Dr. Natalie Crawford — A double board-certified physician in OB/GYN and reproductive endocrinology who runs a fertility clinic and IVF lab in Texas. She is a prominent fertility educator and author of the new book The Fertility Formula.
The gist
Andrew Huberman and Dr. Natalie Crawford discuss fertility as a broad marker of metabolic, hormonal, and cellular health rather than just the ability to conceive. They cover the biology of the ovulation cycle and egg quality, why the AMH blood test should be available to all women, and how age, inflammation, and metabolic health drive fertility outcomes. Crawford argues the field forces patients to 'fail' before testing and treatment, and pushes for earlier, proactive, patient-centric care. The back half details concrete lifestyle levers (sleep, stress, muscle, food, toxins), supplements, the harms of cannabis and nicotine, endocrine disruptors, and emerging tools like GLP-1s, PRP, HGH, and red light therapy.
Big reveals
- Crawford says infertility correlates with higher rates of metabolic syndrome, cancer, heart attack, stroke, and dying early.
- Crawford reveals she had four pregnancy losses, including an ectopic, during her own fertility journey.
- She argues every woman who wants kids should get an AMH test even though the American College of OB/GYN advises against it absent infertility.
- The AMH test costs only $79, far less than IVF or egg freezing, making the gatekeeping hard to justify.
- NSAIDs (Advil, ibuprofen, Aleve) taken around ovulation can stop the follicle from rupturing and prevent egg release.
- Egg freezing and IVF do NOT deplete your ovarian reserve or cause earlier menopause; they only rescue eggs that would otherwise die that month.
- Cannabis is the most concerning thing she sees clinically: 9 of 10 times young couples with stalled embryos turn out to have hidden male cannabis use.
- 'Unscented' products mask a scent with added chemicals; 'fragrance-free' is what you actually want.
Things worth remembering
- A female fetus has 6-7 million eggs at 5 months gestation, 1-2 million at birth, and about half a million by her first period.
- Monthly chance of conception falls from ~20% at age 30 to ~11-12% at 35-36, ~5% at 38, and ~3% at 40+ — but never zero.
- Egg mitochondria are passed exclusively to the embryo and the male genome doesn't activate until day three after fertilization.
- About 72% of couples conceive in the first 6 months of trying and only 13% more in the next 6 months.
- People who report poor sleep have double the rate of infertility.
- Cannabis use can cut eggs retrieved at IVF by 25% and fertilization rates by 28%, and raises miscarriage rates.
- IVF attrition: ~90% of eggs survive freeze-thaw, 75% fertilize, 50% reach implantation stage, and a genetically normal embryo has a 65% live-birth chance.
- Taking 300+ micrograms of biotin can bind to lab assays and produce false readings for estradiol, progesterone, HCG, TSH, and testosterone.
- A single Depo-Provera shot can suppress ovulation for up to 18 months.
- After age 50, advanced paternal age raises rates of autism, new autosomal-dominant mutations, and schizophrenia in offspring.
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The Fertility Formula: Take Control of Your Reproductive Future
Natalie Crawford, MD
“Dr. Crawford also has a new book out entitled The Fertility Formula: Take Control of Your Reproductive Future, which again focuses on reproductive health” — Andrew Huberman 00:01:32Find it on Amazon
AMH (anti-Müllerian hormone) test
LabCorp / Function Health (inferred)
“If they say no, you can order it yourself at a LabCorp request, many of the online platforms like Function Health, you can have an AMH checked through them.” — Natalie Crawford 00:52:24Find it on Amazon