What are the benefits, effects, and functions of abdominal massage?

Abdominal massage can be considered a traditional Chinese medicine physical therapy method, typically offering benefits such as promoting intestinal peristalsis, aiding sleep, weight loss, relieving stress, improving skin condition, enhancing digestion, regulating the spleen and stomach, calming liver fire, warming meridians and dispersing cold, harmonizing qi and blood, as well as stimulating peripheral nerves, increasing gastrointestinal metabolism, improving lymphatic system function, and preventing postoperative intestinal adhesions. A detailed analysis is as follows:

I. Benefits

1. Promote intestinal peristalsis: Abdominal massage increases blood flow to the abdominal muscles and intestinal smooth muscles, enhances the tension of gastrointestinal wall muscles and the function of the lymphatic system, thereby improving digestion and absorption, enhancing small and large intestine motility, facilitating defecation, and preventing and eliminating constipation.

2. Aid sleep: Abdominal massage before sleep helps regulate digestive tract function and maintain a pleasant mood, effectively promoting sleep and preventing insomnia.

3. Weight loss: Abdominal massage accelerates blood circulation, increases fat burning rate, helps eliminate toxins from the body, promotes the burning of abdominal fat, thus achieving weight loss effects.

4. Relieve stress: During abdominal massage, individuals can relax physically and mentally, reducing stress and anxiety, which contributes to overall psychological well-being.

5. Improve skin condition: Abdominal massage enhances blood circulation, increases skin nutrient supply, improves skin condition, making the skin smoother and more delicate.

II. Therapeutic Effects

1. Promote digestion: Abdominal massage accelerates food metabolism, aids digestion, suits individuals with indigestion and weak gastrointestinal motility, and can alleviate symptoms such as bloating, acid regurgitation, and belching caused by indigestion.

2. Regulate spleen and stomach: Abdominal massage helps the normal functioning of the spleen and stomach, adjusts and coordinates various tissues and organs throughout the body, and has the effect of strengthening the spleen and harmonizing the stomach.

3. Calm liver fire: For patients with atherosclerosis, hypertension, and cerebrovascular diseases, abdominal massage helps calm liver fire, promotes tranquility and smooth blood circulation, and serves as an adjunctive treatment.

4. Warm meridians and dispel cold: Massaging the lower abdomen can warm meridians and dispel cold, helping to relieve symptoms of gynecological disorders such as dysmenorrhea.

5. Harmonize qi and blood: Abdominal massage unblocks meridians, harmonizes qi and blood, and helps maintain the body's yin-yang balance and health.

III. Functions

1. Stimulate peripheral nerves: Through massage of varying intensity, abdominal massage stimulates peripheral nerves, improves capillary circulation in the abdominal wall, and promotes fat consumption.

2. Increase gastrointestinal metabolism: Abdominal massage enhances gastrointestinal peristalsis and promotes local blood circulation, thereby increasing gastrointestinal metabolism.

3. Promote gas expulsion: Abdominal massage helps expel intestinal gas and relieve abdominal distension.

4. Improve lymphatic system function: Abdominal massage enhances lymphatic system function and promotes lymph circulation, accelerating the elimination of waste from the body.

5. Prevent postoperative intestinal adhesions: Abdominal massage helps prevent postoperative intestinal adhesions and promotes the recovery of intestinal function.

When performing abdominal massage, attention should be paid to moderate pressure, appropriate duration, and avoiding massage when overly full or hungry. Additionally, individuals suffering from gastrointestinal bleeding or inflammation should avoid abdominal massage.