Proper foot care for long-term health

According to Master, Doctor Tran Hoang (Ho Chi Minh City University of Medicine and Pharmacy Hospital - Campus 3), whether in the past or present, feet always need to be properly cared for to contribute to improving health.

The place where many meridians and acupuncture points are concentrated

Explaining why the feet play such an important role in overall health, Dr. Hoang said that traditional medicine (TCM) believes that there are 12 main meridians that are the pathways for blood and energy to circulate throughout the body, of which 6 meridians start or end at the feet.

The feet contain many important acupuncture points, closely related to internal organs in the body.

These include the spleen and stomach meridians, which are mainly related to digestive function; the kidney and bladder meridians, which are related to sexual function, bone and joint diseases, tinnitus, etc.; the liver and gallbladder meridians, which are related to some endocrine problems, sleep, migraines, flank pain, menstrual disorders, etc.

The doctor added that the feet also contain many important acupuncture points, which are closely related to the internal organs in the body. By massaging these points, disorders throughout the body can be corrected.

Sharing this view, in an article on the health website Healthline published in April 2023, Dr. Dustin Martinez - a chiropractor in Los Angeles (USA), said that a 2014 study by the University of Ulster (UK) showed that foot reflexology can help improve health and quality of life in many ways.

"Foot reflexology helps increase blood flow throughout the body, thereby helping you reduce stress, anxiety and lower blood pressure. When stress is relieved, you will easily feel mentally relaxed," Dr. Martinez explained.

Several other peer-reviewed studies also support paying more attention to the feet. Four scientific studies published in 2015 (by a team of experts from the University of Teknologi MARA, Malaysia), 2018 (Ege University, Turkey), 2019 (by a team of experts from the Léon-Bérard Anti-Cancer Center, France) and 2020 (by a team of experts from the Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Iran) all recognized the benefits of massaging acupoints on the feet, such as helping to relax and reduce stress, improve sleep, improve digestion, reduce chronic pain, etc.

With the climate and living habits of Vietnamese people, doctors recommend that everyone should try to clean their feet every day.

Proper foot care

With the typical climate and living habits of Vietnamese people, Dr. Tran Hoang recommends that everyone should try to clean their feet every day. It is necessary to trim toenails neatly, keep feet dry, especially between the toes.

If your feet are too dry or cracked, you should apply moisturizer. You should also wear shoes that fit well, use breathable socks, and women should also limit wearing high heels regularly.

In addition, if you want to perform foot care and treatments such as foot soaking or foot massage, it is best to have guidance from medical staff, especially for people with diabetes.

Similarly, when wanting to self-treat a disease, you also need specific instructions from medical staff to choose the appropriate acupressure points for your body and disease.

Source link: https://thanhnien.vn/cham-soc-ban-chan-dung-cach-de-khoe-manh-lau-dai-185230627000213456.htm