P i n s & N e e d l e s
With more people now trying moxibustion and acupuncture , Karen Sherwood ( who has tried both herself ) explores the pregnancy-linked benefits
Watching a heavily pregnant woman trying to light two herbal cigars and then position them beside her pinky toes is highly amusing . Or so I ’ m told ; it ’ s hard to see the funny side when you are burning your fingers and unable to see exactly where your toes are ! When your baby is lying transverse , anything seems worth a try though – which is why I turned to acupuncture and moxibustion to rotate my baby ( spoiler alert : she did turn in time for her birth !). Acupuncture and moxibustion have been around for centuries , but their uptake outside of China is perhaps more of a recent phenomenon .
Acupuncture is becoming increasingly popular as a fertility treatment and to assist with pregnancy issues . Compared to many alternative health practices , acupuncture does have a number of scientifically sound studies supporting its use . The World Health Organisation ’ s 2003 report recognises 28 health conditions as being treatable by acupuncture ( including morning sickness , back / neck pain , mal-positioned babies and labour induction ), with another 63 conditions listed where the “ therapeutic effect of acupuncture has been shown but for which further proof is needed ” – these include female infertility , labour pain and lactation deficiency . Gianna Buonocore is a Hong Kong- registered Chinese medicine practitioner ( Acupuncture ) with clinics at the Integrated Medicine Institute and Matilda Medical Centre . During the twenty-plus years that Gianna has been practicing , she has noticed an increase in the number of patients seeking her assistance with fertility issues . “ Acupuncture can be used for all fertility problems . It can be used as the primary form of treatment – to regulate the cycle , promote ovulation , improve uterine lining and prevent miscarriage – or as a secondary form of treatment – to relax the mind or reduce the side effects of drugs during IUI or IVF treatment ,” she explains . When faced with fertility problems , acupuncture is often considered a good first step , before contemplating Western fertility treatments . Fashion buyer Anna Fox was struggling with polycystic ovary syndrome and “ having come off the pill , my periods just stopped completely . I needed to find a way to rebalance my hormones and get my cycle back . I was thrilled when I ovulated after just two sessions of acupuncture , and had a period two weeks later .” The idea behind using acupuncture to treat fertility is that in order to get pregnant , the body must be in balance . Gianna explains ,
June 2017 49