Acupressure mat
The acupressure mat (or nail mat ) is usually about the size of a towel that is equipped with pointed knobs made of hard plastic . Acupressure mats are used for acupressure treatments. They are supposed to relieve pain and cure diseases ranging from insomnia to migraines and lung diseases. However, there is no scientific study that has shown a positive effect. Nail mats are also used for meditation .
history
The forerunners of the nail mats were the nail boards, which were used by yogis or fakirs to remove blockages of a physical, emotional or mental nature.
The modern acupressure mat was developed in Sweden . The origins lie in the local yoga scene. The Swede Susanna Lindelöw, who suffered from severe back pain with recurring lumbago and tried a nail mat after many other attempts, played a major role in the later popularization . She made the nail mat from two round fibreboard and many long nails. She found it painful to lie on her nails and therefore lay down on the mat with a T-shirt. Ultimately, their attempts were successful after a few months. Inspired by this experience, she developed her own prototype made of plastic and founded a company that began production in late 2005. Your company CuraComp produced around 100,000 mats a year in 2009. About 80 percent of these were sold in Sweden, the rest went abroad.
In Sweden, the nail mats - called spikmatta there, which literally means "nail carpet" - became very popular from around 2008. In August 2009 the Swedish manufacturer ShaktiMat held a mass meeting of 3000 users in a park in Stockholm. They sat or lay down on their mats, which were arranged like rays of the sun, and sang mantras together . The action led to an entry in the Guinness Book of Records . In November 2009 the Swedish trading institute named the nail mat "Christmas present of the year" on the grounds that it was a symbol of society's health awareness. Shortly afterwards, the New York Times reported on the new trend from Sweden.
variants
Various types of acupressure mats are sold by different manufacturers under different names. The prices vary between approx. 20 euros and 120 euros.
Frequently used materials are foam for the inner mat , cotton for the cover and ABS hard plastic for the tips with the tips. The filling can also consist of plant fibers. High-quality models consist, for example, of a coconut fiber inner mat and attachments made of HIPS plastic. The Swedish acupressure mats developed by the inventor Susanna Lindelöw are made entirely of plastic.
Usually the mats have a few thousand pointed knobs. There are models with fewer than 1000 tips and those with more than 10,000 tips. The original Swedish model made of plastic has only 640 tips with a length of 15 millimeters. These longer tips resemble thick, blunt nails. During production, the tips are created directly as the surface shape of the lying surface. Acupressure mats made of textiles, on the other hand, are equipped with several hundred round plastic plates ("rosettes"), on the surface of which protrude many small, thorn-shaped knobs that are only about 4 millimeters long. The textile mats have a total of around 5000 to 8000 pointed knobs. The distribution of pressure over significantly more knobs means that the pressure at the individual contact points (also called “needle stimulus”) is much lower and the knobs are only slightly sunk into the skin. In the case of mats with comparatively few tips, the pressure at the contact points is greater. Depending on their needs, users can alleviate the pressure at the contact points by wearing a T-shirt. According to the manufacturer, special acupressure mats with magnets inside should combine the effects of acupressure and magnetic field therapy.
Most acupressure mats are about 65 to 75 inches long and 40 to 50 inches wide. This makes them suitable for acupressure treatment of the back. There are also larger models, for example 130 centimeters long. A smaller mat made of plastic is advantageous when traveling, for example, and is also suitable for attachment to a chair back. In a model from Sweden, individual strips of plastic can be plugged together as modules to adapt the length of the mat to the needs of the user. Materials such as textiles and foam have the advantage that the mat can be rolled up to save space.
In addition to the mat, a conceptually comparable pillow is often used. The pillow is used for acupressure treatment in the neck area, lower back or the hollows of the knees. The Swedish inventor Susanna Lindelöw has developed a range of product variants for individual body regions: for the shoulder girdle, lower back, thighs, calves, feet and upper arms, sometimes with the option of choosing between harder or softer plastic as the material.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d e A Bed Where Comfort Is Not the Point The New York Times, November 24, 2009.
- ^ Svenska Spikmattan: About The Swedish Spike Mat spikemat.com
- ^ Word of the week: Spikmatta tmy.se, August 31, 2008.
- ↑ a b Guinness World Record
- ^ "Spike mat" Christmas Present of the Year sverigesradio.se, November 12, 2009.
- ↑ Product description ShaktiMat
- ↑ a b c Product description Thermo Mysa Duo mysa-mat.de
- ↑ a b c Homepage of Svenska Spikmattan , see section The difference between the Swedish Spike Mat and mats made of fabric .
- ↑ a b Product description Endorf- Nagelmatte nagelmatte.de
- ↑ Product description Magnetic Mysa mysa-mat.de
- ↑ a b Data on various mats in the product comparison 2019 on www.vergleich.org.
- ↑ Svenska Spikmattan: For The Trip spikemat.com
- ↑ Overview on the homepage of Svenska Spikmattan spikemat.com (English).
- ↑ The small nail tape for the upper arms from Svenska Spikmattan is the same product as the small nail tape for the calves . The large nail tape can be used for the lower back and for the thighs. Both bands are available in either hard or soft plastic.