Reflexology, better than analgesics

• May 2, 2024

Study of the University of Portsmouth suggests that one of the benefits of reflexology is to relieve pain, as well as increase the ability of people to endure it, that is, has an effect similar to analgesics.

In the research published in the Journal of Complementary Therapies it is detailed that people who use reflexology feel 40% less pain than those who do not practice it; In addition, their tolerance to pain is 45% higher.

The information published on the university portal, details that it is the first time that reflexology is studied scientifically as an effective treatment for acute pain.

Carol Samuel and Ivor S. Ebenezer, authors of the study , highlight that it can be used as a complementary therapy to conventional medical treatments aimed at alleviating diseases such as osteoarthritis, back pain and cancers.

To prove the theory, in two sessions the doctors asked some people to immerse their hands in ice water. In the first, they were given reflexology therapy on their feet before doing so.

While in the second one they were led to believe that they received a therapy with a machine Transcutaneous Electrical Nervous Stimulation ( ENET), because it was not really connected.

At the end of the test, the authors assure that when the participants received reflexology, they kept their hand in the ice water, for longer before feeling pain.

Carol Samuel points out that reflexology could work in a similar way to acupuncture, that is, it generates that the brain releases useful substances to reduce the sensation of pain.

This therapy usually consists of pressing strategic points of the body, but it is commonly used in the feet and hands. And you, would you be willing to use acupuncture as a complement to some treatment?

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