Overwhelmed by studies, research and constantly changing diet, nutrition and food recommendations? With so many conflicting opinions and studies it's a full time job trying to keep up with do's and don'ts.

Here are… not just five, but six... of top basic lifestyle changes that Cynthia Stadd, Director of Nutrition Services at The Berkley Center, recommends to proactively promote and prepare your body for conception and a remarkable family life!

Greatly reduce or eliminate caffeine and coffee altogether. It is a vasoconstrictor which can impede blood flow.

Establish a whole foods based diet that's easy to incorporate into your busy lifestyle. Include whole vegetables, grains, nuts, seeds, and minimal animal protein. Consider scheduling a consultation with a nutritionist to discover which fresh whole foods you should choose for your body type including quantities, shopping tips and food preparation techniques for maximum health and digestion.

Drink plenty of water and avoid sugary liquids. The new high energy, vitamin and natural food drinks on market may seem like a healthy alternative but they might not be as good for you as you think.

Avoid chemicals, additives and preservatives. Get educated on how to read food labels, recognize artificial sweeteners to stay away from, and get acquainted with some natural sweeteners you may never even have heard about. Start increasing your fertility quotient with powerful dietary and nutritional counseling.

Sleep deprivation exists when we are not getting sleep we need. This varies from person to person, average adult requires six to nine hours per night, but some do well on much less. Kids and teenagers require more sleep than adults.

If we feel energetic during day and do not experience daytime sleepiness, then we are probably receiving adequate sleep.

Public awareness of fitness and nutrition has grown over past few years but unfortunately little is known about very important subject of sleep disorders. They are not included in general medical training either so lack of knowledge is perpetuated.

If drowsiness were sole disadvantage of sleep deprivation, it would not be such a serious condition. Unfortunately consequences are many and some of them quite worrying. There are both behavioral and physical symptoms.

Why do we suffer with sleep deprivation? Sometimes its because we're so busy that we just don't have sufficient time to get rest we need. Or maybe its because we have insomnia or one of other sleep disorders such as sleep apnea or restless legs syndrome. Or we may be a shift worker who is forced to sleep during day and our sleep is not restful. Whatever reason is, if we don't have adequate sleep we create a "sleep debt" which leads to some or all of symptoms shown below.

These range from inconvenient to downright dangerous so if you can see yourself in symptoms below, its worth trying to establish what is causing your sleep deprivation we can then work out and how to address it.

Stress and anxiety