Acupuncture Relieves Depression in Pregnant Women

Acupuncture may offer depressed pregnant women relief without the use of antidepressant medications, according to a new study.

By Dena Afrasiabi

Acupuncture may offer depressed pregnant women relief without the use of antidepressant medications, according to a new study. Since almost 25% of women experience depression during pregnancy and most of them prefer not to take drugs for their symptoms, acupuncture could give them a safe, effective option.

Acupuncture has not been found to be an effective treatment for depression in general, but researchers at Stanford University discovered that two thirds of women who received twleve 25-minute sessions of depression-specific acupuncture experienced a reduction in half of their symptoms.

Less than half of the women who received massage therapy or regular acupuncture experienced the same relief. Depression-specific acupuncture uses needles on the pressure points associated with apathy, anxiety and withdrawal.

Rachel Manber, a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Stanford, led the study, which was published in the March issue of Obstetrics & Gynecology. According to Manber, the findings suggest that depressive symptoms in pregnant women may be directly related to physical discomfort caused by pregnancy.

Just a few months ago, a study on antidepressants and pregnancy found that antidepressants like Paxil and Zoloft may cause developmental delays in the children of women who take these medications during pregnancy. With depression-specific acupuncture as a new, effective option, women may no longer have to choose between living with depression and braving the side effects of antidepressants.