Five Seasons Women’s Wellness: Health and Wellness Blog

Researchers from the Oriental Hospital at Kyung Hee University Medical Center in South Korea found that acupuncture may be more effective than drugs or herbal medicines for the treatment of menstrual pain.

The results, which were published in the latest issue of the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, came from analyzing 27 studies that involved nearly 3,000 women.

“Compared with pharmacological treatment or herbal medicine, acupuncture was associated with a significant reduction in pain,” they reported.

“There is convincing evidence on the effectiveness of using acupuncture to treat pain as it stimulates the production of endorphins and serotonin in the central nervous system,” they added.

They stressed there were methodological flaws in some of the studies reviewed; but nevertheless, there was “promising evidence” of acupuncture’s effectiveness for treating menstrual cramps.