Acupuncture Help During Pregnancy
Can Acupuncture Help During Pregnancy? For thousands of years, Traditional Chinese Medicine has been utilized to improve the health of both the mother and the infant during and after pregnancy. Preventative care is prioritized in order to strengthen the kid and mother as a unit, as well as to assist with any issues that may emerge during pregnancy.
Since 2003, the World Health Organization has released numerous reviews on a variety of ailments that have shown acupuncture to be a beneficial treatment for a variety of diseases, including pregnancy complications. It can be utilized to help with maternal and fetal health in a variety of ways. The most common disorders found during pregnancy and in patients who are carried to term are listed below.
During Pregnancy, Nausea
Acupuncture has been shown in numerous trials to reduce the severity and frequency of nausea and vomiting during pregnancy. Trained acupuncturists and midwives who specialize in fertility can provide speedier relief than individuals who do not receive therapy. Nutrition during pregnancy is also of the utmost importance.
Skeletal – Muscular Pain
Pain will be one of the most common things acupuncturists see during their patients’ pregnancies. Ribs, pubic symphysis, hips, sciatica, and back pain are all typical as the body adapts and expands to accommodate the baby’s size. Acupuncture can assist reduce congestion, desensitizing the body to discomfort, and increasing circulation to areas of muscular strain caused by carrying extra weight as the patient’s body grows and stretches (2).
Babies who are born in the breech position and those who are born in the posterior position
Acupuncture and moxibustion to correct breech presentation have been extensively researched as more women opt for a more natural birth. Though it has been shown to be most effective between weeks 34 and 35 of pregnancy, it can still be beneficial later on (3).
Induction and Labor Preparation
Acupuncture can be utilized four weeks before the due date to assist prepare and releasing the hips, back, pelvis, and cervix. One session every week after that is most beneficial in assisting women in preparing for the amount of change their bodies would undergo as their baby descends deeper into the uterus.
Acupuncture can also give a gentle induction for women who are past their due date, and it can be a good alternative to hormonal stimulation. There are acupoints on the body that have been demonstrated to assist speed up labor by increasing uterine contractions. As a result, the use of acupuncture reduces the need for medical intervention, induction, and cesarean sections (4,5).
Postnatal Support
After the exhausting experience of childbirth, acupuncture and Chinese medicines are utilized to assist the woman to regain her health. The body is at its most vulnerable, so the focus of treatment will be on strengthening and blood-building herbs. Mastitis, milk production, postpartum depression, incontinence, back pain, and exhaustion are all frequent issues that acupuncturists can help with.
Acupuncture and Fertility
Fertility and Acupuncture
Acupuncture treatments have been found in recent research to improve reproductive success rates.
What role does acupuncture have in infertility?
Acupuncture might be considered an alternative method of addressing reproductive issues on its own. It’s also frequently used as a supplement to contemporary fertility therapies. Acupuncture is the practice of inserting hair-thin needles into the skin and muscle tissue to activate natural inflammation and provide blood to the area.
Acupuncture can thus help enhance blood flow to the reproductive organs, which is a highly prevalent technique in China and has been proved to aid with lining and egg quality or yield by increasing blood flow to the uterus and ovaries. It will also improve blood flow to the testes, resulting in more sperm and better quality sperm. Because circulation to the reproductive organs is very indirect, this is critical. The body’s natural response to stress is to redirect circulation away from the reproductive organs and toward the muscle groups, lungs, and heart. Fertility is unfortunately not just a medical problem; it also impacts the patient’s mental and hormonal health.
According to various clinical investigations, stress levels induced by melancholy and the fear of reproductive troubles are comparable to those experienced by cancer patients undergoing treatment. Hormone levels such as cortisol rise during times of stress, causing imbalances in the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian (HPO) axis — the same reason stress can impact the duration and irregularity of periods. Acupuncture needles inserted at precise sites can cause the body to release endorphins or “feel-good” hormones that help regulate periods and other reproductive hormones like progesterone and estrogen by lowering cortisol and balancing the HPO axis.
What is the role of acupuncture in IVF and IUI?
There are stimulating and supporting components, just like in IVF and IUI cycles. The herbs and acupoints chosen will help with menstrual cycles and IVF/IUI. Treatments will focus on removing the old lining during menses so that a new foundation can be laid along the uterine wall. The stimulating stage of the IVF/IUI/follicular phase will concentrate on egg quality and assist the ovaries with yield and quality. The fallopian tubes will be kept open during the triggering/ovulation stage so that the egg can travel down and the sperm may travel up for an IUI. Finally, the luteal phase / IVF transfer or IUI implantation focuses on keeping the lining and pregnancy intact.
In a German study of 160 women conducted in 2002, 21 (26.3%) of the 80 women who underwent IVF without any acupuncture treatments became pregnant. In contrast, 34 of the 80 women who underwent both acupuncture and IVF became pregnant, resulting in a 42.5 percent success rate. In recent American research of 114 women, 36 percent of those who received IVF alone became pregnant, but 51 percent of those who received acupuncture and IVF treatments were pregnant. Furthermore, although 8% of the women in the acupuncture group miscarried, 20% of the women in the IVF-only group miscarried.
We provide pre and after IVF/IUI treatments on request, while we normally work with couples three months before to their operation.
Is it effective in preventing miscarriage?
Preconception and miscarriage prevention entails improving both parents’ health at least three months before conception. The time it takes for an egg or sperm to mature from germ cells is around this long. It is critical to improving the health of the parents and the quality of their gametes in order to reduce the risk of abnormalities and to allow time for the finest potential uterine lining to develop. Acupuncture and herbal medicine can assist to balance your body and improve the quality of your egg or sperm, but lifestyle decisions must also be considered. Diet, exercise, and mental health are all important factors in having a successful pregnancy.
What about the masculine component?
Male factor is thought to be responsible for up to 40% of infertility cases. Though the male reproductive system does not go through the same cyclical changes as women’s, the therapeutic concepts remain the same. Improve circulation to the reproductive organs, reduce stress, eat a healthy diet, and keep hormone levels in check.
About The Author
She believes massage can assist the mind and soul in becoming more in tune with the body through massage at any stage of a person’s life. “As long as your mind believes your body will too in the positive energy.”
She enjoys spending time with her new young family, hot summer days, and discovering the world of energy healing.
References
(1) Birth. 2002 Mar;29(1):1-9.
Acupuncture to treat nausea and vomiting in early pregnancy: a randomized controlled trial.
Smith C, Crowther C, Beilby J.
Source: Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology, Adelaide University, Adelaide, Australia.
(2) Acta Obstet Gynecol Scand. 2006;85(1):12-9.
Decrease of pregnant women’s pelvic pain after acupuncture: a randomized controlled single-blind study. Lund I, Lundeberg T, Lönnberg L, Svensson E.
Source: Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Karolinska Institutet, SE-171 77 Stockholm, Sweden. [email protected]
(3)J Matern Fetal Neonatal Med. 2004 Apr;15(4):247-52.
Acupuncture plus moxibustion to resolve breech presentation: a randomized controlled study.
Neri I, Airola G, Contu G, Allais G, Facchinetti F, Benedetto C.
Source: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Modena-Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy.
(4) Influence of Acupuncture on Duration of LaborZeisler H. · Tempfer C. · Mayerhofer K. · Barrada M. · Husslein P.
Gynecol Obstet Invest 1998;46:22–25
(5) Medical Acupuncture: A Journal for Physicians by Physicians. 2006; 17(3):
Acupuncture for Prebirth Treatment: An Observational Study Of Its Use In Midwifery Practice.
Debra Betts, RN – Sue Lennox, MA
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