Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsFertilityGestationPostpartumFrequently Asked Questions
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Fertility
Gestation
Postpartum
Frequently Asked Questions
High blood pressure, or hypertension, is associated with problems with fertility in males and pregnancy complications in females, such as premature birth.However, low blood pressure, known as hypotension, can affect pregnancy, and underlying conditions that cause it may affect fertility.
Understanding Blood PressureYour blood pressure is recorded as two numbers:Systolic blood pressure, which is the top number, indicates how much pressure your blood is exerting against your artery walls when your heart beats.Diastolic blood pressure, the bottom number, indicates how much pressure your blood is exerting against your artery walls while your heart is resting between beats.
Understanding Blood Pressure
Your blood pressure is recorded as two numbers:Systolic blood pressure, which is the top number, indicates how much pressure your blood is exerting against your artery walls when your heart beats.Diastolic blood pressure, the bottom number, indicates how much pressure your blood is exerting against your artery walls while your heart is resting between beats.
Your blood pressure is recorded as two numbers:
Low blood pressure occurs when blood pressure is much lower than normal. This means the heart, brain, and other parts of the body do not get enough blood.If your blood pressure is 90/60 mm Hg (millimeters of mercury) or lower, you have low blood pressure. However, blood pressure can vary between individuals.
Verywell / Jessica Olah
Low Blood Pressure and Fertility
There isn’t a lot of data showing that low blood pressure has a negative impact on fertility, but low blood pressure may signal an underlying condition that can affect fertility.
One of these conditions is an endocrine disorder that causes a hormonal imbalance when the glands that produce endocrine hormones produce too few or too many.
Some hormones help regulate the growth of an egg within an ovary, the release of the egg into thefallopian tube, and the thickening of the uterine lining for implantation, where the fertilized egg will attach and grow. Any disruption to the hormones can prevent or delay these processes from occurring.
Conditions that impact the function of the endocrine system, like RAAS dysfunction, could therefore complicate the ovulation process and efforts to conceive.
Other hormonal disorders that have been linked to low blood pressure and infertility include:
A number of conditions associated with infertility—like diabetes and thyroid disease—are passed down through families. In fact, about half of all cases of infertility are linked to genetic factors.
Low Blood Pressure and Gestation
Low blood pressure is concerning during pregnancy. Low blood pressure can cause symptoms like:
Orthostatic, or postural, hypotensionis the most common type of low blood pressure in pregnant people. It happens when you feel faint or dizzy when you stand up or change positions suddenly.
Pregnancy is a major cause of low blood pressure on its own. During the first 24 weeks of pregnancy, it’s common for blood pressure to drop. That’s because your body secretes higher levels of certain hormones like progesterone, which help relax the walls of your blood vessels, reducing resistance to blood flow and, in turn, reducing blood pressure.
Risks
Treatment
How your hypotension is treated depends on what is causing it and what symptoms you are having. Low blood pressure that is not causing any symptoms or complications may not require treatment.
Your doctor will review any medications you are taking to determine if any of them could be causing your low blood pressure. You can also make lifestyle changes that could help reduce symptoms of hypotension like:
Concerning Symptoms
There isn’t an exact range of concerning measurements for low blood pressure as there is for high blood pressure. Anything lower than 90/60 mm Hg is considered low, and your healthcare provider will diagnose and treat you based on what symptoms you are having rather than the number itself.
If you are fainting and falling, be sure to discuss your condition with a healthcare provider as soon as possible.
Low Blood Pressure and Postpartum
If you have chronic low blood pressure before your pregnancy, you may continue to face this problem after delivery. If you stopped certain medications during your pregnancy, you may be able to resume them postpartum. But talk to your doctor about this first if you plan to breastfeed.
Impact on Recovery
Sheehan’s syndromeis a rare condition that puts you at a higher risk of developing postpartum hemorrhage, hypotension, and difficulties breastfeeding. Sheehan’s syndrome is difficult to diagnosis. It requires the care of a specialist. Treatment usually involves replacement of certain hormones.
Breastfeeding
This could pose a problem for mothers who already have low blood pressure. Talk to your healthcare provider if you are experiencing dizziness or falling after breastfeeding.
Summary
There is not much evidence that shows low blood pressure is linked to fertility issues, but hypotension could be a sign of an underlying condition associated with infertility. Pregnant people are more likely to develop low blood pressure because their bodies produce more of the hormones that dilate the walls of blood vessels, reducing blood pressure within them.
A Word From Verywell
What is considered low blood pressure during pregnancy?
There isn’t a set range of blood pressure readings that are worrisome, but anything below 90/60 mm Hg can be considered low. Treatment will focus on your symptoms rather than the numbers in your blood pressure measurement.
What causes low blood pressure during pregnancy?
How do you treat low blood pressure during pregnancy?
What should you eat for low blood pressure during pregnancy?
You may need to increase how often you eat and eat smaller meals to help avoid low blood pressure during pregnancy. Reducing carbohydrates while increasing salt intake also may help, but talk to your doctor before making any dietary changes while you are pregnant.
When should you call your doctor about low blood pressure during pregnancy?
Call you doctor immediately if your low blood pressure causes you to feel dizzy or faint or fall.
12 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Guo D, Li S, Behr B, Eisenberg ML.Hypertension and male fertility.World J Mens Health. 2017 Aug;35(2):59-64. doi:10.5534/wjmh.2017.35.2.59American Heart Association.Understanding blood pressure readings.MedlinePlus.Low blood pressure.American Heart Association.Low blood pressure - when blood pressure is too low.UNC Health.The link between diabetes and fertility.British Thyroid Foundation.Pregnancy and fertility in thyroid disorders.Pereira N, Lin-Su K.Reproductive function and fertility in women with congenital adrenal hyperplasia.EMJ Repro Health.2018;4[1]:101-107.Zorrilla M, Yatsenko AN.The genetics of infertility: current status of the field.Curr Genet Med Rep. 2013;1(4):10.1007/s40142-013-0027-1. doi:10.1007/s40142-013-0027-1Cleveland Clinic.Low blood pressure.Mayo Clinic.Low blood pressure (hypotension).Zhao W, et al.Dose-response relationship between maternal blood pressure in pregnancy and preterm birth: based on the monitoring data of 212,941 pregnant women in China.BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. 2021. doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-646443/v1Jonas W, Nissen E, Ransjö-Arvidson AB, Wiklund I, Henriksson P, Uvnäs-Moberg K.Short- and long-term decrease of blood pressure in women during breastfeeding.Breastfeed Med.2008 Jun;3(2):103-9. doi: 10.1089/bfm.2007.0031
12 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Guo D, Li S, Behr B, Eisenberg ML.Hypertension and male fertility.World J Mens Health. 2017 Aug;35(2):59-64. doi:10.5534/wjmh.2017.35.2.59American Heart Association.Understanding blood pressure readings.MedlinePlus.Low blood pressure.American Heart Association.Low blood pressure - when blood pressure is too low.UNC Health.The link between diabetes and fertility.British Thyroid Foundation.Pregnancy and fertility in thyroid disorders.Pereira N, Lin-Su K.Reproductive function and fertility in women with congenital adrenal hyperplasia.EMJ Repro Health.2018;4[1]:101-107.Zorrilla M, Yatsenko AN.The genetics of infertility: current status of the field.Curr Genet Med Rep. 2013;1(4):10.1007/s40142-013-0027-1. doi:10.1007/s40142-013-0027-1Cleveland Clinic.Low blood pressure.Mayo Clinic.Low blood pressure (hypotension).Zhao W, et al.Dose-response relationship between maternal blood pressure in pregnancy and preterm birth: based on the monitoring data of 212,941 pregnant women in China.BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. 2021. doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-646443/v1Jonas W, Nissen E, Ransjö-Arvidson AB, Wiklund I, Henriksson P, Uvnäs-Moberg K.Short- and long-term decrease of blood pressure in women during breastfeeding.Breastfeed Med.2008 Jun;3(2):103-9. doi: 10.1089/bfm.2007.0031
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Guo D, Li S, Behr B, Eisenberg ML.Hypertension and male fertility.World J Mens Health. 2017 Aug;35(2):59-64. doi:10.5534/wjmh.2017.35.2.59American Heart Association.Understanding blood pressure readings.MedlinePlus.Low blood pressure.American Heart Association.Low blood pressure - when blood pressure is too low.UNC Health.The link between diabetes and fertility.British Thyroid Foundation.Pregnancy and fertility in thyroid disorders.Pereira N, Lin-Su K.Reproductive function and fertility in women with congenital adrenal hyperplasia.EMJ Repro Health.2018;4[1]:101-107.Zorrilla M, Yatsenko AN.The genetics of infertility: current status of the field.Curr Genet Med Rep. 2013;1(4):10.1007/s40142-013-0027-1. doi:10.1007/s40142-013-0027-1Cleveland Clinic.Low blood pressure.Mayo Clinic.Low blood pressure (hypotension).Zhao W, et al.Dose-response relationship between maternal blood pressure in pregnancy and preterm birth: based on the monitoring data of 212,941 pregnant women in China.BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. 2021. doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-646443/v1Jonas W, Nissen E, Ransjö-Arvidson AB, Wiklund I, Henriksson P, Uvnäs-Moberg K.Short- and long-term decrease of blood pressure in women during breastfeeding.Breastfeed Med.2008 Jun;3(2):103-9. doi: 10.1089/bfm.2007.0031
Guo D, Li S, Behr B, Eisenberg ML.Hypertension and male fertility.World J Mens Health. 2017 Aug;35(2):59-64. doi:10.5534/wjmh.2017.35.2.59
American Heart Association.Understanding blood pressure readings.
MedlinePlus.Low blood pressure.
American Heart Association.Low blood pressure - when blood pressure is too low.
UNC Health.The link between diabetes and fertility.
British Thyroid Foundation.Pregnancy and fertility in thyroid disorders.
Pereira N, Lin-Su K.Reproductive function and fertility in women with congenital adrenal hyperplasia.EMJ Repro Health.2018;4[1]:101-107.
Zorrilla M, Yatsenko AN.The genetics of infertility: current status of the field.Curr Genet Med Rep. 2013;1(4):10.1007/s40142-013-0027-1. doi:10.1007/s40142-013-0027-1
Cleveland Clinic.Low blood pressure.
Mayo Clinic.Low blood pressure (hypotension).
Zhao W, et al.Dose-response relationship between maternal blood pressure in pregnancy and preterm birth: based on the monitoring data of 212,941 pregnant women in China.BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. 2021. doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-646443/v1
Jonas W, Nissen E, Ransjö-Arvidson AB, Wiklund I, Henriksson P, Uvnäs-Moberg K.Short- and long-term decrease of blood pressure in women during breastfeeding.Breastfeed Med.2008 Jun;3(2):103-9. doi: 10.1089/bfm.2007.0031
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