Acupuncture has been used for thousands of years to enhance fertility. The practice of placing thin, sterile needles in specific acupuncture points, typically in combination with customized herbal formulas, nutrition, and lifestyle changes, has long been used to improve your chances to conceive.
Recently, a study published by the National Institute of Health confirmed those findings.
Here is some of the science behind how working with an Acupuncturist while trying to conceive can help:
Improve blood flow to the uterus and ovaries - Acupuncture stimulates and increases the blood supply to the reproductive organs, improving the quality of the uterine lining and nourishing the developing follicle.
Regulate Hormones - Acupuncture has a normalizing effect on reproductive hormones, being able to treat fertility related issues such as polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), endometriosis, irregular cycles, anovulation, elevated FSH, low AMH, unexplained infertility and male factor including low sperm count, morphology and/or motility.
Reduces stress and anxiety - One of the most common effects my patients report is how relaxed they feel during the treatment. Acupuncture reduces stress by regulating our sympathetic nervous system (aka “fight or flight”). This is particularly important because it is known that stress plays a very important role in failure to conceive.
Improves IVF/IUI success rates - The field of fertility acupuncture exploded after the 2002 publication of a landmark study published in Fertility and Sterility by Paulus et al. The objective of the study was to evaluate the effect of acupuncture on the pregnancy rate in women undergoing in vitro fertilization (IVF) by comparing a group of women receiving acupuncture treatment shortly before and after embryo transfer with a control group receiving no acupuncture.
The results of the study showed pregnancies in 34 of 80 patients (42.5%) in the acupuncture group, whereas the pregnancy rate was only 26.3% (21 out of 80 patients) in the control group.
Fertility Support - Our Method
If you are trying to conceive naturally, I would like you to start treatment three to six months in advance, so that we may have time to get your body in its best shape for conception. We will be focusing on supporting healthy follicles, balancing hormones and regulating the menstrual cycle. It takes about 120 days for eggs to go through their maturation process and sperm roughly 90 days. Starting acupuncture early on should increase the quality of these important factors in the fertility process. While this may seem like a time-consuming investment, it is no question that it will be worthwhile.
When should I come in for my initial consultation and treatment?
I take pride in the fact that I meet my patients wherever they are in their fertility journey, whether we have months to work together before trying to conceive, or if they are planning an embryo transfer the very next day.
If you are struggling to conceive, ask me how I can help. The chances of getting pregnant and having a happy healthy baby are much better when combining both Western and Eastern medicine.