What is polycystic ovarian syndrome?
Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) is one of the most common endocrine disorders; and ten percent of women of childbearing age are affected by this condition.
It is actually not a disease but a condition and it can affect any woman before she hits menopause. But, unfortunately, it remains undiagnosed as the symptoms often overlap with symptoms of other conditions.
What is Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome and What Happens when you Have It?
In this condition, your ovaries create an abundance of follicles each month without producing an egg, disrupting the ovulation cycle. This disruption is the leading cause of infertility among women. Women suffering from this condition sometimes may skip their periods and sometimes start bleeding heavily for days.
There are other symptoms of Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome such as acne and high blood pressure. It may also cause elevated androgen hormones levels that includes testosterone, leading to unwanted hair growth on your face and body. Women start developing ovarian cysts and their metabolism gets severely affected and the number on the scale keeps creeping up.
While PCOS treatment involves taking medications to get relief from some of the conditions. Many women with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome have resorted to taking a variety of medications to ease their symptoms. While these are effective to a certain extent, it also comes with several side effects such as fatigue, malaise, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. This can prove to be rather annoying.
When conventional treatment fails, women seek relief from alternative medicine. In fact, Acupuncture for Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome is a holistic method of treating a woman with PCOS. This treatment helps regulate and manage the symptoms to a large extent. Acupuncture is said to have a positive outlook and impacts your body in a number of ways.
What is Acupuncture?
Wikipedia states, “Acupuncture is a collection of procedures which involves the stimulation of points on the body using a variety of techniques, such as penetrating the skin with needles that are then manipulated manually or by electrical stimulation.”
It is a traditional Chinese medicine and is based on fighting any illness or pain which results as a blockage in the flow of vital energy, popularly known as “qi”. Acupuncturists utilize needles, inserting into specific acupuncture points. This helps to focus on unblocking the flow of qi and bring back balance to the body.
Acupuncture and Polycystic Ovary Syndrome Treatment
When you treat Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome with acupuncture, you place needles along the acupuncture meridians. These meridians are inextricably linked to the reproductive system. This helps in a number of ways such as improving the health of the organs, improving blood flow, helping in balancing out hormone-levels and helping in balancing out the reproductive system.
Swedish researchers at the University of Gothenburg did a study and found out that exercise in conjunction with electro-acupuncture treatments can help reduce the symptoms of Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. This polycystic ovary syndrome treatment also treats the condition minus the side effects. In Acupuncture, the needles are inserted in the abdomen and leg.
Which type of Acupuncture Helps in the treatment of PCOS?
It is said that electro-acupuncture, one of the more popular acupuncture techniques, is more effective in treating Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. This treatment involves passing a small electric current through the needle into the muscle. Usually, two needles are used to form a setup. It forms a continuous pulsating current and is applied for 30 minutes. You can stimulate two needles at one and the same time.
How Does it Help Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS)?
- Cut out sugar in all its forms from your diet.
- Cut out refined carbohydrates from your diet as the body turns the refined carbs into When we speak of refined carbs, we mean pasta, white bread, potatoes, rice cakes, white rice, most breakfast cereals, popcorn, or starchy, low fiber food.
- Avoid processed foods and junk such as soda, fruit juice, and any drink which raises your blood sugar level.
- Consume more protein, more of plant-based
- Your go-to foods should be fresh veggies.
- Eat fruits which are not too sweet.
- Eat complex whole grains.
- Avoid milk and dairy products which aggravate the condition of internal dampness.
- Reduce or better still, eliminate alcohol and caffeine.
- Increase your fiber intake.
- Move more, ensure that exercise becomes a part of your daily schedule.
Traditional Chinese Medicine PCOD Diagnosis and Treatment
Acupuncture helps in a number of ways such as restoring hormonal balance, decreasing LH levels, increasing FSH, decreasing Testosterone, decreasing Estrogen levels and increasing Progesterone. It also helps reduce excess weight, shrink ovarian cysts, and benefits ovulation and egg implantation.
Acupuncture Treatment for Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome
This is how acupuncture can treat Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome
- Balancing beta-endorphin production, which may impact the gonadotropin-releasing hormone secretion.
- Regulating the luteinizing hormone, and androgen levels.
- Modulates the sympathetic nervous system activity and helps improve blood flow to the ovaries.
- Helps regulate the steroid hormone/peptide receptors.
- Helps reduce the serum levels of estradiol and testosterone.
- Increases Insulin sensitivity and reduces the insulin levels.
- Stimulates the pain receptors in the brain.
- Reduces inflammation.
How Does Acupuncture Impact the Hormone Channels? – Acupuncture Points for PCOS
Acupuncture is a holistic treatment that helps in hormone regulation; it caters to the root of the issue and does not focus only on symptomatic treatment. Acupuncture helps bring balance in the body through qi (chi), a person’s life force. Practitioners help insert specific points along the interconnecting meridians (channels) of the body that are linked to several organs.
If an acupuncturist utilizes an acupuncture point, say for example a stomach one, it doesn’t correlate to the physical stomach, it just runs along the channel. A few of the common hormone channels are as follows.
