Research: Acupuncture Treats Female & Male Infertility

Chinese medicine has been used for thousands of years to treat fertility issues. Research suggests that acupuncture may enhance overall fertility health for both women and men by:

• Increasing blood flow to reproductive organs

• Regulating hormone levels

• Normalizing menstrual cycles

• Improving pregnancy outcomes following a history of recurrent pregnancy loss

• Improving the quality of eggs

• Reducing stress and anxiety

• Regulating ovulation

• Modulating the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovary axis

• Improving male sperm quality, motility, and counts

Acupuncture may also treat other female reproductive concerns such as:

• Hormone-related emotional imbalances

• Menopausal symptoms

• Heavy menstrual bleeding

• Irregular periods

• Painful periods

• Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS)

• Postpartum disorders

• Endometriosis

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References:

Manheimer Eric, Zhang Grant, Udoff Laurence, Haramati Aviad, Langenberg Patricia, Berman Brian M et al. Effects of acupuncture on rates of pregnancy and live birth among women undergoing in vitro fertilisation: systematic review and meta-analysis BMJ 2008; 336 :545

Zhu, J., Arsovska, B., & Kozovska, K. (2018). Acupuncture Treatment for Fertility. Open access Macedonian journal of medical sciences, 6(9), 1685–1687. https://doi.org/10.3889/oamjms.2018.379

Jerng, U. M., Jo, J. Y., Lee, S., Lee, J. M., & Kwon, O. (2014). The effectiveness and safety of acupuncture for poor semen quality in infertile males: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Asian journal of andrology, 16(6), 884–891. https://doi.org/10.4103/1008-682X.129130

Zhu, H., Nan, S., Suo, C., Zhang, Q., Hu, M., Chen, R., Wan, J., Li, M., Chen, J., & Ding, M. (2019). Electro-Acupuncture Affects the Activity of the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Ovary Axis in Female Rats. Frontiers in physiology, 10, 466. https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2019.00466

Mikhael, S., Punjala-Patel, A., & Gavrilova-Jordan, L. (2019). Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Ovarian Axis Disorders Impacting Female Fertility. Biomedicines, 7(1), 5. https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines7010005