“When the spring comes, the grass grows by itself” – Tao Te Ching
Well4ever has extensive experience working with couples to enhance and promote fertility and increase the likelihood of conception and successful pregnancy. Acupuncture for fertility is the use of the ancient Chinese practice of acupuncture and herbal medicine. As with acupuncture for general health it takes an intfegrative approach and aims to correct any areas of deficiency within the body thus allowing the body’s vital life force, or qi, to flow freely. Well4ever’s acupuncturist, Guy Lederman, combines acupuncture with Chinese herbal medicine here in Putney, South West London to achieve the best results.
Fertility-related difficulties may arise despite no apparent physical illness, however, TCM (traditional Chinese medicine) recognises that lack of disease is not the same as perfect health. In other words, the body may be yin or yang deficient or have an obstruction to qi in some areas. Alternatively an individual’s diet may be working against their efforts to become pregnant. The conditions in the body may not be optimal for the conception of a child, even if a person does not appear to be physically ill. Acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine work to locate the underlying problem and adjust the body and habits accordingly.
Typically, Chinese medicine will locate a problem with fertility as coming from either ‘vacuity’ or ‘repletion’. The former, in simplified terms, understands the body’s blood and qi to be inadequate to create the necessary conditions within the uterus to host an egg. The latter refers to a constitution where qi and blood are too stagnant to allow free flow of qi.
Some women-specific health problems may not cause any symptoms and yet be a cause of fertility problems. Some examples are irregular/absent menstruation, endometriosis, PCOS and ovarian cysts. A TCM doctor may be able to diagnose one of these problems, if present, along with its root cause (‘blood stasis’, ‘yin deficiency’, etc.) and offer relevant therapies that aim to eradicate the source of the problem.
Acupuncture and IVF
Recent studies have shown the combination of acupuncture with IVF (in vitro fertilisation) to be particularly effective in improving the success of conception for women undergoing IVF; investigations carried out with a view of satisfying Western standards of research have found exceptionally positive results. Patients treated with acupuncture were “more likely to get pregnant, have lower miscarriage rates, suffer fewer ectopics and, most importantly, have more take-home babies! As an added bonus, they seemed to have fewer multiples.” Depending on the study, the figures range from anywhere between an average 15% to 60% increased chance in conceiving for women combining IVF with acupuncture, compared to a control group undergoing IVF with no acupuncture.
Chinese medicine – acupuncture, herbs, moxibustion, nutrition and cupping – can help improve the chances of successful IVF in the following way:
- Regulate hormones to increase follicle production
- Improve ovary function and consequently better quality eggs
- Promote relaxation and reduces stress
- Increase blood supply to the uterus and thicken endometrium
- Reduce side effects of IVF-accompanying drugs
- Prevent uterine contractions
- Improve semen and consequently create more and better quality embryos
- Improve immune system
- Lower chance of miscarriage
Acupuncture and non-IVF Fertility
There is a growing body of research detailing the success of acupuncture in treating fertility-related problems among both men and women. For more information check out our blog.
