How Can Acupuncture Help Improve Fertility?

Plan ahead. The ideal time to begin preparing your body for a baby is three months before conception or an IVF cycle. This is the time to begin acupuncture treatments, but many couples wait until they are actively trying to conceive. In my practice, I recommend  weekly treatments until we get a positive pregnancy test and once a week for the first trimester to reduce the risk of miscarriage.
You can also help your body by:

• Caffeine: Reduce or cut out coffee from your diet. A joint US/Swedish study of 562 women found that 1-3 cups of coffee increased miscarriage rate by 30% and more than 5 cups increased it by 40%.  Also, in another study conducted during the first trimester of pregnancy, women who had a high caffeine intake showed an increased risk of repeated miscarriage. 
• Stress: Stress has been linked to irregularities in  ovulation and abnormal sperm development. Lowering your levels of physiological stress, can increase your chances of conception.
• Sleep: Treatment in Chinese medicine always aims to improve your sleeping pattern. Lack of sleep has long been recognized as influencing fertility. It  leads to physiological disruptions including the inhibition of growth hormones.
• Alcohol: Women who drink alcohol may delay conception because it is poorly metabolised and can lead to a disturbance of the oestrogen/ progesterone balance. During IVF, men and women are both advised to avoid alcohol because, in women, it can lead to reduced egg production and, in men, it may reduce the number of healthy sperm.
• Weight: Being too thin or too heavy can have an impact on how quickly you conceive. Excessive thinness is known to interfere with menstrual periods. Now, it is also believed that if both partners are overweight or obese, conception will take longer.
• Smoking: Smokers have an increased rate of repeated miscarriage.  Women smokers have been shown to have lower levels of oestrogen which may delay conception. Smoking is also thought to influence tubal factor infertility, and can cause early menopause. In men, smoking may damage sperm. When men stop smoking, their sperm count increases quickly. 
• By following the Chinese medicine approach to balancing your body, mind and spirit, you will not only boost your fertility but you will feel more energized, sleep better and experience a greater sense of wellbeing.                                                            

Summary

In summary, Acupuncture and Chinese herbs have a long history of benefiting fertility in many ways. Benefits of TCM include:

• Improvements in your uterine lining
• Increased blood flow to your uterus
• Regulation of your hormones
• Reduction of your stress associated with fertility problems
• Improved function of your ovaries
• Increased conception with or without ART
• Increased live birth rates
• Lower rates of ectopic pregnancies                               

And for men...

• Improved semen quality and quantity
• Reduce stress and improve well being

Acupuncture And IVF

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) can be used alone or in conjunction with Western medicine. A 2002 German study that received a lot of attention found significantly higher conception rates (42.5% vs. 26.3%) when acupuncture was used with IVF.  More recently, two studies published in May 2006, showed that acupuncture can improve IVF success rates. First, in Germany, 225 women undergoing in vitro fertilization participated in a study. Of these, 116 patients received luteal phase (the phase after ovulation) acupuncture according to the principles of TCM and 109 people received a standard protocol of acupuncture.

The treatment group using TCM principles had a significantly higher clinical pregnancy rate than the placebo group (33.6% vs. 15.6% respectively).  Second, a Denmark study published at the same time examined the effect of acupuncture received on the day of embryo transfer vs. no acupuncture, and they also found a significant increase in pregnancy rates (39% vs. 26%).

The researchers concluded that acupuncture on the day of embryo transfer improved the outcome of IVF.  A third study published at the same time found the results too small to be considered clinically significant but these researchers also concluded that acupuncture was safe for women undergoing IVF.
Other research is showing acupuncture’s effectiveness with men. A study published in 2005 demonstrated that sperm motility and quality improved after the men received treatment with acupuncture. 

References
1. Paulus, W., et al. Fertility and Sterility. April, Vol. 77 (4):721-724, 2002.
2. Dieterle,S., Ying, G., Hatzmann, W., Neuer, A. Fertility and Sterility, May, Vol. 85 (5):1347-135, 2006.
3. Westergaard, L., Mao, Q., et al. Fertility and Sterility, May, Vol. 85 (5): 1341-1346, 2006.
4. Smith, C., Coyle, M., et al. Fertility and Sterility, May, Vol. 85 (5) 1352-1358, 2006.
5. Pei, J., Strehler, E., Noss, U. et al. Fertility and Sterility, July, Vol. 84 (1), pgs. 141-7, 2005.
6. Cnattingius, S. et al, New England Journal of Medicine Vol.343(25):1839-1845, Dec., 2000.
7. George, L., et al. Paediatric and Perinatal Epidemiology, Vol. 20 (2): 119-126, March, 2006.
8. Ibid.

Additional references
The Infertility Cure: The Ancient Chinese Wellness Program for Getting Pregnant and Having Healthy Babies by Dr. Randine Lewis.
Human Reproduction Journal, Volume 11, Number 6, 1996.
Fertility and Sterility, Volume 78, Number 6, December 2002 Raised cortisol predicts spontaneous abortion Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 2006. Early online publication