Menopause, Acupuncture and Osteoporosis
Acupuncture when used in conjunction with Western Medicine is hugely beneficial if you already have a diagnosis of osteoporosis. It also makes a lot of common sense, for a woman who is entering the menopausal years to avail of a therapy with known benefits to bone health. Menopause is a known risk factor for osteoporosis. Osteoporosis puts you at a higher risk of bone fractures. This can leave you with a disability later in life. It is why it is such an important topic.
Including acupuncture as part of a plan of action for your overall health is very worthwhile considering. There are no harmful side effects and lots of additional beneficial effects when you choose to see an acupuncturist, who works with women during the peri menopausal, menopausal and post menopausal years.
Of course, there are lifestyle modifications you can do yourself which your healthcare professional can advise you on, including many acupuncturists who are qualified and informed.
As always, it is important to reiterate menopause is a risk factor for osteoporosis and not an inevitability of menopause.
Here is a simple version of some of the science. I'd like firstly to clarify for you what osteoporosis is, elaborate a little on why it is so important, with the addition of a few Irish stats and then provide you with information as to why acupuncture is a useful therapy for menopausal women at risk.
Bone is a living tissue that is constantly being removed and replaced. As we get older, more bone is naturally lost than is replaced, but people with osteoporosis lose more bone than people who do not have the disease. Osteoporosis causes bones to become fragile and therefore they break easily e.g. through a minor bump or fall from a standing position or less.This came from the Irish Osteoporosis Society which was set up by Prof Moira O’Brien in 1996.
There are no symptoms, until you have what's referred to as a fragile fracture. A DEXA scan is the test that is used to check bone density.
Without wanting to frighten anyone, but also wanting to emphasise the importance of bone health and doing what you can to prevent this becoming an issue for you, here are some stats. Ireland has one of the highest osteoporosis rates globally. Research from Edwards et al, which was published in Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research (2007), showed that up to half of all patients suffering a hip fracture have had one or more previous fragility fractures. Ireland also has the sixth highest rate of hip fracture in the world today.
So where can acupuncture play a role?
There are several large scale reviews that indicate acupuncture can help. A 2018 systemic review and meta analysis (an examination of data from a number of independent studies) by Pan et al included 35 studies with 3014 participants. It found compared to pharmaceutical (medications) treatment alone, warm needle acupuncture increased bone mineral density of the femur (large thigh bone) and the lumbar spine (bones that go all along the midline of your back). It also increased blood markers (there are certain body chemicals related to bone health that can be measured in a blood test)and reduced pain. There was a further review in 2020 by Xue et al that supported those results. They found high quality evidence that acupuncture and moxibustion (a heat therapy your acupuncturist uses)can improve bone mineral density (so stronger bones) in primary osteoporosis. Primary just means that its cause is only due natural process of ageing.
