China is the country with the earliest origin of pedicure. China recorded about foot massage thousands of years ago. According to research, pedicure and acupuncture are "the same root and the same origin" therapies in China.
Hand-foot medicine
"toe-gazing method" (a diagnosis and treatment method) in ancient Huangdi's Zuxin Pian; The concept of "keeping feet" (rubbing feet often can cure many diseases) written by eminent monks in Sui Dynasty; Hua Tuo, an imperial doctor in the Han Dynasty, wrote "Foot Heart" (meaning knowledge of the sole of the foot) in Hua Tuo's Secret, and Sima Qian wrote "Treating diseases with foot" ("foot" means "healing" and refers to the back of the foot) in Historical Records.
Mr. Su Dongpo, a literary giant in the Song Dynasty, studied health preservation and greatly appreciated the benefits of rubbing Yongquan point on the sole of his foot. He thought that "the effect is not very good, but it is invaluable over time ... If you believe in it and do it, it will be of great benefit." It shows that people in China have known about foot health care for a long time. Chinese medicine therapy (including foot massage) spread to Japan and South Korea in the Tang Dynasty. After the Yuan Dynasty, it spread to Europe. (Fourteen Classics of Boren in Yuan Dynasty)
In the Ming Dynasty, foot massage was further developed. Later, due to feudal ethics, women's foot binding and other "policies" and folk customs that despised foot health, the healthy development of this therapy was greatly affected. Especially in the late Qing Dynasty, this historical and cultural heritage of China was brutally plundered by foreign powers and once "disappeared" in China, almost lost.
In 1930s, The Story of Foot by Ingum in the United States specifically introduced "Foot Massage Therapy". 1975, the "Foot Reflex Therapy" of Marucado, Switzerland, academically summarized the natural therapy of human foot reflex area. 1985, the British Modern Medical Association officially defined the foot massage method as "Modern Medical Hygiene Law", which clearly defined the higher medical status. 1989, the "Foot Reflex Therapy Conference" was held in California, USA.
People have four roots, namely, nasal root, milk root, ear root and foot root. "The nose is the root of Miao Qiao, the milk is the root of the ancestral spirit, the ear is the root of the magical machine, and it is the root of the essence." It can be seen that the nose, ears and milk are only the condensation points of essence, while the feet are the total collection points of essence. look
Hand-foot medicine
Clinically, clear-headed and light-footed, all of which are characteristics of health; And top-heavy, feet edema, walking difficulties, for the sick body. Therefore, all the health and fitness methods at home and abroad attach great importance to foot exercise.
A man with feet is like a tree with roots. When a tree dies, the roots are exhausted first, and the old feet are old first. Feet play an important role in health care.
Experts believe that the principle of foot massage mainly has the following four aspects: First, the theory of blood circulation. The feet are at the bottom of the human body, and harmful substances such as uric acid crystals in the blood are deposited on the soles of the feet, which is not good for the health. Through foot massage, harmful substances deposited on the soles of feet can be decomposed and excreted through sweat and urine. The second is the reflection principle. "Foot is the second heart of human beings", and there is a one-to-one correspondence between human viscera and plantar acupoints. Foot massage promotes the brain to transmit signals through the reflex zone, improves human endocrine and blood circulation, and regulates the physiological environment. The third is the principle of holographic theory. Traditional Chinese medicine regards the whole as a part and the foot as a holographic embryo of the human body, which is full of information of the internal organs. Foot massage is a massage for the whole body. Fourthly, the scientific principle of meridians in TCM, namely, the theory of three Yin San yang in TCM. Foot massage can stimulate and regulate viscera, dredge meridians and enhance metabolism through foot massage, so as to achieve the purpose of strengthening the body and eliminating diseases and pathogens.
Judging from the meridian theory of traditional Chinese medicine with a history of more than two thousand years, it can better explain the close relationship between feet and the whole body. According to the meridian theory, the foot is closely connected with the viscera of the whole body through the meridian system, which constitutes the unity of the foot and the whole body. There are six meridians in the twelve meridians of human body, namely, Foot Three Yin Meridian and Foot Three Yang Meridian, which are distributed in the foot. Foot is the beginning of foot three yin meridians and the end of foot three yang meridians. These six meridians are connected with the Sanyang Meridian and Sanyin Meridian of the hand and run through the whole body. The Yinqiao pulse, Yangqiao pulse, Yin Wei pulse and impotence pulse of the eight odd meridians all originate from the foot, and the chong pulse branches from the foot, thus strengthening the connection between the foot and the tissues and organs of the whole body. Therefore, the changes of viscera function can be reflected in the feet.