Exercise and Acupuncture Help Women Through Pregnancy Pain
Acupuncture, combined with stretching exercises and special pillows, helps relieve back and pelvic pain that occurs during pregnancy. Acupuncture alone helps the majority of pregnant women, with even better results than physiotherapy.
A study of women with both back and pelvic pain showed that 60 percent who received Acupuncture treatment reported less intense pain, compared to 14 percent of women who did not.The study found no complications associated with the use of Acupuncture in pregnant women.
Back and pelvic pain can interfere with everything – work, recreation and even sleep. According to an updated review of eight studies involving 1,305 pregnant women from Sweden, Iran, Brazil, Thailand and Australia, more than two-thirds of pregnant women experience back pain and almost one-fifth report pelvic pain.
“When you’re pregnant, your center of gravity is off. You have to arch your back to balance this huge tummy, so you end up with extra strain on your back and pelvic muscles,” said Victoria Pennick, M.H.Sc., a senior clinical research project manager at the Institute for Work & Health in Toronto, Canada.
Although none of the eight studies reviewed addressed back or pelvic pain specifically, data on the effects of pregnancy-specific strengthening exercises, water exercises, Acupuncture and other pain-relief interventions to regular prenatal care were available.
“We were able to group trials about women who had back pain alone, women who had pelvic pain alone and both,” Pennick said.
The review authors found that women who participated in prenatal exercise programs to stretch the pelvic muscles, strengthen the abdominal and hamstring muscles and increase spinal flexibility reported significant decreases in back pain compared to women who received the usual prenatal care.
One study evaluated work absenteeism during pregnancy and found that only 12.9 percent who participated in water gymnastics missed work due to low back pain, compared with 21.7 percent who received usual prenatal care. Another study found good results from use of the “Ozzlo” pillow, a soft curved cushion designed to support the pregnant abdomen when lying down, superior to a regular pillow in relieving back pain.
On average, women who followed through with pelvic or back pain interventions experienced some pain relief and reported less need for pain medication, physical therapy and posture-support belts.