Welcome to Resiliency Radio with Dr. Jill Carnahan! In this eye-opening episode, we’re joined by renowned integrative physician Dr. Ann Shippy to discuss a transformative approach to fertility – The Preconception Revolution.
If you or someone you know is struggling with infertility or preparing for a healthy pregnancy, this conversation is a must-watch. Dr. Shippy explores infertility not as a flaw, but as a protective mechanism, and dives deep into the root causes affecting reproductive health—from environmental toxins and glyphosate to gut health, epigenetics, and stress.
Dr. Ann Shippy’s latest book is The Preconception Revolution: A Science‑Backed Path to Your Fertility and Generational Health, set to be released on November 18, 2025. In this groundbreaking guide, she shares evidence‑based strategies to optimize fertility, harness epigenetics, and support the health of future generations
Key Topics You'll Discover with Dr. Ann Shippy
🔑 KEY DISCUSSIONS:
① Infertility as a Protective Mechanism:
👉 Dr. Shippy discusses the multifactorial nature of infertility, viewing it as a protective measure by the body when conditions are not optimal for creating a healthy baby.
② Epigenetics and Fertility:
👉 The conversation highlights the impact of epigenetics on fertility, emphasizing the importance of addressing factors like metabolic syndrome and toxic load before conception.
👉 The role of the gut microbiome as a significant factor in epigenetic health and its influence on the health of future children is also explored.
③ Environmental Toxins:
👉 The episode delves into the impact of environmental toxins such as glyphosate and plastics on fertility and child health.
👉 Dr. Shippy stresses the importance of reducing toxic exposure and the profound epigenetic impacts that can affect future generations.
④ Meditation and Mental Health:
👉 The benefits of meditation and neurofeedback in reducing stress and improving overall health are discussed, highlighting their importance in preparing for parenthood.
⑤ The Preconception Revolution:
👉 The episode introduces Dr. Shippy's book, “The Preconception Revolution,” which addresses the importance of preconception health for both men and women.
What You’ll Take Away from Dr. Ann Shippy
📌 Preconception Health: Preparing for conception involves addressing both physical and mental health factors, including reducing toxic load and improving epigenetic health.
📌 Role of Men: The episode emphasizes the significant role men play in preconception health and the importance of their contributions to the health of future generations.
📌 Long-term Benefits: Investing time in preconception health is portrayed as a valuable gift to future children, with long-term benefits for their health and well-being.
Dr. Ann Shippy
Dr. Ann Shippy, MD, IFMCP, is a board-certified Internal Medicine physician and Functional Medicine expert based in Austin, Texas.
With a background in chemical and manufacturing engineering from Washington University and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, she transitioned to medicine after overcoming her own complex health issues, including mold toxicity and autoimmune disorders.
She earned her medical degree from the University of Texas and later became certified by the Institute for Functional Medicine.
Since founding her private practice in 2005, Dr. Shippy has specialized in root-cause solutions for conditions such as CIRS, gut disorders, autoimmunity, cognitive decline, hormonal imbalances, and environmental toxicity. She combines advanced testing, genetic insights, and patient-centered care to support deep healing and long-term wellness.
A published author and sought-after speaker, Dr. Shippy is known for her science-driven, compassionate approach to helping individuals and families achieve optimal health—particularly in areas like preconception health, detoxification, and chronic illness recovery.
Dr. Ann Shippy’s latest book is The Preconception Revolution: A Science‑Backed Path to Your Fertility and Generational Health, set to be released on November 18, 2025. In this groundbreaking guide, she shares evidence‑based strategies to optimize fertility, harness epigenetics, and support the health of future generations
👍 CONCLUSION
Dr. Ann Shippy’s latest book is The Preconception Revolution: A Science‑Backed Path to Your Fertility and Generational Health, set to be released on November 18, 2025. In this groundbreaking guide, she shares evidence‑based strategies to optimize fertility, harness epigenetics, and support the health of future generations
Dr. Jill Carnahan, MD
Dr. Jill Carnahan is Your Functional Medicine Expert® dually board certified in Family Medicine for ten years and in Integrative Holistic Medicine since 2015. She is the Medical Director of Flatiron Functional Medicine, a widely sought-after practice with a broad range of clinical services including functional medical protocols, nutritional consultations, chiropractic therapy, naturopathic medicine, acupuncture, and massage therapy.
As a survivor of breast cancer, Crohn’s disease, and toxic mold illness she brings a unique perspective to treating patients in the midst of complex and chronic illness. Her clinic specializes in searching for the underlying triggers that contribute to illness through cutting-edge lab testing and tailoring the intervention to specific needs.
A popular inspirational speaker and prolific writer, she shares her knowledge of hope, health, and healing live on stage and through newsletters, articles, books, and social media posts! People relate to Dr. Jill’s science-backed opinions delivered with authenticity, love and humor. She is known for inspiring her audience to thrive even in the midst of difficulties.
Featured in Shape Magazine, Parade, Forbes, MindBodyGreen, First for Women, Townsend Newsletter, and The Huffington Post as well as seen on NBC News and Health segments with Joan Lunden, Dr. Jill is a media must-have. Her YouTube channel and podcast features live interviews with the healthcare world’s most respected names.
The Podcast with Dr. Ann Shippy
The Video with Dr. Ann Shippy
The Transcript – Overview
Overview
- Dr. Ann Shippy emphasizes the rising fertility crisis, linking it to increased autoimmunity and mental health issues, along with multifactorial causes like toxic load and nutritional deficiencies.
- Epigenetics plays a critical role in fertility, with male factors potentially overriding female genetic expression, impacting metabolic health and stress resilience.
- A minimum detoxification period of 3 to 12 months is advised before conception, focusing on mycotoxins, heavy metals, and other environmental toxins to enhance fertility outcomes.
- A gluten-free, dairy-free, and minimally processed Paleo-style diet is recommended, as clinical cases showed significant improvements in fertility with dietary changes.
- Male health factors, including lifestyle choices like eliminating alcohol and tobacco for six months, are essential for optimizing preconception health and future child's wellbeing.
- The male microbiome's epigenetic influences are highlighted, underscoring the importance of both partners' microbiome health in supporting fertility and infant health.
- Hormone assessments should prioritize function over pathological labels, with success stories indicating natural conception after prior IVF failures through functional medicine approaches.
- Stress management techniques, including meditation, can positively influence fertility by affecting hormone pathways and supporting mental health during preconception.
- Dr. Shippy's book, “The Preconception Revolution,” releasing on November 18th, focuses on optimizing fertility and generational health through informed lifestyle choices.
- The podcast stresses that addressing fertility and preconception health is vital for improving children's health outcomes globally, influenced
Notes
🎙️ Podcast Introduction & Guest Overview (00:00 – 02:48)
- Dr. Jill introduces Resiliency Radio podcast, announcing over 600,000 YouTube subscribers and promoting drjillhealth.com store with bestselling products Immune Essentials and Histasist.
- Guest introduction: Dr. Ann Shippy, board-certified internal medicine physician and functional medicine practitioner from Austin, Texas, with background in chemical engineering and IBM career.
- Dr. Shippy's new book ‘The Preconception Revolution: A Science-Backed Path to Your Fertility and Generational Health' available for pre-sale, releasing November 18th.
📉 The Fertility Crisis & Root Causes (02:48 – 05:39)
- Children's health crisis escalating with increased rates of autoimmunity, mental health issues, and metabolic syndrome coinciding with rising infertility rates.
- Many couples requiring IVF with frequent failures, but functional medicine approach shows patients in their 40s achieving best fertility and healthiest children.
- Infertility viewed as body's protective mechanism when conditions aren't optimal for healthy pregnancy – multifactorial causes including toxic load, nutritional deficiencies, low-grade inflammation, microbiome shifts, and autoimmunity.
🧬 Epigenetics & Scientific Foundation (08:27 – 10:03)
- Epigenetics research explosion since 2016-2018 reveals male factors can override female egg epigenetics for metabolic syndrome and toxic load impacts.
- Epigenetics definition: Gene expression can be dialed up or down through preconception interventions, affecting resilience to stress, glucose metabolism, and detoxification capacity.
🧪 Environmental Toxicity & Detoxification Protocol (10:03 – 14:25)
- Testing recommended for mycotoxins, heavy metals, pesticides, and plastics with emerging sperm tests for methylation and epigenetic markers.
- Detoxification timeline: Minimum 3 months required, preferably 6-12 months before conception using liposomal glutathione, binders, liver support, infrared saunas, and hyperbarics.
- Mold toxicity emphasis: Testing home and personal mycotoxin levels critical due to birth defects, cancer, autism, preeclampsia connections observed in clinical practice.
🥗 Nutritional Foundation & Diet Protocol (17:25 – 21:11)
- Recommended diet: Gluten-free, dairy-free, minimal grains, close to Paleo as possible, eliminate processed foods carrying plastics, PFAS, pesticides.
- Clinical success story: 42-year-old patient conceived twins at 43 after simple elimination diet, despite years of infertility without birth control.
- Male factors importance: 6-month preconception period crucial for men avoiding alcohol, tobacco, vaping, marijuana – epigenetic changes affect baby's health.
🦠 Microbiome Optimization (25:51 – 27:22)
- Male microbiome provides epigenetic information affecting future child's health – fungal infections, parasites, SIBO create inflammation impacting baby.
- Female microbiome transferred to baby through delivery and breastfeeding – robust microbiome supports fertility through hormone metabolism.
- Probiotic recommendations: Women's probiotic with Lactobacillus reuteri and rhamnosus for vaginal health, UTI prevention, plus prebiotics through vegetable consumption.
⚖️ Hormone Assessment & Management (28:33 – 32:58)
- Testing approach: Over-the-counter ovulation tests, Dutch test, or Rhythm test for hormone patterns, but avoid getting stuck in diagnostic labels like endometriosis or PCOS.
- Clinical success: Patient with failed IVF succeeded naturally after 6-month functional medicine protocol, had healthy pregnancies at 36, then again quickly after nursing.
- Progesterone support: Some women need progesterone supplementation in early pregnancy weeks, but optimized health often eliminates this need.
🦠 Infection Management Protocol (40:18 – 41:49)
- Treatment preference: Optimize body balance for infections to go dormant naturally versus aggressive treatment.
- Active infection concerns: Truly active Bartonella or Borrelia infections should be treated before conception due to transmission risk.
- Antibiotic considerations: If antibiotics/antifungals required, implement washout period with saunas and phosphatidylcholine IVs for genetic ‘car wash'.
🧘♀️
- Stress impact: Body cannot differentiate between survival situations and fertility anxiety – affects hormone pathways and male epigenetic gene upregulation.
- Meditation recommendations: Joe Dispenza retreats, neurofeedback devices like Muse 2, or mantra meditation for 15-20 minutes showing profound impacts on all body systems.
- Parenting preparation: Meditation practice benefits extend to showing up as desired parent.
📚 Research Insights & Book Information (43:27 – 45:57)
- Most surprising research finding: Degree of male epigenetic impact on baby's health through glyphosate, plastics, and environmental toxins contributing to children's health crisis.
- Book availability: ‘The Preconception Revolution' available at anshippymd.com, Amazon, Barnes & Noble.
Transcript
00:00
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Hey everybody. Welcome to Resiliency Radio, your go to podcast for the most cutting edge insights integrative and functional medicine. I'm your host, Dr. Jill and with each episode we dive into the heart of healing and personal transformation. Join me as I interview medical experts, renowned thought leaders and just interesting people. I know I always learn right along with you what I want to do. Each episode is really gear you up and give you the tools for optimal performance and longevity to live a long and healthy life, even if you're dealing with complex or chronic illness. And I believe that the tools we provide here can change your life or change that of your loved one. If you want to comment or like or share, that always helps us reach more people. And thank you to everyone on YouTube who subscribed.
00:49
Dr. Jill Carnahan
We've now hit over 600,000 subscribers. Subscribers and counting. I'm so grateful for your support. If you haven't yet subscribed, click that subscribe button below. Click the bell to be notified of future episodes. And if you're listening on Spotify, itunes or anywhere you listen to podcast audio, please stop by and leave us a review. It helps us to reach more people. Hey guys, if you haven't yet checked out my store, drjillhealth.com we have a variety of curated great products, high quality to optimize your health. One of our best selling immune essentials is Back in Stock. A great thing for you and your family to get through keeping your immune system healthy. It has Vitamin D, vitamin C, zinc, Quetin and nac. It's a perfect combination just for optimal immune function. Another bestseller is Histasist.
01:37
Dr. Jill Carnahan
If you're struggling with mass cell activation, you can get the show you right here. Histasyst. It's one of our top sellers and it is now back in stock. It is a great adjuon if you have allergies or atopic issues or just mass cell issues, it is powerful formula for that. All right now let's get to the show and let me introduce our guest today. Our guest is not only a brilliant functional medicine physician, but one of my dear friends, Dr. Ann Shippy. Dr. Ann Shippy is a board certified internal medicine physician and certified functional medicine practitioner in Austin, Texas. With a background in chemical engineering and a successful career at IBM, she transitioned to medicine after facing her own complex health challenges. This has fueled her passion for uncovering and addressing root cause of illness.
02:28
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Motivated by the alarming rise in childhood illnesses, she felt a deep urgency to provide answers and led to her writing her new book which is going to Be for up for pre sale as we are recording this and out on November 18th called the Preconception Revolution, a science backed path to your fertility and generational health. We're going to be talking about that today. I am so excited to bring her on the show and dive deep into what you need to know before you have your baby. And for those of you who are past childbearing years, maybe you want to gift this to a child or grandchild or someone in your life who needs this information. Unfortunately, we're experiencing unprecedented levels of infertility and issues with conception. And I think Anne's book is just the prescription we need. Okay, let's get to the show.
03:18
Dr. Jill Carnahan
My dear friend, Dr. Shippy, it is so good to have you back on the podcast and to talk now about your new book coming out. I think it's one of the most important topics we could be talking about and I believe it's called the Preconception Revolution. Is that correct?
03:35
Dr. Ann Shippy
That's correct.
03:36
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Yeah. So we have been seeing, and this is where I want to start is we haven't seen this toxic load and infections and all these things in our environment affecting illness and autoimmunity and all that. But the thing that I think is so worth talking about and maybe underrepresentative in the news and stuff is how it's affecting our fertility for both men and women. Do you want to start by kind of framing the problem and why this book is Time has Come and why it's so important whether you're a grandmother or a mother or a soon to be mother or like why does even.
04:08
Dr. Ann Shippy
Between children, like what I find in my practice is even between pregnancies for men and women, this is so important to such an important opportunity. So it really stems from what I've been seeing in my practice for the last 20 years in this children's health crisis. Right. So the rates of autoimmunity, mental health, metabolic syndrome, all these things that we're seeing and our kids are just escalating and then at the same time we're seeing increases infertility. You know, the so many people are having to turn to IVF and a lot of times IVF isn't even working.
04:49
Dr. Ann Shippy
And so what I see with my patients is when we do these same things that we're doing for our patients, whether they're coming in for autoimmune diseases, other problems, or just really wanting to be as healthy as possible and work on their longevity, improve fertility and improve, you know, I'm having patients in their 40s, have their best fertility and healthiest children. And so it really breaks this paradigm that we're seeing where children are getting sicker and people are becoming less fertile by doing what we've learned to do with our patients in functional medicine.
05:32
Dr. Jill Carnahan
I love that and it makes so much sense and I love the frame. I didn't even really think about that as obviously we have such similar practices and the same thing. We're seeing increased rates and often I'll see a kiddo and then I'll see the mom and those same patterns, right, like that. Whether it's the diet or the gut microbiome or. And we'll dive into some of this stuff. But I really like thinking about it not just in conception, which is usually the goal of someone picking up a book like this, but what about, I want healthy kids, healthy grandkids, the epigenetics. And that's such a great framework because who doesn't want that? And then again, like a grandmother might buy it for her daughter or her granddaughter and this goes down the line. What factors are leading to this?
06:10
Dr. Jill Carnahan
I mean, you and I kind of see it. We're in the weeds, we know it. But for those out there that are like, what is the deal, Dr. Shippy? Why is there so much more infertility?
06:19
Dr. Ann Shippy
Yeah, it's multifactorial, right. When I kind of look at infertility as a blessing when you can't get pregnant, I really think it's the body's protection, whether it's the male or female fertility. It's to the extreme where the body's like, no, we are not in a place where we can create a healthy baby. The, the thing that scares me more than the infertility is when people can get pregnant but they shouldn't because of factors. Right. The epigenetic changes or the toxic load that are going on in the body. So it's all the things that you and I love to look at with our patients. It's the toxic load, it's the nutritional deficiencies, it's the low grade inflammation from multiple causes, the shifts in the microbiome, autoimmunity itself.
07:17
Dr. Ann Shippy
So in the book, I walk through a lot of these things that people aren't even considering and okay, what's it going to help take to have a healthy baby, to have the positive epigenics that we have? But the interesting thing for me is I was feeling really bad that I hadn't put this book out when I first started writing it. So I had started it in 2016, 2017, 2018, was really focusing on digging into the, to the research. But other projects and things kind of made me put it on the back burner. Advice that I got. Oh, no, that's not the book to lead with. You really need to write your detox book and some other things like that. But what's really fascinating is, you know, spending weekends and evenings digging into the. The research that's been done around the epigenetics, it's really exploded.
08:07
Dr. Ann Shippy
Looking at how the links, you know, a lot of them are animal studies, but also some human studies that look at the role of the male factors, how that can affect the health of a baby. It actually a lot of these epigenetics of the sperm override the epigenetics of the egg.
08:27
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Wow.
08:28
Dr. Ann Shippy
For things like metabolic syndrome and sometimes toxic load and those kinds of things can have more of an impact on the epigenetics of the baby. So those things, that research didn't exist in 2016. So I was like, okay, this is a better book because really being able to articulate and help people understand that it's really worth it. Like, it is a lot of work to do to address these things for 3, 6, 12 months before you get pregnant. But the, it really is the greatest gift that you can give your future child to get those epigenetics working well. So for people that haven't heard the term epigenetics, like we, the. The DNA is what gets passed on, that you can't change, that's going to be random.
09:20
Dr. Ann Shippy
But how that those genes are being expressed, dialed up or being dialed down, we have so much impact in preconception, period.
09:30
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Love that. And that's exactly. I was going to ask for those listening, what is epigenetics? You just defined it. So just to reiterate, you're saying basically we have these genes and we get trans, you know, half from mother, father, and whatever that is we get, that's not going to change, but the way that's expressed. So like our ability to use glucose, our ability to detoxify mold, or our ability tolerate stress, like all of these things can express in different ways that even with a finite gene code, we could be way more resilient to stress or way, you know, more prone to metabolic disease because of those expressions. Does that sound right to you?
10:04
Dr. Ann Shippy
That's perfectly said.
10:06
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Awesome. So, so cool. Because I love that because again, you and I have had these deep conversations, but you know, say breast cancer for example, and your risk. And you see a lot of women just going right out and having prophylactic bilateral mastectomy. Totally. Okay. If that's your choice, I support you completely. However, what Ann and I are saying is sometimes based on epigenetics of a certain condition. Not saying breast cancer is always the case. We have more control than we think. So let's go there. And you and I love toxic load, mold toxicity, environmental. Let's start with that. Because if anyone's heard me talk, that's pretty much the topic of half of my podcast. That's environmental toxic load. But why does this matter for conception?
10:47
Dr. Jill Carnahan
And how do we take this thing that's kind of overwhelming and make it in bite sized pieces so it's manageable?
10:54
Dr. Ann Shippy
Yeah, I know most people can't, they don't have access to testing on this. But that's one of the tenants of the book. Like if it's possible for you to know if you have microtoxins, if you have high heavy metals, pesticides, plastics, all the different ones that we know have epigenetic impacts both on fertility and the health of the child, it's great to catch, get the data and see where you are. There's so many places I could go with this. There's even sperm tests now that look at the methylation and epigenetic markers on the sperm so you can get a sense for whether the sperm is optimized or not.
11:46
Dr. Ann Shippy
So depending on where you want to go with all of this, there's also another sperm test that looks at the phosphatidylserine marker that looks to see if it has some of the markers of whether it's likely to be able to penetrate into the egg and fertilize. So the technology for assessing where you are and whether you are optimal or not is really coming along. But you know, both you and I know, like we've tested so many people that have either health problems, whether it's fertility, autoimmunity or just wanting to be optimal. Right. And it's really hard to not have some environmental toxins that are elevated.
12:31
Dr. Ann Shippy
So for people that can't do the testing, at least spending three to six months of reducing the toxins in their environment and doing the things that we know help to get these toxins out, whether it's the liposomal glutathione and binders and liver support and infrared saunas, hyperbarics. Yeah. Things that can really help to lower the toxic load. It's really just worthwhile putting that Time and energy and effort into that. Did that answer your question?
13:08
Dr. Jill Carnahan
That's perfect because I want to. Yeah, it gives people practical advice. So first of all you're saying ideally a test. If you can't test, we can kind of assume you and I know this pretty much we're all toxic. In fact, I don't know the last time I've done a toxic load type of test, say urine metabolites where I haven't found multiple things like I don't even, I can't even remember patient. Right. So. So it is there and if you're listening, you're toxic.
13:30
Dr. Ann Shippy
Just.
13:30
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Sorry, it just is what it is. But you can do these things. So let's talk about time frame because say someone's out there listening like oh, I'd really like to conceive in the next year or 18 months or six months. What's a safe place to detox in relation to fertility or trying to conceive?
13:46
Dr. Ann Shippy
I really prefer at least six months. Yeah, if you've cut longer, do longer. You know, from a standpoint of when the sperm is produced and when the eggs getting ready to be released, ideally at a minimum three months. But if you can, you know, get your around 6 to 12 months. You know, so many people are really waiting until their mid-30s to start their families and then they start getting panicky because they're like, oh my God. I even I had a 31 year old whose OB GYN told her she'd missed her window. Like oh my goodness. This information that's getting out there is just wrong. So I really think it's worthwhile even if you're in your mid-30s or later to really prioritize at least six months of doing ads a solid like you know, recommended by a functional medicine doc.
14:49
Dr. Ann Shippy
Not just a couple times on the Internet like really work with someone or follow the instructions in the book on the best ways to detoxify.
15:02
Dr. Jill Carnahan
That's great. And like I said, I'm sure you outline all this in there so. And right now, just in case you guys are wondering, as this is aired, it is on pre sale. It'll be out November 18th. So depending on when you're listening to this, I just want to say that we'll say that again at the end. We'll give you links and everything. So excited about this. It's called the Preconception Revolution by Dr. Ann Sheppy. So that's kind of detox and we know that's such a big deal and it is feel like probably Those listening like, oh my gosh, are you kidding me? I have to wait that many more months. But the long term game is so worth it. It's so worth it for the, for your health and the baby's health. What other things then would people want to think about?
15:40
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Preconception, Whether it's like diet or exercise or how else would you fit these other pieces? Supplements. Basic, basic things that are key.
15:49
Dr. Ann Shippy
Yes. So let me spend just one more minute on the toxicity piece because I think probably people listening in your world and in mine are they have mold in their awareness. You know, I've had enough patients over the years that had children that had birth defects or cancer or autism, you know, and kind of looking back at when they realized that they had the start of mold that I just like. It is one of those things that's kind of from a prevention standpoint, it's hard to go there. But when we look at the epigenetic effects, when we look at the risk to the child, it really is a good idea to make, you know, test your house, make sure it's clean, test yourself, make sure that you don't have high levels of the mycotoxins in them.
16:52
Dr. Ann Shippy
I just didn't want to forget that because I really do think it is that the mycotoxins are such an important part of the children's health crisis that we're seeing and even infertility and some of the complications that happen for women when they're pregnant. I think, you know, preeclampsia and some of these things where the liver and the vascular system are just getting so burdened that it is really one of those important prevention pieces.
17:22
Dr. Jill Carnahan
I love that you mentioned that because it's so critical. And I, like you have seen in hindsight children with behavioral disorders, spectrum diagnoses or just severe dysbiosis, immune compromise where they're like 8 years old and they're on IVIG for years because of the immune compromise that came about during conception and pregnancy from a toxic exposure. So not to scare anyone because there are solutions, but if you have a choice, this is crucial. So you're just saying if you are wanting to conceive, check your house, make sure you're not living in toxic mold.
17:54
Dr. Ann Shippy
Yes, exactly. It's one of the like big prevention things that we can do.
17:59
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Yeah, good.
18:00
Dr. Ann Shippy
So then other things to think about are just getting a really low inflammation diet, high nutrient rich. So I really do recommend that most people do a gluten free, dairy free, minimize the grains have so many toxins in them anyway. You know, corn has such high atrazine and aflatoxin and all the things you don't want. So for people that are willing to really prioritize a healthy diet, I, I really recommend as close to Paleo as possible. And cut out the processed foods. Right. Like, the processed foods also were such carriers for the toxins, like the plastics and the pfas and the pesticides. Yeah. So if people will just dial in that a lot of times the fertility already starts going up. So that's where I will start with people in the office while we're collecting the data.
19:01
Dr. Ann Shippy
And it's kind of crazy because a lot of times I have to say you're not going to believe this, but your normal methods of fertility might not work. Like, right. If you're using the rhythm method, if you're using the pull out method, think about something better than that because often just even lowering inflammation, driving up the nutrients. With diet, people I'd like, give me four months, give me six months, but then they get pregnant in like a month or two. So.
19:31
Dr. Jill Carnahan
And I love that you say that because I'll never forget, you know, years ago when I first started function medicine. I don't know about you, but I remember being like, oh my gosh, I'm gonna do this detox. Do you think it'll work? Like, in my mind, I wouldn't say that. Right. But then the patient come back and I'm like, I'm better. And I'm always like. And in those first few years, I was always like, really? You're better? Oh, my goodness. It works. Not that we doubted it, but it was like, now of course we know, but I wanted to tell you a quick story. I had a 42 year old that had been a patient in my family practice. And we did this, we did like an elite elimination diet. Very simple stuff. I did not even think at 42 to talk about fertility.
20:03
Dr. Jill Carnahan
She, in hindsight, she was not able to conceive. She was not using any birth control. She came back and initially she was so angry at me. She had twins and she had them at 42, you know, 3 years old. Like the year after. Now, of course, later she was like sending me notes, sending me pictures of the kids. She's the best thing that ever happened in her life was that she had these twins at 43 and like totally changed her life for the better. She still is in contact with me, but I'll never forget that kind of moment. Like, oh, you know what? I Can't believe this happened. I didn't think to even warn her because.
20:33
Dr. Jill Carnahan
But what you're saying is when we get the body in mind, and I've had many cases of a gluten free diet or a gluten allergen free diet where they come back and they're pregnant. And I love to stop here and talk about that because that's so simple. Such low hanging fruit. And yes, it's a little more complicated, maybe be a little more expensive, maybe not even more expensive, but such a simple thing that you can do if you're wanting to get pregnant.
20:57
Dr. Ann Shippy
Well, and I, it's, it is, you know, it just makes so much sense. Right. Because you lower inflammation, you actually get nutrient levels up because you're eating healthier, more nutrient dense foods. And of course the body's going to be for both men and women. Right. They're both going to be like, oh, okay, we're gonna do what evolution recommend. Like you know, in my Grandmother's times, right. Ten children, no big deal, they're right into their 40s, mid to late 40s. Right. To get the 10 kids in it.
21:35
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Exactly.
21:36
Dr. Ann Shippy
It takes that long.
21:37
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Right, Right.
21:39
Dr. Ann Shippy
So it's just, I think it's really tapping into our evolutionary biology of having children.
21:46
Dr. Jill Carnahan
And you know, yeah, we've really artificially created this advanced maternal age. And granted there may be statistically more complications, but that's a really artificial kind of designation, right? Yeah.
21:58
Dr. Ann Shippy
So something that anybody can do, right?
22:02
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Yeah.
22:02
Dr. Ann Shippy
Like you, it's very, very doable if you just decide to do it. The other thing that I think is really fascinating around the men's health is it does matter what they're doing for the six months beforehand. As far as alcohol, tobacco, any of the toxins that sometimes people are choosing to put in, the vaping or smoking the marijuana has, there's data showing the epigenetic changes for the baby. So get the diet dialed in. And then we try to, you know, the obvious toxins that people are often putting in, the diet Cokes, the toxin loads, it can also just make a huge difference for the fertility and the health of the baby. So again, pretty easy.
22:58
Dr. Ann Shippy
It's also interesting, a lot of times when I ask men to do that, they're like, they're kind of done after they realize, oh, you know, I really didn't need that alcohol regularly or the nicotine or other things, I feel better without it. And then I think they're also prepared for parenthood better.
23:17
Dr. Jill Carnahan
It's like A win, win all the way around. Oh, that's great. And I love that we're talking to men too, because it is so important. Because I'm guessing that more women are going to buy the book, but hopefully they're getting their partners to read and be part of this process. It's so important. Hey guys, Just interrupting the show for a quick moment to remind you that my best selling book, Unexpected Finding Resilience through Functional Medicine, Science and Faith, right here behind me, is available on Amazon or anywhere you purchase books. You can also get a signed copy by going to drjillhealth.com and ordering there. We'll send you a copy. I'll sign it personally if you just let me know who you want it written to. And we have just gotten so much feedback about how this book has impacted you and your lives.
24:01
Dr. Jill Carnahan
So I'm grateful for everyone who's already read that and who's left a review. Okay, now we'll get back to the show.
24:08
Dr. Ann Shippy
I think it's so empowering for them when they realize that the things that they do, the changes that they make, that their contributions are so appreciated and they're so profound.
24:19
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Yeah, yeah. I really like that gut microbiome. That's another one of my favorite topics in yours too. And I feel like this is something that's right huge to give us a framework as because many people listening, you know, gut microbiome, why does that have to do with the baby? And you and I have seen how this plays out. Talk more about that.
24:38
Dr. Ann Shippy
So again for the guys, the microbiome is information for the epigenetics.
24:45
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Okay.
24:46
Dr. Ann Shippy
Isn't that cool?
24:48
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Amazing.
24:48
Dr. Ann Shippy
So crazy. So if they are dealing with a fungal infection or a parasite or whatever that increased inflammation or sibo, all the things that we, we look at with the microbiome actually affects the health of the future child. So, so how often awesome is that? So the same thing for the woman, but then the also the microbiome getting passed on. So the vaginal microbiome and the just the general microbiome in the body gets mimicked by the baby with breastfeeding and all the things. So it's such a great opportunity to get the microbiome dialed in before pregnancy. And I do think, you know, just from what I've seen with my patients especially that having a robust microbiome helps with fertility, you know, with the hormone metabolism and all the things, you know, that we're looking for a healthy menstrual cycle.
25:51
Dr. Jill Carnahan
So next we're going to go to hormones. But I want to talk just a bit more about microbiome because what you're saying is, like, when a woman delivers and hopefully vaginally, ideally we're liter inoculating that baby. And that's why you and I have both seen, you know, these kiddos that their mom and them have very similar. If there is dysbiosis, I often see the pattern kind of go through and like, I know what the mom will probably look like or I know what the kid will look like based on who we've tested. Right. What can. What probiotics would you recommend for conception or for pregnancy? Any certain strains or groups or types that we'd recommend.
26:25
Dr. Ann Shippy
Yeah. So the. Again, I love to test. Yeah. And see. And see where we are. And the. There are several strains that are good for the vaginal health. Going blank on what it is. We call it women's probiotic. But I put everybody on this. Let's see. It is.
26:56
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Where I do the same thing.
26:57
Dr. Ann Shippy
You know, it's also just, it's so interesting with this one too, because I've used it so much over the years. Yeah. It's just selected with cellus rudi and raminosis. And for. Is that one that you use too? Yeah, yeah. So for women that are having UTIs or vaginal infections, it seems to really work.
27:18
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Yes.
27:19
Dr. Ann Shippy
Track really robustly.
27:22
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Love that. Because you really need this lactose colonizing the vaginal vault in order to have a healthy PH and everything, which is going to help fertility, birth a baby, all of that. I'm assuming the men do probiotics. And so you're saying, like, you would test for any dysbiosis you treat, just like you would normally do preconception. And then during the conception or during trying to conceive, both the male and the female partner would ideally be on some sort of probiotic that's supportive.
27:48
Dr. Ann Shippy
Yes, yes, perfect. And the prebiotics are so important too. Right. If you're eating a lot of vegetables, you know, the good fibers you're going to be feeding the good bacteria that are there. So kind of gets back to the dietary things that can really make a difference.
28:07
Dr. Jill Carnahan
So let's shift to hormones because a lot of women are either anovulatory or pcos or endometriosis or any number of things. And even though male hormones do affect the sperm. For just a moment, let's talk about women, because that tends to be so related. Obviously, if you're not cycling or not ovulating you can't get pregnant even if the sperm is healthy. So let's talk women hormone, just for a moment, say they're six months out. What kinds of testings would testing would you have them do? And then what kinds of problems do you see that can be resolved? Hormonal.
28:38
Dr. Ann Shippy
Yeah. You know, I think like the ovulation tests are really nice for people to, they're over the counter now and you can just get a sense for whether you're o. Ovulating or not. So definitely, you know, we want to look at that and make sure that we're getting people to the point where they are ovulating. If they're not, I just look at it as a symptom of the things that we talked about earlier. The body's just saying things aren't right. I'm really hesitant to put too much of like a, a name or diagnosis on it. Like, people, you know, will get the diagnosis of the endometriosis or pcos, and then they kind of get stuck in.
29:23
Dr. Jill Carnahan
That.
29:26
Dr. Ann Shippy
And, you know, feel defeated or their body's not working properly. But what I find is that, you know, when we do the blocking, the tackling with all the things like that, the body then just responds, right? Yeah, yeah.
29:43
Dr. Jill Carnahan
I could not agree more. And I love you're going there because I, I, we often use the labels to talk. It's like the language of medicine. Right? But the truth is, whether it's endometriosis or anovulatory cycles or pcos or any number of things, when you get that inflammation down, the toxic load down, or treat whatever's going on, it often just resolves itself.
30:02
Dr. Ann Shippy
Resolves itself. So it's, I think it's a, you know, I think it's a good idea to do things like a Dutch test or there's a rhythm test that just kind of looks at the hormone patterns, but then I don't put too much, you know, weight into it. It's kind of nice to know where we are as things are going along and then just look at the progress. But the one thing is that, you know, I have found over the years that some women do need a little bit of progesterone when they're, you know, after they get pregnant for the first few weeks.
30:40
Dr. Ann Shippy
But again, what I'm finding is if we have that time period, like, I, I had a patient who had gone through a whole bunch of infertility stuff, ivf, didn't get pregnant, came to see me, you know, worked with her and her husband for like six months. She got pregnant like around 36. She got pregnant again fairly quickly after she stopped nursing. The first one had another healthy baby. She thought she was done. They were being kind of careful.
31:19
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Right, right.
31:20
Dr. Ann Shippy
But at 42, she got pregnant with the third and she kind of like, she was like, I'm not sure I really want to be pregnant. Like, I thought I was done. I don't know if I could really. At 42, I've got two great kids. Like, I just will kind of wait and see. And so she didn't reach out to me for the progesterone. She didn't need it this time. She like at 42 she was healthier. Like after each pregnancy she came in and she was like, did the neutral, did the microbiome. Like we really optimized her health postpartum and so at 42 she was the healthiest. She was, you know, yet. Yes. And so she, her hormone cycles were. And the release of the egg and the body's ability to make the progesterone was the best ever.
32:09
Dr. Ann Shippy
So I guess I'm just telling that story because yes, there might be some PCOs, yes, there might be some endometriosis and if we address the details of what we can find to optimize the physiology, it changes.
32:24
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Yes. Oh, I love that so much because it reminds me, my little story of the 42 year old that became pregnant with twins at 43. And you know, now she's super happy. But it's same thing, like she was in this optimal state and she had been told she couldn't have children. Right. But it was just inflammation. We saw that and all of a sudden she's pregnant. And it's funny, although I'm not pregnant and I'm in menopause, I think of like that whole trajectory in my 20s and 30s. I am by far the healthiest I've been in all of those decades. Like I am more fit, I'm able to run, I'm able to do more than I ever was in my 20s and 30s. And of course this is a whole different story.
32:58
Dr. Jill Carnahan
But I just like to say that because I think some people feel defeated or like maybe it's too late. I know there's a lot of women I talk to that are like you said, that they're given the fear, talking to their OB GYNI about their 36 and they haven't had a baby and it's too late and it's just not true.
33:14
Dr. Ann Shippy
No. And you're just Making me think of a guy story. They, you know, patients husband had like almost a non existent sperm count. So first baby they did ivf. But then she came, saw me, she worked with me on her health. And then, you know, by her doing all the things. He was doing all the things. And then they had their next two kids. No issues, right. Like no ivf because they were both so.
33:46
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Right.
33:46
Dr. Ann Shippy
So. So again the last one was early 40s, so it works for the guys too.
33:54
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Now that another little story. I think they're relevant because I think people listening be like, okay, I can relate to that. But I had a patient years and years ago, I've known him forever now and his testosterone was so low, I think it was like 200. And he was maybe 27 and he was told, you will never be able to have children. And maybe there was a couple other things that he had gone through. I didn't do the workout, but he came to me in that state. Right. They were believing they would never have children and they were really sad, but they had accepted that. We did the workup and of course we found infections. He had Lyme disease and multiple co infections. We treated that, we fixed the hormone levels and they have two beautiful, amazing, healthy children.
34:28
Dr. Jill Carnahan
And I'll never forget kind of like the other story I told you. I got the Christmas card in the mail with the babies. And like every time that happens, I still cry because I'm like, how cool is it, you and I, Ann, that we get to be this tiny little part of people's lives. And that they can enjoy children because of this work. And I think that's why this book is so important. And it's still like it touches me so deeply because I don't know that there's anything more powerful that we could be involved in than someone being able to conceive and change their whole family. Yeah. So super important work. Speaking of tick borne infections, let's just touch on that. That's a big topic. Men and women. How does that play into that? Should people get tested for occult or dormant infections?
35:10
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Lyme disease, Epstein Barr, how does that play into fertility?
35:13
Dr. Ann Shippy
That's a really good question and that's a really tricky one because my preference is always, can we get the body in balance enough that these infections really do go fully dormant again? So to me that's the ideal. But then sometimes with fungal infections, with the viral infections and the tick borne, it really does take the bigger guns of getting the infections treated. The caution that I would say is that there is data for the epigenetics for the sperm especially that if you do end up having to do the antibiotics or the antifungals, make sure you give yourself a little bit of a washout period and you know, to do the things like the maybe saunas and maybe some IVs too to with phosphatidylcholine to really help with the car wash of the genetic piece. But yeah, sometimes I love that analogy.
36:22
Dr. Jill Carnahan
And I couldn't agree more because often you treat those toxic load and everything inflammation and it's not such a big deal. The one caveat, and I'd love to know your thoughts is if someone likes, especially a woman has a truly active Bartonella or Borrelia infection, I usually recommend against getting pregnant because I have seen, you know, transfer during conception or you know, delivery of the baby and the congenital cases which are really usually more severe. I don't fear out there. I just want to say that if you truly have an active infection, you truly have that you really need to treat that before you conceive. Right.
36:56
Dr. Ann Shippy
I would agree for the reasons of transmission. But then also like what is your body having to do to try to keep these infections from taking over? Right. Like it's a battle and so your immune system is going to have to be creating a lot of inflammatory mediators to try to survive. Right. Those are, those infections are an all out war. And so yeah, I would definitely recommend getting them addressed, which is very possible. Yeah. And giving your body some time to recreate the terrain that's going to be hospitable to creating a healthy baby.
37:39
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Love that.
37:40
Dr. Ann Shippy
And it's so interesting that you brought that up because my new patient yesterday was asking about that very question, like should I what should I do with this data? But we dug a little deeper into, you know, the nuances of diagnosing the whether she had Lyme versus mold exposure and the her previous provider had told her that she thought it was Lyme and to me it looked like it was just mold and you know, upregulating some of the immune system. So fortunately I think we'll be able to do work in three to six months and then get her the green light to go.
38:29
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Amazing. And like I said, I love that you said that because I would say most 80, 90% of the time, same thing. If we take care of that toxic load, which is where you and I start, the infections tend to not be such an issue because the immune system is back online. A couple more questions. One is about stress. Right. This nebulous stress and even saying the word, you're like, what do we do? Right. But obviously I. I've seen this a lot of times where someone's so worried about conceiving, and then as soon as they either look at adoption or open a door somewhere else and take the focus off, they get pregnant. And so we know that there's a component of stress.
39:04
Dr. Jill Carnahan
What would be, number one, your advice and number two, like, practical take tips that people could do if they're desperate for a baby, but they're not wanting to stress out about it.
39:13
Dr. Ann Shippy
I love this question because it is such an important part of all the things. Right. Like how well are. Are you. Is your hormone pathway, Are they working? And. And then there's so much data around the epigenetics, even for the man. Right. Like the upregulation of the genes that have to do with how we handle moving the tribe or, you know, there's famine or the. The true, like, survival situations that can happen that the body can't tell the difference between. I just want a baby and I'm worried. Yeah. So I really recommend in the book and to my patients that they find a meditation practice that they can actually implement and follow through on. So whether it's, you know, going to do Joe Dispenza retreats or doing a neurofeedback device like the Muse 2. Those are two of my favorites.
40:19
Dr. Ann Shippy
Or whether you just pick a mantra meditation. The data is so clear that there's profound impacts on every system in your body by just having the intention of meditating, even if you think you're doing a terrible job the 15 or 20 minutes. So that's. I think that's a critical part. And then as a parent, I would say it really helps with parenting. So it helps on the other side, too, if you keep meditation practice or some kind of neurofeedback for actually showing up as the parent you want to be.
40:59
Dr. Jill Carnahan
I love that. Yeah. Like you said, it's kind of a lifelong thing, especially when you get that habit. It's going to serve you well, whatever age your kiddos are. Oh, that's so good.
41:08
Dr. Ann Shippy
Yeah. So I, I love that you're dialing in on that. And I think, like, you probably find that for most of your patients, too, that it's a piece of the puzzle to. To be healthy to. And to not have the sense that the tiger is sitting in the room.
41:25
Dr. Jill Carnahan
I think, more than ever before. Because as you and I know, that limbic piece with even mold, which is a lot of our patients. This whole fight or flight is. So there's a physiological piece of it and then there's a psychological piece of it. And really, I found. And I know we agree on this, like, unless we address that from some perspective, neuro linguistic or meditation or whatever practice, it's really hard to heal because your body doesn't feel safe. And I would say that goes on to conception, too, because you're not going to conceive if you don't feel safe. Safe.
41:54
Dr. Ann Shippy
Body's so smart.
41:56
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Yeah.
41:56
Dr. Ann Shippy
If you're not safe, a lot of times it won't.
41:59
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Yeah. It's like, wait, we're tiger. Where's the tiger? And so then, oh, this has been so good. And one question that I have that I'm just curious. And I loved your story about starting the book. And the timing wasn't right because you're right. There's so much more out. It is such a good time for this, and people are so hungry for the information. What was the most important, surprising thing that you found in your research in the last year or two? Like, the most. Whether it's a new thing or just something that was like, oh, wow, I didn't realize that was so relevant to conception.
42:30
Dr. Ann Shippy
It's the degree that the man's epigenetics really makes a difference. Like, yeah, the data now on glyphosate and plastics and all these toxins that we're bathing in, it. It's kind of affect the health of the baby. Like, it's. It's. You know, it's. I think it's really a big part of the reason that were seeing this children's health crisis, like, definitely during the prenatal period is important. And postpartum, like, we bring them into the world and we put them on toxic mattresses and bathe them with the wrong things and plastic pacifiers and, you know, like, things that we just, a lot of times don't even think of because it's how our friends and family are doing things. But those all can make a difference. But the epigenetic impacts that can even affect future generations is so profound.
43:36
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Yeah.
43:37
Dr. Ann Shippy
And it just makes me want to get to every man before he starts his family or between pregnancies and just help him to know it. It can really make a difference for his family to. To do the work now.
43:56
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Love that. And I agree. It's just powerful and something that at least years and years ago, weren't talking about. Even in medical school, were talking 80, 90% about the female, not the male. And that's scary to think in medical education weren't even addressing this, so probably still not.
44:12
Dr. Ann Shippy
Yeah, exactly.
44:13
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Right. We know how that goes. So the book is so relevant and where can people find your book? And if you're listening to this on the day it comes out, you're going to pre order it and I would highly recommend you get a copy. Tell us more about that.
44:26
Dr. Ann Shippy
Yeah, so it's really easy. Just my website, anshippymd.com and it's right there at the top to click through to the page to purchase it. But it's also on Amazon, Barnes and Noble. It's pretty easy to find already.
44:39
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Awesome. And thank you. You are a leader in so many areas. And like you said, I really love that this is the topic of your first book because it's so relevant. And if anything's going to change our world, it's our children. And if anything's going to change the health of our children, it's how we think about conception. So there couldn't be a more timely topic. Thanks again for your time, for your work in the world and. And for your friendship.
45:03
Dr. Ann Shippy
Oh, I feel so blessed to have you as my friend and colleague. I. You are just such a blessing in my life and on the planet. Thank you so much for everything you do. You constantly amaze me.
45:16
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Oh, you're welcome. Such a pleasure to talk to you here in public. And if you guys have heard this and are intrigued and if you're, like I said, if you're a grandmother, grandfather, you can think of someone in your life that might benefit from this book. I'm. I can already think. I actually have a lot of nieces and nephews that are just getting married. I'm like, I think it's going to be a good Christmas gift for them. So thanks again, Anne, for your time spreading the word.
45:39
Dr. Ann Shippy
Thank you so much.
45:40
Dr. Jill Carnahan
Hey everybody, Wasn't that a great interview with Dr. Ann Shippy? I hope you will check out her new book, Preconception Revolution. It promised to be a great guide for you or anyone you love who's considering having children. Thanks again for joining us for another episode of Resiliency Radio. As you know, you can find all of our episodes anywhere you listen to or watch podcast. And if you're here on YouTube, thanks for being a subscriber. If you're not yet a subscriber, please click the link below. Click the bell to be notified of future episodes. We are so grateful. We have just reached over 600,000 subscribers and counting. So thank you again for joining me, and I'll see you next week for another episode of Resiliency Radio.
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