Aug 8, 2019
Vidcast: https://youtu.be/ixvp4So9CZM
If you’re one the the 80% of Americans suffering from an aching back, a recently published study from the University of Michigan suggests you try acupressure on yourself.
Researchers there report a preliminary study of 67 middle-aged subjects who were randomized into groups to receive 6 weeks of either acupressure or conventional physical therapy. Outcome measures included pain, fatigue, and sleep quality.
Those self-administering either relaxing or stimulating acupressure with a wooden stick, a pencil tip eraser, or a fingertip enjoyed a 35% reduction in back pain and a 26% reduction in fatigue symptoms. The acupressure failed to improve sleep patterns.
This small study will be expanded, but it does show that Eastern medicine has a definite role in the management of back pain. If you do suffer from this common problem, I’d suggest you visit an Eastern medicine practitioner to learn a proper acupressure technique.
Susan Lynn Murphy, Richard Edmund Harris, Nahid Roonizi Keshavarzi, Suzanna Maria Zick, Self-Administered Acupressure for Chronic Low Back Pain: A Randomized Controlled Pilot Trial, Pain Medicine, , pnz138, https://doi.org/10.1093/pm/pnz138
#Backpain #acupressure #fatigue