills and don't think of the harmful effects we could be doing to ourselves.

I don't mind Katie's information on the diet we eat. I think everything is up to you to decide what you want to eat or not. She is giving you the tools to make your own judgments.

This book has been my goto reference for the last six months as I learned to chart my cycles. It is clearly written and the method is well explained with a lot of side-explanations and tips that I found helpful.

She covers the rules for preventing or achieving pregnancy, also during breast-feeding, menopause and for women who don't ovulate regularly. She also covers common cycle and menstrual problems and possible ways to correct or deal with these problems.

Whether you agree or not with her nutritional advice, the book offers a lot of information about female fertility. I for one agree with her about the importance of animals fats, partly because of personal experience and now more so because of emerging research.

If only they would make fertility awareness required reading for teenagers!

How I wish I'd found this book a few months earlier!

I've been charting my cycles for almost four years with great success. I'm nursing my 22 month old and my cycle didn't return until he was 14 months, and while Taking Charge of Your Fertility had good info on charting in general, it had barely a blurb on charting while nursing and I needed much more information. It would have been useful, for instance, to mention that it's normal for the luteal phase to be very short right out of the gate. Garden of Fertility has a whole chapter on FA while nursing and I was so relieved! After that, I was intrigued to see the chapter on diet and cycles since I recently started taking cod liver oil and noticed definite changes in my cycle. It was good to see my instincts confirmed.

I would recommend Taking Charge for a good intro to FA, but Garden of Fertility for those who want to move beyond basic charting. I'm glad I read both.