1.The benefits of hot water foot soak

“Soaking feet has many benefits and is suitable for all seasons. Hua Tuo pointed out in “Zubin Dao”: “Soaking feet in spring can promote the ascension of Yang and solidify the collapse; soaking feet in summer can eliminate dampness; soaking feet in autumn nourish the lungs and organs; soaking feet in winter can warm the lower abdomen.”

Soaking feet, also known as foot bath, uses the same principle as acup, massage, and external use patches, which is “treating internal diseases with external treatment and promoting blood circulation and removing blood stasis”. It belongs to one of the commonly external treatment methods in traditional Chinese medicine.

Traditional Chinese medicine believes that “the foot is the root of the six meridians”, and six of the twelve merid in the human body pass through the sole of the foot. The various organs of the human body, including the five zang-organs and six fu-organs, have reflection areas on the foot, and there are more than 60 meridians and acupoints distributed on the foot.

Persist in soaking feet with hot water which can not only promote blood circulation, dredge meridians and collaterals, stimulate the acupoints, reflection areas and meridians of the foot, fatigue and dispel cold, but also improve the immune function of the human body, enhance the ability to resist disease, and has the effect of preventing diseases and keeping fit. It also very beneficial to eliminate fatigue and improve sleep.

The premise of the benefits of foot soaking is to master the correct way of foot soaking, including the time, water temperature duration, etc. In addition, there are some taboos for foot soaking, and some special groups and some special situations should not soak feet.

2.The correct way to feet

Soak feet at night to nourish the kidneys and replenish blood

It is recommended to soak feet at around 9 p.m., which is time when the kidney meridian is at its weakest. The blood vessels on the soles of the feet will expand due to the stimulation of warm water, which is conduc to promoting blood circulation and nourishing the liver and kidneys.

Soaking feet should avoid being too full, too hungry or eating, because washing feet will accelerate the blood of the whole body and easily lead to dizziness and discomfort. It is not suitable to soak feet within half an hour after a meal, as it will affect the blood supply the stomach.

It is appropriate to sweat slightly when soaking feet

The duration of each foot soak is not the longer the better. It is appropriate to sweat slightly during soak, about 30 minutes for young people, 20-30 minutes for middle-aged people under 60 years old, and 15 minutes to 0 minutes for the elderly over 60 years old. Especially for patients with cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases and those with weak constitution, the time for foot soaking should be too long.

The water temperature should be about 40℃

The water temperature for foot soaking in winter should be appropriate, not too cold or too hot The optimal water temperature is about 40℃. If the water temperature is too low, it is easy to cause cold air to invade the feet and then spread to the body. If the water temperature is too high, it will not only burn the skin and cause redness, swelling and peeling of the feet, but also easily lead to excessiveilation of human blood vessels, and excessive reflux is easy to cause dizziness and headache.

Wooden bucket foot soak has a good insulation effect

In winter choose a wooden bucket to soak feet, the insulation effect will be better, and the foot bath water will not cool too quickly. Moreover, it is more comfortable to soak feet in wooden bucket.

In addition, it should be noted that the foot basin should be used by one person only. In order to prevent cross-infection, the foot basin used oneself should not be shared with others.

After foot soaking, attention should be paid to cleaning the feet

After foot soaking, you must wipe the feet clean with a towel. It is better to use a light-colored towel so as to detect whether there are bloodstains or abnormal secretions on the feet. The spaces between the toes should checked carefully and wiped clean. Moisture between the toes can easily lead to local infection, especially fungal infection.

For those with dry skin, you can apply some skin products after foot soaking to prevent skin.