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Reflexology |
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| Reflexology, or zone therapy, is the practice of
stimulating points on the feet and hands in the belief it will
have a beneficial effect on some other parts of the body, or will
improve general health. Many believe that reflexology is a
pseudoscience, offering no more benefits than ordinary massage. The most common form is foot reflexology, in which the reflexologist applies pressure to points on a person's foot. The foot is believed by practitioners to be divided into a number of reflex zones corresponding to all parts of the body. "Reflexology is a powerful natural health science that studies the relationship of the reflex areas in the feet, hands and the ears to the rest of the body so that these areas can be worked on with the fingers and thumbs in a manner that will lead to improved health and the maintenance of good health." In reflexology, it is believed that there is a "vital energy" that is circulating between organs of the human body, that penetrates into every living cell. Whenever this energy is blocked, the zone of blockage will be affected, and the reflex zones can reflect the blockage of energy in different organs. Therefore, if someone has a problem in a particular organ, a reflexologist will press on the corresponding reflex zone(s), and the person will experience pain. This pain is claimed to originate from the deposition of crystals in the reflex zone and, with massage, these crystalline structures can be broken down and the pain relieved. Simultaneously, the pressure applied to the reflex zones by the reflexologist is claimed to pass through the nerves to dissipate energy blocks. |
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