How to Increase Endometrial Thickness

How to Increase Endometrial Thickness: Factors and Remedies

Women face challenges with conceiving due to various reasons. The thickness of the endometrium layer being one of them. This article speaks about the importance of the endometrium layer, factors contributing to its thickness and ways to increase it.

What is Endometrium Thickness?

The uterus is lined by a mucous covered by a layer of tissues known as the endometrium. Every month the thickness of the endometrium varies in an expectation of pregnancy. If there is fertilisation of the egg by a sperm, it gets implanted in the endometrium layer.

The thickness of this layer keeps changing depending on the time of the cycle a woman is in and based on the age.

The endometrium layer is thicker in a female who is in her reproductive age than the ones who have not hit puberty and are in menopause stages. On an average, the endometrial thickness can be anywhere between 1-18mm.

• As mentioned above with respect to the time of cycle, the thickness can change such that, during menstruation the endometrium is of 1-4mm in thickness, the thinnest.
• During the first half of the proliferative phase which is between days 5–14 of a person’s cycle, before ovulation, it measures around 10–16 mm. This is the time where the endometrium starts to thicken.
• And lastly during the secretory phase which is after these 14 days, the endometrium will reach a maximum thickness of 18mm.

What are the Factors Responsible for Endometrium Thinning?

Having an optimum endometrium thickness is necessary for conceiving. An endometrium thickness of 8-12mm is considered healthy. There various reasons on why women face thinning of this layer which include

• Structural abnormalities: When a woman has fibroids in the uterus or scar tissues, it can lead to blocking of the blood flow and hence thinning.
• Stress: Similar to above, as stress affects the normal blood flow, there will be thinning of the uterus lining.
• Nutritional deficiencies: when there is nutrient deficiency specially iron, the uterus lining weakens.
• Reduced estrogen levels: When there are hormonal imbalances naturally or due to consumption of too much of birth control pills, estrogen level goes down and lead to thin linings.

How to Increase Endometrium Thickness Naturally?

Due to the thinning of the endometrium thickness, women may face health issues, there are ways to avoid this by increasing the thickness of the endometrium lining

• Acupuncture: Acupuncture helps in stimulating the blood flow to the uterus and to the ovaries. This in turn helps the improvement of follicular growth, uterine lining, egg maturation, and embryo implantation.
• Reducing stress: Keeping the stress low helps to keep the uterine artery open, thereby supporting blood flow. Yoga, meditation, and deep breathing daily can help in reducing stress.
• Vitamin E: When the supplement vitamin E is given in low doses (500-700 mg) it increases endometrial thickness. Avocados, nuts, and seeds can also be consumed for this purpose.
• Adequate sleep: Having at least 7 hours of sleep can help in regulating reproductive hormones and thereby helping with tissue growth.
• Exercise: Exercising for at least 30 minutes a day can improve blood circulation and thereby supply blood to the uterus.
• Nutrition: Having deficiency such as low iron can cause the endometrium layer to thin. Consumption of iron-rich food such as spinach, beans, and red meat, while adding vitamin C rich fruits like lemon, oranges can help in iron absorption.

How to Increase Endometrial Thickness for IVF?

IVF is a procedure which helps couples to conceive by fertilising the egg with the sperm in a lab followed by implantation of the embryo in the uterus of the female.

For this process to be successful, the endometrium thickness is important. To have an optimum thickness the following can be practiced

• Moving the body: Simple exercises like yoga, walking, jogging will improve the circulation and blood flow to the uterus which helps with endometrial thickness.
• Staying hydrated: Adequate hydration ensures that cells, including those in the uterine lining, stay healthy thereby supporting a thicker endometrium.
• Healthy foods: Consuming lean protein, vegetables, legumes, fruits, whole grains, nuts, and healthy fats will improve overall reproductive health and endometrial thickness.
• Keeping stress level low: Stress can imbalance the hormones. Following methods like deep breathing, meditation, or having a relaxing hobby can help bring down the stress level and enhance endometrial growth.

When these above methods do not help much, people can look for medical options which have shown some results as per studies

• Vaginal Sildenafil: Sildenafil, which is commonly known as Viagra, can increase endometrial thickness when applied vaginally. 25 mg dose taken four times daily increases the thickness up to 9 mm.
• Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP): PRP treatment involves reinjecting growth factor-rich plasma into the uterus. PRP can increase endometrial thickness.
• Intrauterine G-CSF: Granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (G-CSF) is said to help with endometrial growth. G-CSF can increase the lining thickness up to 7 mm.

How to Increase Endometrial Thickness for IUI?

Intrauterine Injections (IUI) are one of the methods which helps couples to conceive when naturally it does not happen. Apart from lifestyle changes and diet, other ways to increase the thickness of endometrium the following can be looked for

• Hormonal Therapy: The healthcare provider might prescribe oral, vaginal, or intrauterine hormone treatments. This helps to restore the estrogen-progestin balance, which can help in promoting the thickness of the endometrium layer.
• Endometrial Scratching: This a method wherein the endometrial lining is gently scratched near ovulation period which stimulates the tissue growth and thickening of the lining.
• Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART): Since all the procedures like IVF, IUI etc require a healthy endometrial lining for success, endometrial treatment is started to ensure optimal conditions for embryo implantation.

How to Increase Endometrial Thickness by Food?

Food has a lot of potential in changing or improving the thickness of the endometrium layer. Consuming these below foods can help

• Whole grains: Dark, seedy bread, brown rice, quinoa, and popcorn are rich in carbohydrates, protein, fiber, vitamins, and antioxidants. Consuming at least 48 grams/day of whole grains will help to increase the uterine lining by an average of 0.4 mm.
• Oily fish: Eating oily fish, like salmon and mackerel, 2-3 times per week will give the body omega-3 fatty acids, which enhance blood flow to the uterus and help with endometrial thickening.
• Fruits: Fruits like lemon, lime, orange, pomegranate, and watermelon will produce nitric oxide, which widens blood vessels, improving blood flow to the uterus.
• Vitamin E: Nuts (almonds, peanuts), seeds (sunflower seeds), fruits (mango), and vegetables (beetroot, avocado, spinach) are rich in Vitamin E and help with uterus lining thickening.
• L-arginine: Protein-rich foods like fish, red meat, poultry, soy, and dairy contain L-arginine, which improves blood flow to the uterus.

How to Increase Endometrial Thickness for Pregnancy?

As mentioned above, having a healthy lifestyle such as exercising and meditation or doing some relaxing activities will improve the blood circulation and bring down the stress levels which will improve the endometrium thickness and help with the implantation.

Following a healthy diet which is rich in vitamin E, C and iron will increase the thickness of the uterus lining as well. Getting an adequate amount of sleep, lowering the screen time and keeping negativity away from life can improve the overall health and regulate the reproductive hormones