Acupuncture and Moxibustion help turn breech babys, good news for expecting mothers.
Working closely with the Boulder Midwives Clinic I get to see quite a few breech baby’s. The following method has proven a small miracle in turning the baby, and what is wonderful the mom can do some of it at home.
In Moxibustion an herb called mugwort is burned in stick form around the little toe of the expectant mom. There is a growing body of research that shows the method increases fetal movement, and the chance that the baby will find the proper position, unless the mothers womb is pear shaped, or the baby has the umbilical cord wrapped around the neck . Along with Moxibustion, gentle Acupuncture is used to support the mothers constitution and help her body relax.
Using moxibustion to encourage the baby to turn by itself
A very successful “do it yourself” technique with a proven high success rate is to use locally applied heat treatment.
The heat from burning moxa sticks can also be used to stimulate the baby’s movements and encourage it to turn. These sticks, shaped like cigars, are available from herbalists, Chinese medicine stockists and some acupuncturists (who use moxa sticks for other purposes) and they contain tightly rolled dried leaves of the mugwort plant. They are very inexpensive and two sticks will be needed – they can be used several times.
Sit on a chair and place each foot on a book with your little toes hanging over the edge. Place each stick on another book with the tip in the gap.
Light the sticks (they burn with no flame but an intense heat and pungent smell) and position the hot tip as close as possible to the outside of each little toe, with the heat directed at the point just above the toe nail. Leave in place for 20 minutes. Be careful not to touch the skin as you will burn yourself. The heat should be as strong as you can tolerate, for the best effect.
After a few minutes, you will notice the baby begin to kick and move. The primary aim of the moxibustion treatment is to encourage the baby to move around and thus increase the effect of gravity which will help the heaviest part of the baby (its head) to turn over and enter into the pelvis.
This simple treatment is best done just before bed, starting at 34 – 36 weeks. It takes several hours for the baby to turn, and this will be easier if you are lying down, because the baby will not be sitting as firmly into the pelvis. Continue over several nights, or until the baby has turned itself.
A randomised controlled trial (see below) indicates that at approximately 70% of breech babies will turn using this method.
If, after trying the moxibustion the baby does not move into a head down position, there may be a good reason why the baby prefers to remain in the breech position -perhaps the placenta is positioned low down, limiting the space for the baby’s head in the lower part of the uterus or the uterus itself is shaped unusually and is restricting the baby’s movements. If the baby does not turn easily, then it must be assumed that the baby needs to stay where it is, and options for the birth (either by caesarean or vaginally) will need to be considered.
