Popularity of shiatsu massage chairs has risen over the past few years. Shiatsu massage is about applying pressure on pressure points to prevent illness and injuries as well as relaxing your body and easing the pain on a certain part of the body or all throughout. Other western massage techniques rely mostly on kneading and rubbing but on shiatsu massage, it rely on fingers (shi) and pressure (atsu). Shiatsu massage not only relieves pain and stress but also effective on improving health by stimulating blood flow to improve immune system.
Japan’s Ministry of Health and Welfare speaks highly of shiatsu massage and has added as part of the country’s medical therapy. The ministry has defined shiatsu as a technique in using fingers and palms on certain parts of the body for correcting the discrepancy and discomforts that we have on our body and for improving our health. It is also know to have contributed in healing certain illnesses.
There are two school of thoughts in Japan for shiatsu massage, they are:
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) – that uses fingers on pressure points similar to that of acupuncture points found in our body’s energy channels called meridians to balance the flow of energy in to our body for improve comfort. These are excellent to people who have heard wonders about acupuncture, wanted to experience its benefits but are a bit frightened by needles.
It was in the 1940’s in Japan where a formal school for shiatsu massage therapy was instituted that are based on western medicine and it was after 1970 when shiatsu massage therapy was first practiced outside Japan. North America and Europe did not begin developing their own philosophies on this massage technique until the 1980’s and there begins different variations of the shiatsu massage technique.
No one will dispute the overall feeling of satisfaction and the long term benefit to our health that the shiatsu massage gives despite comments made by experts in the field of Science that the massage offer little scientific support for the actual healing wonders of this massage technique.
Due to the increasing popularity of shiatsu massage in the US in the 1980’s companies and would be entrepreneurs want to have this therapy available to its citizen. With just a few massage therapist available to support a growing population wanting to avail the service, an idea was born in a form of a Shiatsu Massage Chair. This product is also best for people who could not get a time out to visit their therapist to have a massage but could get the benefits of a shiatsu massage at the comforts of their own home.
Varying massage techniques are applied by any shiatsu massage chair that includes, compression or grasping and holding, kneading or rubbing down, percussion or beating down and roller moving up and down the contour of your spine. On most chairs you will be able to control the action of these techniques for your comfort.
Though massage chair could be a little expensive, it does wonders to your health. Plus, you can benefit from the therapy at any time. It does not just do massages on your back but it does massages as well on your neck, leg and foot as well. It relaxes you as well giving you that inner and outer body healthy experience by just sitting down.