Quite awhile ago, I read a post at The Fertility Advocate that really stirred me up. (The Fertility Advocate is an excellent blog, written by Pamela Madsen. One of those blogs where you never want to miss a post.)

The post, “What You Need to Know When Posting on an Infertility Message Board”, revealed that recommendations you may get on fertility message boards for a particular clinic may not be coming from real fertility patients. Really, they may be fertility clinic employees, pretending to be fertility patients.

When I read this, all I thought was yuck, yuck, yuck. It’s not easy choosing a fertility clinic, and given that most people don’t have a lot of “real life” friends going through infertility, seeking out recommendations online has always been a way to make connections and get the “inside scope”.

But how do you know if the person recommending their clinic is a real fertility patient – or an inside-guy? Honestly, there’s no sure way to know.

I’m sure that this extends to other fertility businesses as well. See a post on a message board talking about supplements that helped? Or maybe a post recommending a particular acupuncturist? Perhaps those posts are also coming from “clever marketers”.

Sometimes these types of posts are obvious, but not always. My question is – how can you know if a recommendation you get online is genuine or not?

While there is no sure fire way to know, there are a few things to keep in mind. First, I’m betting that recommendations from a fertility board member who has a very low number of posts are less likely to be genuine.

Second, I think it’s important to always do your own research into a clinic or product before buying, even if you get a five-star recommendation from someone online. I still think fertility message boards are a good place to get advice – just be sure to take that advice with a grain of salt, especially if you don’t “know” the poster.

What are your thoughts on fertility clinics “planting” people in forums? Leave a comment below, I’d love to hear from you!

A new study shows that more frequent sex can help improve sperm health. There's been a debate over whether it's better to have sex frequently, or refrain from sex for a few days before a woman's most fertile time. The logic was that refraining from sex may help build up more sperm.

Turns out that sperm health deteriorates over time. In the study, they looked at the sperm quality of 118 men, who had above average DNA damaged sperm. They found that if the man ejaculated every day for seven days, the quality of his sperm went up.

So, don't wait until your fertile days to have sex! Warm up in the bedroom for a week before, and you just may boost your chances of conceiving.

More about timing sex for pregnancy:

• When Can You Get Pregnant?
• How Often Should You Have Sex?
• Seven Signs of Ovulation
• Ovulation Calendar

Could insurance toward infertility treatments be soon available to everyone? Maybe, if the Family Building Act gets passed.

The Family Building Act, introduce by U.S. Sen. Kristin Gillibrand (D-New York), would require insurance companies who offer basic OB/GYN services to also provide infertility treatment. You can read the bill here.

Personally, I think this is an excellent idea. The ability to have children is a basic right, one which shouldn’t be limited to only those who can afford fertility treatments.

In a press release, Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-New York) said, “The costs of having fertility treatments can be staggering, but children are priceless. Wealth should not determine who can and who cannot fully exhaust the medical treatments available to people who want to have a child.”

What do you think? Should infertility be a condition insurance companies must cover?

More about infertility treatment:

• Infertility Treatment
• How Much Does IVF Cost?
• All About IUI
• IVF Treatment Step by Step

(Hat tip to the About.com Guide to U.S. Government, where I first read about this new bill.)

Have you check out our fertility forums lately? Well, ya should! The lights are on all day and night, and it’s a great place to find support from those struggling to get pregnant.

Here are a few topics on the message boards now.

Member Marietta6000 is ovulating too early in her cycles, on day 9 or 10. She writes, “I'm just wondering, is there anyone else on here who has a problem of 'racing' ovulation? My cycle is totally regular, every 28 days, but I ovulate (with good sized follicles) around day 9 or 10, instead of day 14, and so this is why I had to use injectables with my daughter.”

Can you relate? Reply to her message with your experiences (or just words of support!)

Katy just started trying to conceive last month, and is feeling confused. She writes, “Quite a few websites say to try every other day but I'm worried in case we miss the actual day I ovulate…. I'm already 33 and this would be our first baby, and we desperately want to have a baby. I'm getting scared in case time is running out. Can anyone give me any reassurance or suggestions?”

I know many of you are basic-TTC experts. Can you come offer your advice and support to Katy?

Another question from Marietta6000 is about downtime between injectable cycles. She writes, “I had my first IUI with drugs to try to conceive our third child. I responded crazily to the mild 75iu of puregon, producing around 11 or 12 follicles, of around five were a volume ranging from 18mm up to 26mm, so my cycle had to be cancelled due to high risk of high order multiples.

"Was disappointed when my doctor told me I can't start the second round once I get my next period (in around two weeks), but have to wait for the period after that (so have to wait six weeks to start next cycle). He told me that my body needed time to recover. Is this the normal protocol? Has anyone else been told they have to wait this long to restart?”

Did your doctor ask you to take a break in between treatment cycles? Come and share your experiences.

How About You? Do You Have Questions?

Have questions of your own? Just want to vent, or have a success story to share? (We love to hear the good, too, of course!) Or just want to hang out with others like yourself, who are trying to get pregnant? Please come on by to our fertility forums. We’d love to have you!

• Visit our Fertility Forums!