Massage your fingers and toes often, and you won't have to worry about insomnia or headaches. Massaging your thumb regularly can strengthen the brain, massaging your index finger keeps the gastrointestinal tract healthy. Massaging the middle finger strengthens the heart, while massaging the ring finger promotes liver safety. Massaging the little finger strengthens both kidneys. Exerting force with all ten fingers strengthens the heart, interlocking both hands clears the mind, rotating the joints unblocks the meridians, stretching the palms relaxes the tendons and bones, massaging the ten fingers relieves headaches, massaging the four gates promotes blood circulation, rotating the shoulders and arms loosens the cervical vertebrae, cutting the corners of the nails boosts energy.
Healthy fingers share these characteristics: pink nail beds, glossy, appropriately thick and soft, not easily broken, smooth surface, and a white crescent moon shape at the base of the nail (lunula, also called health circle).
There are six meridians in the hand that communicate with all the internal organs, tissues, and organs of the body. There are approximately 99 acupoints (zones) that can reflect the health status of the five zang and six fu organs throughout the body. Massaging or pressing these points can alleviate various diseases across the body.
Corresponding Meridians and Organs:
- Thumb: Lung meridian; relates to the heart and lungs.
- Index Finger: Large intestine meridian; relates to the stomach, intestines, and digestive organs.
- Middle Finger: Pericardium meridian; relates to the sensory organs and liver.
- Ring Finger: Triple energizer meridian; relates to the lungs and respiratory system.
- Little Finger: Heart and small intestine meridian; relates to the kidneys and circulatory system.
Unhealthy fingers may exhibit different signs:
Color of Lunula:
- Gray: May indicate low spirits, prone to anemia, fatigue, and weakness.
- Pink: May indicate reduced organ function, excessive physical consumption, and risks of diabetes or hyperthyroidism.
- Purple: Indicates poor cardiovascular circulation, insufficient blood supply, leading to dizziness, headaches, and potential arteriosclerosis.
- Black: Commonly seen in severe heart disease, tumors, or long-term medication users.
Size of Lunula:
- Ideal: Covers about 1/5 of the nail.
- Less than 1/5: Indicates low energy, poor gut absorption. If the lunula suddenly darkens, shrinks, or disappears, early prevention for consumptive diseases, tumors, or bleeding is recommended.
- More than 1/5: Indicates possible cardiomegaly, increasing the risk of cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, or stroke.
Nail Conditions:
- Dark color with multiple vertical lines: Indicates insufficient water intake and weakened corresponding organs.
- Dark color with unevenness and multiple horizontal lines: Indicates anemia or nutritional deficiencies, or past bodily imbalances.
Hand Health Maintenance:
Using finger fitness techniques has the advantage of being done anytime, anywhere—making boring meetings more interesting, providing content during breaks at the computer, or making waiting for food less tedious.
Basic Health Care: Five-Finger Massage
- Massaging the thumb alleviates heart disease, allergic dermatitis, hair loss, sore throat.
- Massaging the index finger alleviates constipation, poor appetite, stomach pain, chronic gastritis.
- Massaging the middle finger alleviates liver problems, fatigue, excessive appetite, tinnitus, dizziness.
- Massaging the ring finger alleviates colds, sore throat, headache, frequent urination, excessive sweating, uterine cold.
- Massaging the little finger alleviates shoulder pain, lower back pain, irregular menstruation, eye strain, obesity, insomnia.
Massage Methods:
1. Start by massaging the left hand. Use the right hand's thumb and index finger to press on the sides of the left hand's thumb where it hurts, then hold for 10 seconds.
2. Use the right hand's index and thumb to pinch the left hand's thumb from top and bottom, press firmly, and hold for 3 seconds.
3. Switch to the right hand and repeat the same process.
Tip Pain:
Each fingertip corresponds to specific internal organs. Pressing and rolling the base of each nail can reveal potential issues if there is significant pain.
Case-Specific Solutions:
Pinching specific joints can alleviate certain discomforts. Perform for 3 minutes daily, 1-2 times per day.
- Liver disease: Pinch the two joints of the right thumb.
- Tinnitus: Pinch the three joints of both ring fingers.
- Diabetes: Pinch the two joints of the left thumb.
- Hypertension: Press the base of the left little finger.
- Heart disease: Pinch the inner side of the three joints of the left little finger.
- Dysmenorrhea: Pinch the three joints of both index fingers.
- Eye fatigue: Pinch the three joints of the right middle finger.
Advanced Exercises:
Since the health of the body reflects in the hands, maintaining hand health is equally important. Regular typing, texting, and using devices can lead to conditions like "mouse hand" or "keyboard hand." Here are some exercises to keep fingers agile and joints flexible:
- Wrist shaking: Shake your wrists vigorously in front of your chest for about 10 seconds to promote blood circulation.
- Ball throwing: Pretend you're holding a ball, clench your fists tightly, count to five, and then open your fingers wide as if throwing the ball away. Repeat 20 times.
- Finger snapping: Mimic playing the piano with your fingers, starting from the thumb. Do this repeatedly 20 times.
- Finger pressing: Separate all fingers, press the fingertips together until the joints feel sore. Repeat 10 times.
- Palm pushing: Place both palms together in front of your chest, push one palm towards the other while keeping the palms together, and alternate sides.
- Finger rubbing: Rub each finger with your thumb and index finger from the base to the tip.
- Finger pulling: Hold each finger with the opposite hand, rotate it slightly, and pull outward. Repeat for each finger.
- Finger swapping: Exchange the positions of the fingers to improve flexibility and coordination.
- Relaxation: Let your arms hang loosely and shake them until your hands feel completely relaxed.
Additional Notes on Massage:
- Pressure: For most acupoints and reflex zones, mild pain is necessary for effectiveness. The pressure should be strong enough to induce noticeable discomfort but not too harsh.
- Order: Men start with the left hand, women with the right. If time is limited, massaging just one hand is sufficient.
- Be cautious of acupoint fatigue: If the condition does not improve but the sensitivity increases, it could be acupoint fatigue. Alternate between hands to prevent overuse.
- Precautions: Rest briefly before massaging, avoid massage within an hour after heavy drinking, eating, or bathing, and when overly fatigued. If initial massage causes soreness, reduce the pressure. Small acupoints can be pressed with tools like the rounded ends of pens. Always breathe naturally during the massage and avoid holding your breath.