If you’re trying to conceive, you may be wondering what changes you can make to your food to improve embryo implantation. The days between ovulation (or embryo transfer during IVF) and a pregnancy test, often called the two-week wait, can feel full of uncertainty, and many people look for ways to support their body during this critical stage.
While no single food can guarantee implantation, nutrition plays an important role in creating the right conditions for early pregnancy. A balanced diet can help support hormone balance, reduce inflammation, and promote healthy blood flow to the uterus all factors that contribute to a receptive uterine environment.
In this guide, we’ll explore the best foods to support embryo implantation, what to eat during the two-week wait, and simple fertility nutrition tips that may help optimise the environment for early embryo development.
What happens during implantation?
Implantation is one of the earliest and most important stages of pregnancy. It’s the moment when a fertilised egg attaches to the lining of the uterus (the womb), allowing pregnancy to begin. This usually happens between 6 and 10 days after ovulation, during the period many people trying to conceive know as the “two-week wait.”
After an egg is fertilised, it begins a short but remarkable journey.
The fertilised egg travels down the fallopian tube and into the uterus. While it moves, it continues dividing and developing. By the time it reaches the uterus, it has formed a tiny ball of cells called a blastocyst. At this stage, the blastocyst floats freely in the uterus for a short time, surviving on nutrients released by the uterine lining while it prepares to attach.
Implantation occurs when the blastocyst attaches to the lining of the uterus. The time between ovulation and implantation is typically around 14 days, which is why it’s often called the two-week wait. For many people trying to conceive, this can feel like the longest two weeks imaginable.
If you’re undergoing IVF, the wait is usually a little shorter. That’s because the embryo transferred to the uterus is often already 3–5 days old, meaning implantation may happen sooner.
What needs to happen for successful embryo implantation?
Implantation is a complex biological process, and several factors need to align at the same time for it to occur successfully. These include:
- A supportive uterine environment
- A healthy, viable embryo
- A receptive uterine lining
- Balanced hormones, especially progesterone, which helps maintain the uterine lining
- Good blood flow to the uterus
Why food matters for embryo implantation
You may be wondering what diet has to do with this part of the fertility process, as it is too late to influence the eggs or the sperm. However, choosing food to improve embryo implantation can still play an important role. Our dietary patterns and foods we eat can influence embryo implantation indirectly in several ways by:
- Affecting hormone balance
- Influencing uterine lining quality
- Impacting the uterine environment
- Supporting blood flow to the uterus
While diet changes alone cannot guarantee implantation, research shows nutrient-dense, whole food dietary patterns are associated with better fertility and implantation outcomes, especially when going through IVF.
It is not just what to eat during the two-week wait that is important; creating a dietary pattern that supports embryo implantation in the months and weeks leading up to conception or embryo transfer is the best way to support chances of success.
Inflammation is thought to play a key role at the time of embryo implantation (1), so eating lots of anti-inflammatory foods like oily fish, nuts and seeds, and extra virgin olive oil is a good starting point when including food to improve embryo implantation to create a favourable uterine environment ready to accept the embryo.
Implantation & The Two Week Wait Meal Plan & Guide
Confused about your choices when it comes to foods for implantation and the two week wait? Take control and positively influence the process today with this Nutrition Guide and Meal Plan for Implantation and the two week wait
Food to improve embryo implantation
Including these foods in your diet as soon as you can can help to support hormone balance, reduce inflammation, and create a receptive uterine environment.
Whole grains for a receptive uterine lining
Alongside being anti-inflammatory and nutrient-dense, regularly consuming whole grains can help increase endometrial lining thickness (2). For implantation to occur successfully, this lining needs to be thick, healthy and receptive.
Easy ways to incorporate more whole grains are:
- Increase the variety of grains you have, such as quinoa and buckwheat.
- Swapping white rice for brown rice
Antioxidant-rich foods for an optimal uterine environment
Antioxidants help to protect the uterine environment by neutralising molecules called free radicals that can damage cells (3). This helps create a protective environment for the early embryo to survive in. Leafy greens and colourful fruit and vegetables are fantastic sources of antioxidants. Examples include:
- Red, yellow, and orange peppers
- Blueberries and strawberries
- Spinach and kale
- Citrus fruits
- Grapes
- Broccoli and carrots
Protein for early embryo development
Higher intakes of dietary protein have been associated with improved blastocyst development in IVF, which in turn lead to increased pregnancy rates for fresh or frozen blastocyst transfer (4). Fertility-supporting protein sources include lean proteins like chicken as well as plant-based proteins such as beans, lentils, and chickpeas. Make sure you are including a source of protein in all meals and snacks.
Beetroot juice – A food to improve embryo implantation?
Many people wonder if this is just a fertility myth, but research suggests there’s real truth behind it.
Beetroot contains nitric oxide, a compound that can help improve nutrient-rich blood flow to the uterus, creating a more receptive environment for the embryo. One study found that consuming a drink made with beetroot, watermelon and ginger from the day of embryo transfer could support implantation and improve pregnancy rates (5). Beyond its effects on blood flow, beetroot is also packed full of antioxidants and beneficial phytochemicals, helping to maintain a favourable uterine environment for embryo survival.
Foods to avoid during the two-week wait
There are some foods we recommend avoiding or limiting to optimise implantation success. Consider these foods during the two-week wait, as well as in the wider dietary pattern in the weeks and months leading up to conception.
- Reduce intake of red meat. Evidence shows that a high consumption of red meat can have a negative effect on implantation rates (6). If you are regularly eating red meat, swap it out in some meals for chicken or turkey or have some meat-free days and increase your plant-based protein intake.
- Limit ultra-processed food – many ultra-processed foods promote levels of low-grade inflammation due to being high in sugar and saturated fat. Choosing more minimally processed foods can help avoid this. One easy way to do this is to swap sugary breakfast cereals for porridge oats with berries. There are lots of other ways too!
- Avoid alcohol – Alcohol can disrupt your hormone levels (7), which can have a direct impact on implantation. It also increases inflammation and oxidative stress, which may negatively affect the chances of success. Women are recommended to avoid alcohol completely when trying to conceive, and we would recommend avoiding alcohol during the two-week wait.
Best things to eat after embryo transfer
A simple tip here is, rather than focusing on specific fertility superfoods at this point, aim for regular, balanced meals made from wholefoods. Nourishing your body with lots of nutrient-dense foods, wholegrains and protein will provide long-lasting energy and will keep your blood sugar levels stable.
Behave as if you are already pregnant, this means avoiding foods that you would avoid if you were pregnant, such as high mercury fish and unpasteurised cheeses – the NHS has a handy list here.
Staying hydrated by drinking lots of water is key. While you don’t want to add in any high-intensity activity during this time, continuing to incorporate gentle movement alongside getting adequate rest can also help support your body during the two-week wait after embryo transfer.
Can food really improve embryo implantation?
We know that implantation depends on several biological factors, and while not all of these are within our control, knowing you have done all you can with your diet to support optimal conditions for embryo implantation can help you feel in control of at least one element during these tense few days. #
We have taken you through just some of the ways food can support the chances of embryo implantation success. For further information and a deep dive into the foods and supplements that can improve embryo implantation and a 2-week implantation meal plan, check out our Implantation Diet & The Two Week Wait – Meal Plan & Guide.
This article was written by the Fertility Dietitian UK content team and reviewed by Ro Huntriss MSc RD, Consultant Dietitian and Founder of Fertility Dietitian UK. Last reviewed: March 2026
Sources and references
NHS Guy’s and St Thomas – IVF Treatment
Foods to avoid in pregnancy NHS
- Mor G, Cardenas I, Abrahams V, Guller S. Inflammation and pregnancy: the role of the immune system at the implantation site. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2011 Mar;1221(1):80-7. doi: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.2010.05938.x. PMID: 21401634; PMCID: PMC3078586.
- Gaskins AJ, Chiu YH, Williams PL, Keller MG, Toth TL, Hauser R, Chavarro JE; EARTH Study Team. Maternal whole grain intake and outcomes of in vitro fertilization. Fertil Steril. 2016 Jun;105(6):1503-1510.e4. doi: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2016.02.015. Epub 2016 Feb 28. PMID: 26926253; PMCID: PMC4894002.
- Agarwal A, Gupta S, Sharma R. Oxidative stress and its implications in female infertility – a clinician’s perspective. Reprod Biomed Online. 2005 Nov;11(5):641-50. doi: 10.1016/s1472-6483(10)61174-1. PMID: 16409717.
- Does dietary protein and carbohydrate intake influence blastocyst development and pregnancy rates? Russell, J.B. et al. Fertility and Sterility, Volume 98, Issue 3, S233 – S234
- Beetroot, watermelon and ginger juice supplementation may increase the clinical outcomes of intracytoplasmic sperm injection cycles. Halpern, Gabriela et al. Fertility and Sterility, Volume 112, Issue 3, e3
- Braga DP, Halpern G, Setti AS, Figueira RC, Iaconelli A Jr, Borges E Jr. The impact of food intake and social habits on embryo quality and the likelihood of blastocyst formation. Reprod Biomed Online. 2015 Jul;31(1):30-8. doi: 10.1016/j.rbmo.2015.03.007. Epub 2015 Mar 27. PMID: 25982093.
- Anwar MY, Marcus M, Taylor KC. The association between alcohol intake and fecundability during menstrual cycle phases. Hum Reprod. 2021 Aug 18;36(9):2538-2548. doi: 10.1093/humrep/deab121. PMID: 34102671; PMCID: PMC8561243.
