Warming the womb for fertility
- Dr. Sarah Bentolila, DAIM,L.Ac
- Sep 30, 2021
- 5 min read
Have you ever wondered why Chinese grandmas or your acupuncturist always rant about not drinking cold water, especially to women during their menstrual periods?
The cold can penetrate in the deeper layers of your body, namely your uterus, and cause a "cold womb".
It is a quite common phenomenon in the USA, where most people tend to indulge in iced beverages, raw foods like salads and sushi, and stay in air-conditioned rooms for long hours.
These lifestyle habits may eventually lead to a cold womb, and issues like painful periods with clots, or even infertility. Now, not all period pain and infertility is due to cold, but there are things you can do to prevent it from happening.
What is a "cold womb"
Western medicine equivalent: Luteal Phase Defect
Having a cold womb will indicate that during the luteal phase of your cycle, meaning the phase after ovulation. Your body basal temperature (BBT) can help track the fluctuations of hormones.
In the luteal phase, the ideal core temperature is higher than before ovulation. For women with a cold womb, the low second half of the BBT chart will reflect that progesterone level produced is not high enough or the luteal phase is shortened.
This is also known as a Luteal Phase Defect (LPD)
Signs of a cold womb
late periods
longer cycles (over 30 days)
dark purple menstrual blood
many dark clots in the menstrual blood
painful cramps
diarrhea
puffiness around the eyes and dark eye circles
running cold
cold hands feet and knees
sore and weak lower back
low libido
Why this matters for fertility
The luteal phase is when implantation happens. A fertilized egg needs a warm, well-vascularized uterine environment to implant and stay implanted. When the luteal phase is cold, short, or progesterone-insufficient, that environment is not optimal.
This shows up on a BBT chart as a second half that never rises clearly, falls early, or stays low throughout. It shows up clinically as cycles that seem regular but never result in pregnancy, or in early losses that happen before a missed period.
For patients with thin uterine lining, poor implantation history, or recurrent early losses, cold womb pattern is one of the first things I assess. The thin uterine lining post covers the lining piece in more detail if that is relevant to your situation.
Do's and Dont's during your period
That time of the month is when your uterus is the most vulnerable to the elements. In Chinese medicine, the exterior cold can invade the tissues of your reproductive organs and slow down their normal functions
Do: keep warm
warm baths
wearing socks or slippers
hot water bottle on your abdomen
drinking ginger or cinnamon bark tea
Don't get cold
exposure to cold weather or AC
eating raw foods or salads
drinking ice cold drinks or water
swimming, anything that gives you a chill
Herbal medicine for warming the uterus
Kidney Yang deficiency
Kidney Yang deficiency is one of the most prevalent patterns in infertility patients.
Kidney yang deficiency has a correlation with low progesterone levels and include symptoms such as feeling colder than those around you, cold hands and feet, low libido, back pain with menses, fatigue, frequent urination, and low BBT readings.
Formulas: You Gui Wan, Ai Fu Nuan Gong Wan (mugwort and aconite pill for warming the womb)
Blood & cold stagnation
Kidney Yang deficiency combined with Blood stagnation is an even more common disharmony. When Kidney Yang is not strong enough to maintain proper blood circulation in the uterus, the cycle of rebuilding uterine lining is less than optimal, which leads to dark clotty periods or even endometriosis.
Formulas: Wen Jing Tang, Gui Zhi Fu Ling Wan
Moxibustion
It is the use of mugwort, a medicinal herbs with very warming qualities.
We place it above the uterus and sometimes on other points of the body in order to
warm the channels
activate blood flow
reduce pain and inflammation
You can also find mugwort belly warmers to place on your stomach at home!
What moxibustion looks like in the clinic
When patients first hear that I am going to burn herbs near their abdomen they are usually a little skeptical. In practice it is deeply pleasant.
The warmth is penetrating in a way that a heating pad is not, and most patients find it one of the most relaxing parts of the session.
We use it specifically over Ren 4 and Ren 6 on the lower abdomen and sometimes over Kidney 1 on the soles of the feet for patients with very cold lower body. The effects are immediate and cumulative.
Most patients with cold womb pattern notice warmer hands and feet, better sleep, and a clearer temperature rise on their BBT chart within two to three treatment cycles.
Blend Your Own Uterus Strengthening Tea
Red Raspberry Leaf is one of the most effective uterine tonics, high in vitamins and minerals, especially calcium.
Nutmeg is a warming spasmolytic, which means it calms spasms. It works for gas, indigestion, and menstrual cramps
Cardamom is a stimulating, warming seed used for low libido and threatened miscarriage.
Turmeric is also used for painful menstruation due to blood stagnation.
Further reading
FAQ
What is a cold womb in Chinese medicine?
Cold womb, or Gong Han in Chinese, refers to a pattern of insufficient yang energy in the uterus. Yang is the warming, activating force in Chinese medicine. When it is deficient in the reproductive organs, the uterus cannot maintain the temperature and circulation needed for healthy follicular development, lining growth, and implantation. Practically it shows up as cold signs throughout the body alongside reproductive symptoms: cold hands and feet, low libido, sore lower back, late periods, dark clotty flow, and a BBT chart that never clearly rises in the second half of the cycle.
Can a cold womb cause infertility?
It can contribute to it, yes. The cold womb pattern in Chinese medicine corresponds most closely to luteal phase defect and poor uterine circulation in Western medicine terms. Both directly affect implantation. A fertilized egg that arrives in a cold, poorly vascularized uterine environment is less likely to implant successfully. For patients who are trying to conceive and have the signs listed above, warming the womb is often one of the first priorities in a fertility treatment plan.
How does acupuncture warm the uterus?
Through two main mechanisms. First, acupuncture improves blood flow to the uterine arteries, which raises the local temperature of the uterine tissue and improves the delivery of oxygen and nutrients to the endometrium. Second, specific acupuncture points in the lower abdomen and lower back directly tonify kidney yang, the constitutional warming energy that governs uterine function in Chinese medicine. Combined with moxibustion, these effects are measurable on a BBT chart within two to three cycles of treatment.
How long does it take to fix a cold womb with acupuncture?
Most patients notice their BBT chart improving within two to three cycles of weekly treatment. Full resolution of the cold womb pattern, meaning consistently warm luteal phase temperatures, less pain, and better cycle regularity, typically takes three months of consistent acupuncture and herbal medicine. This aligns with the 90-day egg maturation window, which is why three months of preconception treatment produces meaningfully better fertility outcomes than starting treatment the month you want to conceive.
Taproot is in Sierra Madre, two minutes from the 210 freeway. You can book a new patient appointment here or call us at 626-841-2991.
If you are doing IVF and this pattern resonates with you, the IVF acupuncture page covers how we address cold womb and lining issues as part of the full transfer preparation protocol. And if you are trying to conceive naturally, the natural fertility page explains how we approach the cold womb pattern across the four phases of the cycle.
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