Exclusive Interview with Dr. Adewale Adesanya on Infertility and Women’s Health
Host: Favour Oshiobugie
Guest: Dr. Adewale Adesanya – Consultant Gynecologist
FAVOUR OSHIOBUGIE
Hi, make welcome with me Dr. Adewale Adesanya, a gynecologist very good in his job. Welcome to Success Fame Media, and thank you for being here. We’re happy to have you.
DR. ADEWALE ADESANYA
It’s always a pleasure to be with you and to have this kind of deliberation.
FAVOUR OSHIOBUGIE
To be a medical doctor, a specialist, and a consultant is not an overnight thing. We would love you to tell us the story behind this great achievement.
DR. ADEWALE ADESANYA
Thank you very much, Favour. Well, to be a medical doctor—like every other discipline—you need to be determined, dedicated, and willing to persevere through challenges. Then you can definitely be assured of success at the end of it all.
Becoming a medical doctor requires a lot of training, practice, and self-drilling. But above all, you need to be focused and determined—especially if you want to go through the route of becoming a specialist, which eventually makes you a consultant.
The story behind my success is a long one, but the summary remains that you need to be determined, focused, and persevere through challenges.
FAVOUR OSHIOBUGIE
As a gynecologist with years of experience, what is infertility?
DR. ADEWALE ADESANYA
That’s a very good topic which is important to our environment. So, infertility, in a nutshell, is the inability of a couple to achieve conception or to achieve pregnancy with regular unprotected sex for a whole year.
Before talking about infertility, I will try to emphasize to our mothers, fathers, uncles, friends, and the society at large—gazing at the new bride’s tummy after a week of marriage, which is common in our environment—that before you can tag someone infertile, they must have had sex for more than a year. It should be a couple’s thing and not by a single person.
FAVOUR OSHIOBUGIE
It is said that infertility is more common in women than in men. What would you say about this commonly made statement?
DR. ADEWALE ADESANYA
If said by the society at large, are there any facts or statistics to back that up? That’s not correct.
Like I said earlier, fertility is a couple’s thing. And I’ll make bold to tell you that out of 100 cases, 30 are absolutely a result of male factors. Male contribution at 30% is backed up by statistics. Also, you’ll find women contributing 30%, and another 30% you’ll find some causes in the man and some causes in the woman, which we refer to as combined causes. There is the 10% of couples that will not achieve conception even though there’s nothing wrong with the man or woman—this we call unexplained infertility.
Ignorance plays a great role in infertility among couples. The level of ignorance makes it easy for people to be exploited. There’s never a shortcut. If there’s a challenge to conception, it’s very compulsory for the husband and wife to consult a gynecologist.
FAVOUR OSHIOBUGIE
What are the leading causes of infertility in women?
DR. ADEWALE ADESANYA
I’d like to break this down so that people can understand. Talking about conception—it takes two to tango. There is a contribution from the man and a contribution from the woman.
The man produces and releases, and whatever is released by the man has a journey. If that journey gets disrupted, that contributes to infertility.
The female has an ovary on either side of the body, and there’s a tiny part called the tube, while there’s a womb that connects to the cervix, which we call the window of the womb that connects to the vagina. All these structures mentioned must be in good condition for a lady to get pregnant. When looking for the causes of infertility, you look around these areas.
When there are ovarian problems, the woman can struggle to conceive. Ovarian problems can vary from hard ovulatory cycles, polycystic ovarian syndromes, tubal factors, and vaginal discharge.
FAVOUR OSHIOBUGIE
What are the ways out for infertility in women?
DR. ADEWALE ADESANYA
The way out should be assisted reproductive techniques.
FAVOUR OSHIOBUGIE
How can infertility be avoided?
DR. ADEWALE ADESANYA
Whenever a lady has any health condition, she should seek first care from the appropriate doctor or gynecologist.
I have a YouTube channel where I talk about “Go Healthy and Save Lots of Money.” If you go through the right channel, you spend less.
One of the contributing factors to common health conditions in women is the fear of wasting a lot of money, so they delay by trying all thoughts until it becomes worse eventually.
The proper route is: you see a doctor who tells you the presumptive diagnosis—what to do to pinpoint it—because you cannot treat any condition except you know the diagnosis.
Eat healthy, avoid smoking, avoid binge drinking, avoid stress, counterproductive anxiety, understand your cycle, seek help at the right time, and take good care of your health.
Do regular medical checkups like pap smears (once in three years), check your abdominal and pelvis scans (once in six months), and breast scan. All of these may not be directly related to infertility, but it is a Well Woman’s Package.
FAVOUR OSHIOBUGIE
How true is it that weight gain and underweight are factors that lead to infertility?
DR. ADEWALE ADESANYA
That’s absolutely correct. Weight gain and weight loss have a connection with the fat that controls the hormones that lead to ovulation.
This is more so when you’re of average weight and suddenly your weight shoots up or you suddenly lose weight. This affects your hormonal menu and disturbs ovulation.
FAVOUR OSHIOBUGIE
What’s the recommended Body Mass Index (BMI) for fertility?
DR. ADEWALE ADESANYA
The body mass index for fertility is between 18 and 25, which is measured by weight in kilograms over your height in meters squared.
If you’re getting less than 18, it means you’re emaciated, very slim, or your weight is too low. Above 25 is overweight, and 30 means you’re obese.
BMI influences chances of infertility, but it’s still possible for the person to get pregnant.
FAVOUR OSHIOBUGIE
At what age should women check their level of fertility?
DR. ADEWALE ADESANYA
Age is a huge factor in fertility. The peak time a lady can easily achieve conception is in her 20s. Fertility starts to decline gradually when a lady gets to 30, then 35, and becomes significant after 39.
There are various factors that cause fertility to drop. One of them is that the quality of eggs drops from the age of 39, giving rise to chances of chromosomal abnormalities.
In a nutshell, I’d advise every lady to have a gynecologist to establish a relationship, check their health, and also discuss fertility goals—not necessarily investigating or checking how fertile they are.
FAVOUR OSHIOBUGIE
How should women take care of their bodies in preparation for conception in marriage?
DR. ADEWALE ADESANYA
That’s a beautiful question. There’s an entity called pre-conceptional care. Pregnancy is supposed to be prepared for, which requires you to take adequate care of your health.
Any medical conditions should be treated. Take drugs and, if need be, adjust some medications and take certain drugs that will boost or optimize your body in preparation for pregnancy.
FAVOUR OSHIOBUGIE
How useful is a gynecologist to both women and men in the issue of conception and fertility?
DR. ADEWALE ADESANYA
While I agree that it is not necessarily only a gynecologist that can handle pre-conceptional care, the need for a gynecologist in a lady’s life cannot be overemphasized.
FAVOUR OSHIOBUGIE
What’s your mantra?
DR. ADEWALE ADESANYA
Quite a number of them, and the major one is:
“Health is wealth. Empower women so that they can take charge of their own health. Go healthy, save a lot of money.”
FAVOUR OSHIOBUGIE
What’s your pathway to success?
DR. ADEWALE ADESANYA
Determination, focus, having a curious mind, and trying to get solutions to problems that come your way. That’s just basically it.
FAVOUR OSHIOBUGIE
What’s your advice for someone who wants to be a gynecologist?
DR. ADEWALE ADESANYA
One of the reasons I’m still in this environment is because I have a strong passion to be a gynecologist. So, follow your passion. Stay curious—that’s the part that leads to discovering new things. Stay focused.
Gynecology—especially for women—can be very tedious. If, as a woman, you’re not mentally alert or passionate about it, you’ll get burnt out easily and can become frustrated. It is not difficult; it’s achievable and can be demanding.
Then above all, as doctors generally, people should learn to prioritize patient care. We should find a way to draw the line between business and the care of our patients, and the upcoming gynecologists should bear that in mind.
FAVOUR OSHIOBUGIE
Thank you so much, doctor, and God bless you. See you again.
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