The Link Between Acupuncture and Improved Pregnancy Rates

Advances in technology and technique combined with medical expertise have increased the overall success rate of fertility treatments. 

But it’s also true that ancient remedies like acupuncture and other complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) therapies can positively affect your efforts to become pregnant.

Reproductive Endocrinologist Dr. Deborah Smith leads an award-winning team at Rocky Mountain Fertility Center in Parker, Colorado. Dr. Smith’s group is well-known for successfully blending advanced expertise and technology with compassionate, patient-first infertility services.

Here’s why Dr. Smith and her team have long endorsed acupuncture and other CAM therapies to help boost pregnancy rates.   

How does acupuncture influence health?

Acupuncture is an ancient Chinese therapy in use for at least 2,500 years. For decades, physicians in the United States have increasingly approved acupuncture to boost the effectiveness of medications, surgeries, and other traditional Western treatments.

Medical research and clinical studies have indicated that acupuncture can help enhance treatments for everything from tinnitus (ringing in the ears) to seasonal allergies to chronic pain. It’s also known for reducing stress.

Traditional Chinese medicine teaches that acupuncture rebalances your energy flow to regulate spiritual, emotional, mental, and physical health.

Western medicine continues to struggle to determine exactly how and why acupuncture works. But studies have indicated that acupuncture may positively affect the nervous system and circulation by stimulating nerves, muscles, and connective tissue.

Dr. Smith wholeheartedly endorses acupuncture to enhance pregnancy rates when it’s used alongside infertility treatments and delivered by a qualified professional. 

Rocky Mountain Fertility Center has a team of complementary medicine providers, including acupuncturists, who work directly with men and women experiencing fertility problems. 

How does acupuncture enhance pregnancy rates?   

Studies show acupuncture improves pregnancy rates among individuals also undergoing infertility treatments.

For example, a study published in 2001 found that 42.5% of the group treated with acupuncture became pregnant, but only 26.3% of the non-treated group became pregnant.

In 2017, a systemic review of previous studies found that acupuncture safely and effectively increased pregnancy rates in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).  

Experts believe the overall increase in pregnancy rate is due to stress reduction, decreasing uterus contractility, and improved blood flow to the pelvic organs. Acupuncture also helped regulate LH (luteinizing hormone) and testosterone levels in women with PCOS, the most common cause of female infertility.

At Rocky Mountain Fertility Center, Dr. Smith may recommend acupuncture and other CAM therapies for patients undergoing fertility testing, ovulation induction, pelvic surgery, in vitro fertilization (IVF), and other assisted reproductive treatments. 

As with any CAM therapy, acupuncture results can vary, and undergoing acupuncture does not guarantee a pregnancy.

Other potentially beneficial CAM therapies 

Other complementary therapies Dr. Smith may recommend include:

Herbal therapy

Certain herbs increase fertility, while others reduce your chances of pregnancy. During a consultation, our herbalist can identify herbs that may impede pregnancy and others that safely enhance pregnancy rates.

Diet and exercise

Lifestyle habits such as diet and exercise significantly affect your overall health. Although there’s a lack of formal research, one observational evaluation of 18,000 people indicated that healthy habits also positively influenced fertility. 

CAM services at Rocky Mountain Fertility Center include nutritional counseling and other recommendations that help prepare your body for pregnancy and positively affect your overall health.

Stress reduction

Dr. Smith and her team are always mindful of increased stress levels related to infertility evaluations and treatments. 

Mental health counseling and activities like yoga, guided breathing, and even improved diet and exercise are all vital components of stress reduction and may improve your chance of success.

Schedule an evaluation at Rocky Mountain Fertility Center in Colorado today for more information about our services. Call our office or request an appointment online.