The guest
Dr. Natalie Crawford: A medical doctor specializing in obstetrics, gynecology, reproductive endocrinology and infertility, who also holds a degree in nutrition science. She runs a clinical practice, educates via social media, and hosts the podcast 'As a Woman.'
What this episode covers
Andrew Huberman and Dr. Natalie Crawford trace female reproductive biology from fetal development through menopause. They explain how women are born with a fixed, declining egg supply, how the menstrual cycle's follicular and luteal phases work, and why a regular period is a vital sign. The conversation tackles common misconceptions about birth control, egg freezing and IVF, repeatedly emphasizing that harvesting eggs does not deplete a woman's reserve. They also cover nutrition and supplementation for fertility, the mechanics of egg retrieval, ICSI, embryo testing, and end with menopause and hormone replacement therapy.
Recommended on this episode
ProductRecommended
CoQ10
“I usually recommend if you're trying to get pregnant and you take cq1 a dose of 200 milligrams three times a day”
“it's going to have a prenatal a thousand IUS of vitamin D a gram of Omega-3s and then CoQ10 so CQ town which essentially is trying to help the mitochondria”— Natalie Crawford
ProductRecommended
Myo-inositol
“myo andosol is probably the one that really is doing the work in PCOS”
“myo andosol is probably the one that really is doing the work in PCOS what is it doing it is definitely helping the body when it comes to insulin and sugar”— Natalie Crawford
ProductRecommended
L-Carnitine
“we use a gram of ELC carnitine with a gram of vitamin C for our male patients who have any abnormal sperm parameter”
“we use a gram of ELC carnitine with a gram of vitamin C for our male patients who have any abnormal sperm parameter and so that is kind of what we consider the sperm enhancement protocol”— Natalie Crawford
Also referenced (named, not recommended)
MediaReferenced
The Retrievals
The New York Times
“there was this huge right the retrievals podcast came out from like the new York Times doing a deep dive into a fertility clinic Yale where a nurse was siphoning off fenel”— Natalie Crawford
ProductReferenced
Depo-Provera
Pfizer
“the Depo pra shot is a high dose of progesterone high enough to actually prevent ovulation so in that circumstance you are not ovulating”— Natalie Crawford
ProductReferenced
Mirena
Bayer
“iuds that more people are more familiar with are the progesterone based iuds this is going to be your Morena Kina liletta they have a bunch of different names”— Natalie Crawford
ProductReferenced
Kyleena
Bayer
“iuds that more people are more familiar with are the progesterone based iuds this is going to be your Morena Kina liletta they have a bunch of different names”— Natalie Crawford
ProductReferenced
Liletta
AbbVie
“iuds that more people are more familiar with are the progesterone based iuds this is going to be your Morena Kina liletta they have a bunch of different names”— Natalie Crawford
ProductReferenced
Menopur
Ferring Pharmaceuticals
“it's called minpure Min minip pure is a combination of FSH and LH the reason why we give HCG to men to try to stimulate the spermatogenesis process”— Natalie Crawford
ProductReferenced
InvoCell
INVO Bioscience
“an invos cell it's a device that is plastic and you can fit up to 10 eggs in it and there's a little Middle Chamber where the sperm can go”— Natalie Crawford
ProductReferenced
23andMe
23andMe
“with you know direct to Consumer Testing for genetics like 23 and me and ancestry people are being connected with their sperm donors with their egg donors”— Natalie Crawford
ProductReferenced
Ancestry
Ancestry.com
“with you know direct to Consumer Testing for genetics like 23 and me and ancestry people are being connected with their sperm donors with their egg donors”— Natalie Crawford
ProductReferenced
Berberine
“so many guys taking metformin or berberine thinking oh this is great I'm going to lower my blood sugar mimic fasting and live longer”— Natalie Crawford
Big reveals from this episode
- Crawford repeatedly stresses that egg freezing and IVF do NOT use up eggs from the 'vault', those eggs were already leaving regardless, debunking the top fear of her patients.
- ACOG officially recommends against AMH ovarian-reserve screening; Crawford strongly disagrees, calling the information actionable for life decisions.
- She argues the optimal time for the average person to freeze eggs is age 32-33, the intersection of good egg quality and quantity.
- Reveals LH can't be synthesized, so fertility drug Menopur is made from purified urine of paid postmenopausal women.
- The strongest known association with autism is advanced PATERNAL age (sperm after age 50), not maternal age or IVF itself.
- Cites the NYT 'The Retrievals' podcast about a Yale nurse siphoning fentanyl and replacing it with saline, leaving women in extreme pain during retrievals.
- Warns men taking metformin or berberine for longevity that it can crush testosterone levels, and that metformin's life-extension evidence is poor.
Worth remembering
- A female fetus has 6-7 million eggs around 20 weeks gestation and has already lost more than half by birth.
- Menarche has shifted earlier (now ~10-11) partly due to endocrine disruptors, and earlier puberty truncates final adult height.
- Endocrine disruptors like evening primrose, lavender, and tea tree oil can trigger breast budding by exposing the body to estrogen-like compounds.
- Estrogen must hold ~200 pg/mL for about 50 hours to trigger the LH surge that causes ovulation.
- Sperm take 72 days to be created and 18 more to exit; 25% of men on prolonged testosterone never recover sperm production.
- Sperm can live in the reproductive tract up to 5 days, while a released egg can only be fertilized for about 24 hours.
- A single genetically-normal (euploid) embryo has up to a 65% live-birth rate per transfer; cumulative rate reaches ~95% after three.
- Freezing sperm is cheap (around $400) and easy; Crawford urges men getting a vasectomy to bank sperm first.
- Skim/processed dairy can decrease fertility; full-fat dairy and fruit are fine, fat and cholesterol are the backbone of all hormones.
- Going into menopause earlier correlates with lower life expectancy and higher risks of dementia, osteoporosis, heart disease and stroke.
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