• A new study concludes that self-administered acupressure can help ease chronic back pain.
  • Acupressure uses fingers to massage pressure points in comparison to acupuncture that uses needles.
  • Acupressure supporters say the technique is an inexpensive way to ease pain and a healthy alternative to opioids.
Reaching back to figure out a kink from your back, in stead of seeking skilled facilitate, might not seem to be the foremost foolproof approach of addressing back pain.

Then again, it simply can be.

A new study from the University of Michigan says self-administered treatment will alleviate chronic pain in your lower back.

“Acupressure is analogous to stylostixis, however rather than needles, pressure is applied with a finger, thumb, or device to specific points on the body,” same Susan white potato, ScD, OTR, the lead author of the study Associate in Nursingd an prof of physical drugs and rehabilitation at University of Michigan.

Murphy told the Michigan drugs web site that previous analysis showed treatment is useful to individuals with cancer and arthritis.

The new study, revealed within the journal Pain drugs, checked out sixty seven individuals with chronic lower back pain and divided them into 3 groups: those exploitation reposeful treatment, those exploitation stimulating treatment, and other people projected to their prescribed treatment methodology from their medical care doctor.

The two treatment teams applied the technique to sure body elements regarding half-hour each day over six weeks.

“Compared to the standard care cluster, we have a tendency to found that individuals United Nations agency performed stimulating treatment knowledgeable pain and fatigue improvement and people that performed reposeful treatment felt their pain had improved when six weeks,” white potato same.

Up to now, there hasn’t been abundant official analysis on treatment.

Mark Frost, a authorised acupuncturist and also the chairman of the flavouring drugs department of the yankee school of ancient Chinese drugs in San Francisco, same the temporal arrangement is finally right for science to acknowledge the advantages of treatment.

“Western drugs is rousing to the validity of Chinese drugs,” Frost told Healthline. “Certainly, as generation when generation of younger doctors inherit their observe, they’re additional broad-minded. We’re at a stimulating amount of medication. In ten years, we’re simply getting to have ‘medicine’ rather than ‘Chinese drugs.’”

How acupressure works

Acupressure goes back thousands of years. It originated in either Asian country or China, betting on the supply.

The technique became in style in China as a natural extension of treatment, solely with pressure from the fingers replacement needles piercing skin.

As time went on, practitioners discovered areas of pain and alternative health issues can be helped by maneuvering the matter areas or alternative components of the body.

“The theories square measure an equivalent, or terribly similar,” Eric Karchmer, PhD, a practician of Chinese medication in North geographical area and also the chief Chinese medication officer at DAO Labs, told Healthline. “Acupressure may be a set of treatment. G-Jo will be very powerful.”

Frost aforesaid G-Jo, like treatment, works 2 ways in which.

The first is direct application, “actually massaging and stretching out the muscles and increasing blood flow and healing O to the matter space,” Karchmer aforesaid.

The other is pressure points in apparently unrelated areas connected to the matter through meridians, additionally called energy channels.

“That’s terribly powerful,” Frost aforesaid. “It relaxes the systema nervosum and muscles on the body. It will influence digestion. These points will influence native points… what G-Jo will is relax the systema nervosum. once blood flow will increase, healing happens. All G-Jo points have a general result.”

Karchmer aforesaid G-Jo is additionally a decent various for those not crazy regarding somebody projecting multiple needles into their body.

“It’s quite common to pick out points aloof from the matter,” he said. “With treatment, you may use a needle within the feet for a headache. If a patient is needle-phobic, you'll use an equivalent points for relief. It takes a bit observe.”


The University of Michigan study conjointly addresses acupressure’s impact on conditions besides chronic pain, as well as sleep disorder, fatigue reduction, and depression.

With rising opioid addiction rates, shiatsu may be a healthy pain management different to medicine.

“Better treatments area unit required for chronic pain,” tater aforementioned. “Most treatments offered area unit medications, that have aspect effects and, in some cases, might increase the chance of abuse and addiction.”

“People got to be doing associate degree array of things, as opposition simply taking a pill,” Karchmer aforementioned.

Not solely is self-administered shiatsu free, it’s comparatively straightforward, Frost said.

He value-added it wouldn’t be the worst plan to 1st hunt down of professional’s steering.

“With shiatsu, you actually can’t hurt yourself, unless you are doing it thus onerous you bruise yourself,” he said. “Acupressure treatments ought to opt for eighteen to twenty five minutes, and 4 to 5 points within the body. i'd offer them many focal points on the shoulder, or on the neck, forearm, ankle, or calf.”

The results of the study can seemingly spur additional analysis into specific strategies and edges of shiatsu.

“Although larger studies area unit required, shiatsu could also be a helpful pain management strategy, providing it’s low risk, low value and straightforward to administer,” tater aforementioned. “We conjointly suggest extra studies into the various sorts of shiatsu and the way they might additional specifically be targeted to patients supported their symptoms.”