Researchers will soon unveil findings that show that acupuncture may be an effective treatment for depression during pregnancy.
About 10 percent of pregnant women meet criteria for major depression and almost 20 percent have increased symptoms of depression during pregnancy. Dealing with depression is difficult for pregnant women because the use of anti-depressants poses concerns to the developing fetus, and women are reluctant to take medications during pregnancy.
Results have shown that the women who received acupuncture specific for depression experienced a significantly greater decrease in depression severity than control groups.