The 5 Best Acupressure Mats [Ranked]
Millions of Americans and people internationally suffer from chronic pain conditions. This pain can be as debilitating as it is various.
If you are leery of undergoing surgery or taking potentially dangerous prescription medications, it might make sense to look into a natural alternative like an acupressure mat.
Acupressure mats are noted for decreasing muscle soreness, improving circulation, reducing anxiety and stress, alleviating blood pressure, treating tension, and generally revitalizing and rejuvenating your body. Acupressure mats works similarly to acupuncture.
The mats exert a pressure against the skin of the body which enables the release of endorphins that are known as nature’s ‘happiness drugs’. They can help provide a sense of energy, joy as well as pain relief and calmness.
Our Top Pick: The Nayoya Acupressure Mat
- Designed for Neck Pain Relief: Large Size 15*13 inches, Boriwat neck and back massager is 6 inches longer than regular massage pillows, providing more extensive support for your neck and back. The massager perfectly conforms to the neck and back curves and features 4 massage nodes that simulate hand-kneading massage.
Nayoya Overview
Contents
The 5 Best Acupressure Mats
1. The ProSource Acupressure Mat and Pillow Set
If you are constantly battling back pain, ProSource’s acupressure mat will give you comfort. It is designed to improve blood circulation and naturally reduce muscle tension, headache and back pain. To enjoy these benefits, users are recommended to lay on the mat daily for 10 to 30 minutes each time. The mat releases endorphins to block pain and relax the muscles in the back, feet and neck. This set includes a pillow with acupressure points for neck support. For patients suffering from insomnia, it promotes sleep when used prior to bedtime. Made from 100 percent thick cotton and plant-based foam, the mat has 6,210 acupressure points while the neck pillow has 1,782 acupressure points. All in all, this is a pretty solid option.
2. The Nayoya Back and Neck Pain Relief Acupressure Mat and Pillow Set
A product that has earned extremely solid ratings from its user base.. The whole set is composed of a mat with 6,210 contact points as well as a neck pillow with 1,782 acupressure points. It is designed to provide relief from upper, middle and lower back pain, as well as a variety of chronic pain conditions. Patients suffering from fibromyalgia, shoulder, coccyx tailbone and sciatic nerve pain, as well as stiff neck and shoulder pain, will also benefit from this product. Some famous national magazines including Men’s Health (March 2012), Health Magazine (November 2012) and New York Magazine (June 2014) have featured the benefit of Nagoya’s acupressure mat. It is lightweight and highly portable.
3. The Zensufu Acupressure Massage Mat and Neck Pillow Set
With a dimension of 26 x 16 inches containing over 6,300 acupressure points, this mat is great for soothing back and neck pain and promoting muscle relaxation. The mat also comes with a neck pillow with over a thousand stimulation points. Lightweight and portable, you can easily carry this mat on your trip especially that it also comes with a vinyl carry bag. Users can enjoy its full benefits by simply lying on the mat daily for a few minutes. The broad majority of its users have reported high levels of satisfaction with the Zensufu acupressure mat. Overall, it makes a great addition to your wellness arsenal.
4. The HemingWeigh Complete Acupressure Mat and Pillow Set
Increase your energy level anytime you want with the aid of this acupressure mat. It is designed to improve sleep quality, increase blood circulation and relieve aches, stresses, pains and muscle tensions. It is great for people suffering from tension, stiffness, fatigue, insomnia and other conditions. The mat measures 29 x 17 x 1 inches and contains 8,820 contact points. It is made from quality materials without any glue. The mat comes with a free carry bag in case you want to take it on a trip. With many happy purchasers, this is another solid option to consider if you’re looking for back pain relief.
5. The ZenGuru Best Acupressure Mat & Pillow Set
Treat yourself to full-body rejuvenation using this acupressure mat with 6,210 contact points for instant effect. The set is incomplete without the neck pressure pillow containing 1,782 acupressure points, reflexology foot chart and a carry bag. The mat is also constructed with strategically placed magnets for deep-penetrating magnet therapy targeting the spine, neck and lumbar regions. Patients who are suffering from stress and body pain will find a deep sense of relaxation by using this mat daily. The same is true for patients with conditions such as depression, fatigue, insomnia, muscle tension, and sciatica. The company gives a lifetime money-back guarantee for this product.
How to use an acupressure mat
What are customers saying about acupressure mats?
- Many users cautioned novices that the first time they use and acupressure mat- it will hurt or at least be fairly uncomfortable if you are unaccustomed to lying on one. However if you give it some time, and stick with it, you will begin to see results.
- Getting started, one user commented to us that to start he used the acupressure mat for 15 minutes four nights in a row, wearing only a very thin T-shirt. After building up some tolerance this way, he began using it for longer durations up to 25 minutes without wearing a shirt. He commented that for the first 45 seconds his scams out like it was burning but after he pushed through that pain he felt a tremendous increase in blood flow circulation as well as dramatic relief of his pain symptoms.
- Many users described the experience as sharp sensations that simultaneously feel pleasant, as if each of the puncture points was effectively siphoning pain out of the body. Sends acupuncture stimulates sensory receptors on the skin that send signals to the brain to release pain-relieving endorphins these acupressure mats are effectively equipped to mimic the benefits of an actual acupuncture session.
- Users comment that it has provided pain relief for a variety of symptoms including muscle soreness, back pain shoulder and neck stiffness, sleeping problems, general fatigue, depression, sciatica, piriformis syndrome, Fibromyalgia, myofascial pain syndrome in a variety of other chronic pain conditions.
- Depending on the mat that you choose to purchase, sometimes they don’t come with the best instructions. So it is advisable to watch some YouTube videos, including the one that we have posted on this page, to get a better sense of the full range of exercises available to you when you are using your acupressure mat.
- Many users report complete relief of their pain symptoms, while others report that these mats have dramatically reduced their pain symptoms so that they only need to use them a couple times a day to make their lives more manageable.
- In all, most users report that they are highly satisfied with their acupressure mats– recommend trying one out considering that the cost is not too large and the benefits he might experience could be quite large.
- Also make sure to check out the warranty of the acupressure mat you decide to purchase make sure that you’re able to return it should you be dissatisfied.
What is acupuncture and how does it work?
Acupuncture is considered a complementary form of medicine that describes the stimulation of certain points of the body with a needle that penetrates the skin, helping to alleviate pain and treat other health conditions. Many millennia ago this practice was developed in China.
Modern research studies conducted in the United States, as well as Europe, have discovered that acupuncture is statistically effective in treating n
ausea and pain.
One of the largest research studies that examined the effects of acupuncture on chronic pain was a meta-analysis that included 29 studies and 18,000 patients.
It found that acupuncture was, in fact, effective for the treatment of chronic pain symptoms. Other studies are currently examining the efficacy of acupuncture for treating anxiety, depression as well as symptoms related to cancer treatments. It’s important to note that acupuncture is not being used to treat cancer, instead of just being used to treat symptoms related to the disease.
Dating back to 100 BC, when acupuncture was first discovered in Chinese literature, the practice has changed drastically since its inception. According to traditional Chinese medicine, it is believed that the positive effects of acupuncture are associated with the release of energy. This release of energy is important because it is believed that disruptions to energy flow is what causes disease. So acupuncture effectively helps to harmonize the flow of energy, helping to heal disease.
Modern Western scientists have hypothesized that acupuncture functions via neutral hormonal pathways. When needles are inserted and make contact with the nerve, the nerve sends signals to the brain, the brain then releases hormones which make the individual feel happy or euphoric, consequently increasing the pain threshold and decreasing the perception of pain. Another favorite hypothesis suggests that acupuncture functions by decreasing proteins that are pro-inflammatory.
With this decrease in inflammation there is a consequent reduction of pain. Acupuncture clearly have some interesting physical effects- you don’t need to have a research study necessarily prove it.
What are the main benefits of acupuncture and acupressure mats?
Practitioners describe three primary benefits:
- It is able to relieve pain.
- Is able to reduce inflammation.
- It was also able to restore homeostasis.
Its practitioners note that acupuncture can have an effect on every major system of the body-this includes cerebral, gastrointestinal, cardiac, endocrine as well as immune systems. Aside from some of the western and more scientific explanations posited by research scientists, some other mechanisms of action have been identified to understand how acupuncture works. Traditional practitioners emphasize that acupuncture is able to promote blood flow.
They also believe that acupuncture is able to stimulate the body’s own healing mechanisms, which enables the body to effectively self-heal. Acupuncture also can release the body’s natural painkillers-when you insert the needle into the skin signal is sent via the nervous system to the brain where endorphins are released.
All of this information points to the potential benefit acupressure mats can have. As we have seen by some of the research findings above there are variety of different modes and methods of pain-relieving action acupuncture can take. While scientists and traditionalists may not always agree, it might make sense for you to investigate an acupressure mat, as well as take a visit to the local acupuncturist, to see what benefits you can derive from the experience.
