Fertility Rules: The Definitive Guide to Male and Female Reproductive Health

by Leslie Schrock

The ultimate science-backed approach to understanding fertility.

Bringing a baby into the world isn’t always easy, and the challenge often starts with the decision to conceive. Leslie Schrock’s Fertility Rules is your practical guide through that process, drawing on cutting-edge science to provide advice every step along the way, from the complexities of pre-conception planning to the nuances of conception itself and what to do if you run into challenges. Fertility Rules is the first preconception guide for both male and female fertility, and includes advice tailored to help protect the mental health of prospective parents from the stress, anxiety, and disappointment that often accompany the journey.

Fertility Rules answers every question you’ve ever had (and others you didn’t know to ask) about fertility,
-How to understand your cycle, identify your fertile window with period tracking, and when to stop birth control when you’re ready to conceive
-Understanding how to improve sperm count and other key aspects of male fertility
-Fertility diets and the true impact of nutrition and supplements
-How endocrine-disrupting chemicals and climate change influence fertility
-Navigating in vitro fertilization (IVF) and other fertility treatments including egg freezing and sperm cryopreservation
-Finding the right clinic and doctor and questions to ask in appointments

Bringing her trademark humor and candor, Schrock proves once again that she is an invaluable companion for women and men who want a modern approach to understanding their health. Fertility Rules leaves you prepared to face the joys and challenges of making a baby and excited to get started.

Genres: Nonfiction, Health, Parenting, Self Help, Womens

352 pages, Paperback

Published June 6, 2023

About the author

Leslie Schrock is a founder, investor, and advisor to some of the top companies at the convergence of health and technology. She is also the author of Bumpin': The Modern Guide to Pregnancy and Fertility Rules: The Definitive Guide to Male and Female Reproductive Health. Leslie was named one of the Most Creative People in Business by Fast Company, and her work has been featured in publications including The Economist, Fortune, NPR, GQ, CNBC, and The New York Times.

Reviews

[Stacy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A thoughtful and well-written guide to fertility that everyone needs to read. Fertility is not just a female issue, it’s an everyone issue. I appreciated Schrock’s honest and fact-driven approach to this important topic. Highly recommend.

[Kelly Behen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so thoughtful, very digestible and easy to read despite all the facts, and truly so informative. It may be the season of life that I am in, but I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. I took in so many of the tips to incorporate in my daily life and I’m feeling really positive and fully informed after reading. I highly recommend this book to anyone who thinks they may want to get pregnant in the next year or so!

[Kellie Kaminski · Rating 4 out of 5]

I only listened to this book bc I was waiting on my 10 other library books to become available. 😅 After almost 12 years of a fertility/infertility journey, I knew much of what was in this book. But I could see it being very helpful to someone starting off building a family or dealing with male or female infertility. A lot of great information. Would have helped me a decade ago!

[Jessie Hallett · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is an engaging read with some excellent information - but unfortunately, this good information is mixed with a lot of poor half-explanations and misinterpreted scientific information, particularly in the area of medical statistics.

[Allison · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unfortunately this book fostered more anxiety than reassurance for me.

There is a lot of helpful scientific information in here, but I wouldn’t recommend this for everyone. As someone who has long struggled with their cycle and dealt with fertility-related anxiety, this was a bit of a triggering topic for me.

Also some of the stats in here felt a little inaccurate/outdated.

[Debbie Wakefield · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’d recommend someone read this instead of “What to Expect before Expecting” but I’d rather tell them to read “Missed Conceptions” because this book lacks the warmth and compassion. I didn’t learn much new information from this book, except a refresher on different birth control options which I don’t need. Sure as heck wasn’t expecting a long chapter on birth control methods in a book about fertility. Maybe that’s what makes this book different than the rest. Like I get that some birth control can affect fertility for a little bit after but it just didn’t feel relevant. I’m sure others found more enjoyment and use out of this book than I did. I just didn’t want to be lectured at, in a snarky condescending tone, by someone with multiple children already. Wasn’t in the mood. And, I’m still not convinced that taking supplements will change my life. No doctor has ever enthusiastically said, as the author does, how supplements will improve everything.

[Lexy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is another human health book that could and should have been a textbook in school. It is detailed and informative while also being approachable and entertaining. Men and women can benefit from reading this, regardless of whether or not they're looking to conceive.

Also, this is the first book I designed that I've actually read, and I'm pretty proud of it. 🥰

[Rashell Geisler · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 ⭐️Unable to finish this as there were nutritional recommendations that are out of date/wrong and there was a negative tone from the audiobook.

[Mabel · Rating 3 out of 5]

📚 Book 11/52 of 2024 📚
⭐️ 3.5/5 stars!

GENRE: nonfiction - parenting & health
SUMMARY: “Bringing a baby into the world isn’t always easy, and the challenge often starts with the decision to conceive. Leslie Schrock’s Fertility Rules is your practical guide through that process, drawing on cutting-edge science to provide advice every step along the way, from the complexities of pre-conception planning to the nuances of conception itself and what to do if you run into challenges. Fertility Rules is the first preconception guide for both male and female fertility, and includes advice tailored to help protect the mental health of prospective parents from the stress, anxiety, and disappointment that often accompany the journey.”

🍑 PEACHES & PITS (likes and dislikes) 🍑

peaches:
- part 2 was really valuable and helpful (“optimizing fertility”: nutrition & gut health; supplements; exercise). I wish more of the book was like this section!
- listening to the book alongside on audiobook was helpful to stay locked in through the drier and more textbook-y parts

pits:
- part 1 (”what you may not know”) - was more of a refresher for me personally, so felt redundant/slow.
- part 3 (”taking action”) - felt more irrelevant for me at this point. I imagine if fertility treatments are more relevant, that I will come back to this book and section, as it was very informative.

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is packed with interesting insights, and I can see how it could be really helpful for some people. I also appreciated that it’s not just for those going through IVF—it feels welcoming to anyone thinking about fertility, no matter where they are in the process.

That said, whatever benefit I got from reading it was outweighed by the stress it caused around age-related fertility concerns. I completely understand that the author likely set out to provide an honest, fact-based look at fertility and aging, but her personal experiences in this area seem to shape the narrative quite a bit.

That’s not necessarily a bad thing—fertility in your late 30s isn’t all rainbows and butterflies. But I think the book would have been much stronger with input from a co-author who has direct medical expertise, such as an OBGYN or reproductive endocrinologist. A clinician’s perspective could have provided a broader context, helping to balance the personal experiences with a clearer picture of the data and real-world outcomes. Someone who could say, "Here’s what the research tells us, and here’s what I and my colleagues have actually seen in practice."

In the end, this book wasn’t quite the right fit for me, but that doesn’t mean it won’t resonate with others. If you’re looking for personal insights on fertility, you might really connect with it. I just found myself wishing for a little more clinical depth to balance out the personal perspective.

[Alix · Rating 4 out of 5]

This gave a TON of good information, although I wish I had read it 1.5 years ago/before moving forward with fertility consultations because a lot of the information was already known to me based on the great medical care team I have. If you’re at the beginning of your conception/fertility journey, this is worth the read :)

[Sarah Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy to read, digestible medical info that’s up to date. This book addressed every topic (and more) that a prospective parent thinks of when it comes to fertility. Index at the back will be helpful for future reference too.

[Elise · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was exactly what I needed as a pre TTC companion. Illuminating, digestible and avoids the pitfall of so many of these books by not being sanctimonious. Really enjoyed this, and now looking forward to the authors other book, Bumpin!

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed how thorough this was, covering all facets of fertility!

[Mathew Richards · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good information, though perhaps a bit repetitive.

[Kyla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good info; hard topic for me right now

[Devin Stevenson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent. Very informative.

[Jamelyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an informative guide to the basics of human reproduction, birth control and fertility. I learned a lot and wish it were taught in health classes everywhere!

[Ron · Rating 3 out of 5]

started off with some interesting science, the rest felt like it could be condensed to a few pages or a YouTube video on fertility

[Gina · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75. The nutrition section really veered toward wellness bs. Take from it what you will. Otherwise very informative.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very confused how accidental pregnancies happen after this book omg ?????

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️ Easy to read and understand, was a nice reintroduction to information I had heard elsewhere in the past.

[Sara Dow · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️

[THo · Rating 3 out of 5]

It had a lot of useful and interesting information. For me, some of the historical background was unnecessary, and I wish they had used a system to refer the reader to another relevant section instead of repeating information that is relevant to more than one section. I also think the climate change section should have been an appendix, because it is quite an extra bummer (in a book that has quite a bit of bummer information already) without a really clear tie in to your personal fertility. But even with these issues, I am glad I read it and will be recommending it especially to folks who are thinking of starting a family in the future.

[Gretchen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super informative