Guasha is a common method used in traditional Chinese medicine for treating and preventing diseases. There is an old saying that goes, "A thin back means a long life." Some people believe that guasha can make the back thinner. But is this true?
Can Guasha Make the Back Thinner?
No, it cannot.
Guasha involves using a specific scraping tool to repeatedly scrape and rub specific acupoints on the body, causing the local skin to appear red or produce small red dots or bleeding. This is known as "sha" and is believed to have the effect of promoting blood circulation, expelling evil spirits, and detoxifying the body. However, if you want to make your back thinner, you need to correct your posture and reduce your body weight, which cannot be achieved through guasha.
Can Guasha be Used for Stiffness in the Back?
It depends on the cause of the back stiffness.
1. If the back stiffness is caused by cervical spondylosis or skeletal abnormalities, guasha is not recommended. Guasha involves rubbing the muscles of the back, and if there are organic lesions, it can easily worsen the condition.
2. However, if the back stiffness is caused by prolonged sitting or exposure to cold, guasha can be used to promote blood circulation, expel toxins, and relieve the stiffness in the back.
Benefits of Guasha on the Back for Women
1. Promotes Blood Circulation and Disperses Blood Stasis
Guasha can regulate the contraction and relaxation of muscles, adjust the pressure between tissues, and promote blood circulation around the scraped area. This helps to "activate blood circulation" and "disperse blood stasis," promoting the regeneration of new blood.
2. Prevents Diseases and Promotes Health
Guasha on the back has a good therapeutic effect on painful diseases, colds and fevers, sub-health conditions, mild dysfunction of organs, and disease prevention and health maintenance.
3. Relaxes Tendons and Activates Collaterals
Guasha on the back can eliminate painful lesions and relax tense muscles. By relaxing the tense muscles, pain and compression symptoms can be significantly reduced or eliminated, which is beneficial for lesion repair.
4. Detoxifies the Body
During the guasha process (using scraping to make the skin produce "sha"), the local tissues become highly congested, blood vessels and nerves are stimulated to dilate, blood flow and lymphatic fluid are accelerated, phagocytosis and transportation are enhanced, and waste and toxins are rapidly eliminated from the body. This purifies the blood, increases overall resistance, reduces the severity of the illness, and promotes recovery.
5. Harmonizes Yin and Yang
By scraping the corresponding acupoints on the skin, guasha opens up the pores and channels, allowing various pathogenic factors such as wind, cold, phlegm, dampness, blood stasis, heat, and toxins that are stagnant in the meridians, acupoints, and corresponding tissues and organs to be expelled. This helps to unblock the meridians.
How to Perform Guasha on the Back
1. Choose the Right Tool
In general, any tool with a blunt and smooth edge can be used, such as a comb, porcelain spoon, or guasha board (the material should be carefully chosen). However, attention should be paid to the thickness and size of the tool. If it is too thick, it may not produce the desired "sha," and if it is too thin, it may easily injure the skin. The size should generally be smaller than an adult's palm, making it easy to grip and exert force. In addition to the guasha board, it is also necessary to have medicinal solution or lubricating oil to prevent skin damage. Lubricants can include specialized medicinal solutions, or products like green oil, medicated guasha cream containing safflower, Ligusticum chuanxiong, and Angelica sinensis, or simply using safflower oil, sesame oil, or even water.
2. Guasha Areas and Order
The guasha techniques and order of operation vary among practitioners. Generally, only the corresponding areas that feel uncomfortable are scraped, such as for heatstroke or discomfort in the stomach or abdomen, the corresponding areas are scraped. However, most people scrape the back and limbs, especially women rarely scrape the front chest. Other areas such as the head and neck, abdomen and waist can also be scraped. The scraping direction is usually from top to bottom and from inside to outside, in a single direction without repeating. When scraping the back, it is advisable to start from the most prominent occipital bone at the back of the head and the GV14 acupoint, and scrape down. For the gallbladder meridian and bladder meridian, which are mainly affected by wind and cold, scrape from the high bone on the back of the ears to the shoulders. The kidney meridian, which is mainly affected by the lower back, scrape the upper back, and the liver, gallbladder, spleen, and stomach meridians, which are mainly affected by the lower back, scrape the lower back.
3. Guasha Angle
Hold the guasha board in your hand, with the thick edge close to your palm and the thin edge at a 45-degree angle to the skin. Scrape in a single direction, avoiding a pushing or scraping motion. If you want to stimulate the deep tissues, press down perpendicularly to the skin at a 90-degree angle, but do not apply too much pressure for too long.
4. Guasha Strength
The strength of guasha is like the dosage in a traditional Chinese medicine prescription. Too light or too heavy is not good. Too light will have no effect, and too heavy can injure the muscles and tissues. Generally, the strength should be even, moderate, gradually increasing in force, and limited to what can be tolerated. The scraping distance should be about five to ten centimeters, and when the color no longer changes, the scraping can be stopped.
Note that the strength of guasha is not better the heavier it is, nor is it more effective the more painful it is. The strength also has a tonifying or purging effect: generally, low strength and slow speed are tonifying, high strength and fast speed are purging; moderate strength and speed or low strength and fast speed, or high strength and slow speed are balanced tonifying or purging.
5. Guasha Frequency
The frequency of guasha varies depending on the individual's needs and constitution. Each session should last about twenty to thirty minutes. The first session should not be too long, and the technique should not be too heavy. The second session should be scheduled one to two weeks apart.
Who Should Avoid Guasha?
1. Guasha should not be used on areas of the skin with abscesses, ulcers, rashes, or unexplained lumps, as this can cause infection and spread. Guasha should not be used on painful areas or fractures caused by acute strains or injuries, as guasha can exacerbate bleeding at the injury site.
2. Guasha should be avoided by those with severe cardiovascular diseases, liver and kidney dysfunction, and general edema. Guasha promotes local congestion and blood circulation, which increases the burden on the heart, lungs, liver, and kidneys, worsening the condition.
3. Guasha should not be used on skin diseases such as skin ulcers. Guasha involves scraping the surface of the skin, and if there are ulcers, it can easily cause rupture and infection, worsening the condition.
4. Guasha should not be used on individuals with hemophilia or leukemia. Guasha can cause local congestion, so caution should be exercised for those with low platelet counts. Areas that require guasha include external trauma, such as bruising on the arms, broken skin on the back, or fractures in the legs.
5. Guasha should be avoided during pregnancy, especially on the abdomen, lower back, and other areas, as it can easily cause miscarriage.
6. Individuals with varicose veins should be cautious about guasha. If guasha is necessary, it should be done with care, scraping from the bottom to the top, and with gentle technique. Guasha can cause local pain, and failure to avoid wind and cold after guasha can lead to colds and other illnesses.
What to Pay Attention to After Guasha on the Back
1. Avoid Wind and Keep Warm
After guasha on the back, avoid wind and keep warm. When the room temperature is low, try to minimize exposure. Do not guasha near electric fans or in places with drafts during hot summer temperatures. Guasha opens up the pores and causes sweating, and if exposed to wind and cold, evil qi can enter through the open pores, affecting the therapeutic effects of guasha and causing new illnesses.
2. Drink a Cup of Hot Water
After guasha, drink a cup of hot water to replenish the fluids that were consumed during guasha. It also promotes metabolism and speeds up the elimination of metabolic waste.
3. Timing for Bathing After Guasha
After guasha on the back, it is necessary to wait for the skin pores to close and return to their original state before taking a bath, which usually takes about three hours. However, during bathing, guasha can be performed when the water has not dried completely. As the pores open slightly during bathing, guasha during this time is effective, but caution should be exercised to keep warm.
4. Scraping Methods for Different Types of Skin Diseases
For patients with skin diseases, guasha can be directly performed on dry, non-inflammatory, exudative, or ulcerated skin lesions (such as neurodermatitis, vitiligo, and psoriasis). Benign nodules without pain on the skin or subcutaneous tissue can also be directly scraped. However, if there are purulent inflammations, exudation, or acute inflammatory symptoms such as redness, swelling, heat, and pain (such as eczema, herpes, boils, abscesses, and ulcers), guasha should not be directly performed on the lesions or inflamed areas, but can be performed around them.
