Herbal Foot Baths to Promote Health
According to TCM theory, internal organs have reflex points on the feet, the feet are start points of three leg yin meridians and ending points of three leg yang meridians, there are over sixty acupoints located below the ankle on each of the leg. Soaking feet regularly in hot water can stimulate these acupoints, which help enhance blood circulation, regulate internal organs and unblock meridian flow.
In herbal foot bathing, the feet are immersed in a tub filled with a special herbal solution. Ancient physicians believed that: "the three yin meridians (Liver, Spleen and Kidney) start from the toes, and external coldness tends to invade from the soles; washing the feet before sleep helps to warm the yin meridians and expel the coldness." Based on long term experience, they commented that:
- Washing feet in spring promotes the yang qi to flow upward, and thus consolidates the internal organs in their proper positions;
- Washing feet in summer helps to eliminate dampness (relieves tiredness and promotes the appetite);
- Washing feet in autumn nourishes the lungs and promotes its functioning (less chance of respiratory problems developing);
- Washing feet in winter can warm up the dan-tian (enhance resistance against cold weather).
In addition to immersing the feet in a hot solution, massage is applied on the toes and soles to enhance the stimulation. Based on the meridian theory, the Liver Meridian and Spleen Meridian run through the big toe; the Stomach Meridian runs through the second toe; the Gall Bladder Meridian runs through the fourth toe; the Bladder Meridian runs through the small toe and the Kidney Meridian runs through the center of the sole. For example, massaging the big toes can invigorate the digestive functions; the fourth toes can relieve constipation and rib sides discomfort; the small toe is helpful to prevent bed wetting in children and uterine problems in women, while the center of the sole is beneficial for kidney problems.
Herbal foot bathing is widely used as a supplementary healing therapy for conditions like skin diseases, joint problems, limb coldness, hypertension, insomnia or diarrhea in children and night frequency. Each time, prepare a herbal solution in an amount sufficient to cover ankles; keep the water temperature between 50〜60℃, and soak for at least 15 minutes; do this one to three times daily. After bathing, rinse with warm water and wipe the feet properly, keep warm and raise the feet and rest for 15 to 30 minutes.
Below are sample prescriptions that used in foot bathing:
1. Hypertension
| Ingredients | Gambir vine stem (20g crushed) and borneol (5g), stuff up with a gauze bag. |
| Methods | Steep the bag into the bathtub and soak for 30 to 45 minutes each time. The same bag can be used twice daily, after waking up or before sleep. Ten days is one course. |
| Ingredients | Selfheal fruit spike (30g), gambir vine stem (20g), mulberry leaf (15g) and chrysanthemum (20g); boil as solution. See picture |
| Methods | Each time soak for 10 to 15 minutes, 1 to 2 times daily. |
2. Insomnia
| Ingredients | Magnetite (30g), baical skullcap root, chrysanthemum and fleece flower stem (15g of each); boil to make a solution. See picture |
| Methods | Soak before sleep. |
3. Emission or premature ejaculation
| Ingredients | Hairyvein agrimonia herb (30g), baical skullcap root and peony root bark (9g of each); boil to make a solution. |
| Methods | Soak before sleep. |
4. Foot or heel injuries
| Ingredients | Wooly datchmanspipe herb, garden balsam stem and bittersweet herb (30g of each); pubescent angelica root (15g), frankincense, myrrh and resinous secretion (10g of each); hairyvein agrimonia herb and Chinese mugwort leaf (20g of each); boil to make a solution. |
| Methods | Soak for 30 minutes, and twice daily. |
| Ingredients | Sappan wood (30g), peach kernel and resinous secretion (12g of each), safflower, ground beetles, frankincense and myrrh (10g of each), pyrite (20g); boil to make a solution. |
| Methods | Soak for 30 minutes. |
5. Frostbite of the foot / Limbs coldness
| Ingredients | Cassia twig and dried ginger (15g of each), aconite root (10g); boil to make a solution. See picture |
| Methods | Soak for 8 to 10 minutes each time, three times daily. |
6. Fungal infection of the feet
| Ingredients | Spreading hedyotis, common cnidium fruit and dictamnus root bark (30g of each), baical skullcap root and oriental water-plantain root (15g of each); boil to make a solution. See picture |
| Methods | Soak for 50 minutes each time, which is most applicable in summer time. |
| Ingredients | Purslane herb (60g), sessile stemona root (30g), amur corktree bark (15g), pricklyash peel (10g), and alum (10g); boil to make a solution. |
| Methods | Soak for 50 minutes each time. |
7. Menstrual pain
| Ingredients | Motherwort herb, nutgrass flatsedge rhizome, frankincense, myrrh and selfheal fruit spike (20g of each); boil to make a 2000ml solution. See picture |
| Methods | Soak for 15 to 30 minutes each time. |
8. Child bedwetting
| Ingredients | Himalayan teasel root, cibotium and dodder seed (30g of each); pilose asiabell root and poria (20g of each); liquorice root (6g); boil to make a 1000ml solution. |
| Methods | Soak for 30 minutes each time. |
9. Excessive sweating of the feet
| Ingredients | Kudzuvine root (60g) and alum (30g), boil to make a 2000ml solution. |
| Methods | Soak for 30 minutes each time. The solution helps to arrest sweating and itchiness. |
It should be noted that the solution made for foot baths cannot be orally, and can't be kept for long time. Be caution to water temperature, make it within individual comfort zone. For elderly, children and disable individuals, a close monitoring is needed during foot bathing.
