Evidenced-Based Medicine Portal for Spa & Wellness Therapies

Any treatment that allegedly involves the surface stimulation of acupoints digitally, manually, or with tools held in the hand.

Technique for treating some painful conditions and for regional anesthesia by passing long thin needles through the skin to specific points.

The use of selected fragrant substances in lotions and inhalants in an effort to affect mood and promote health. Also called aromatic medicine, conventional aromatherapy, holistic aromatherapy.

Ayurveda is a holistic system of medicine from India that uses a constitutional model.

Active exercise: bodily exertion for the sake of restoring or maintaining a healthy state. 2. Passive exercise: motion of limbs without effort by the person.

A practice which involves pressing “reflex areas” on the feet. Its postulate is that these areas correspond to organs and systems of the body.

Water has been used medicinally for thousands of years, with traditions rooted in ancient China, Japan, India, Rome, Greece, the Americas, and the Middle East.

Massage uses direct hands-on manipulation of the surface of the body to achieve therapeutic results.

A self-directed practice for relaxing the body and calming the mind. Most meditative techniques have come to the West from Eastern religious practices.

Music has been used as a tool of healing since ancient times, appearing in the writings of the Greek philosophers Pythagoras, Aristotle, and Plato.

Nutritionists are trained in the biochemistry of food, and how food affects the human body.

Qi gong is a type of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) that is thought to be at least 4,000 years old. There are two main types of Qi gong practice: internal and external.

Reiki is a Buddhist practice that is approximately 2,500 years old. The name "Reiki" is derived from two Japanese words: rei meaning universal spirit and ki meaning life energy.

A broad term used to describe a number of techniques promoting stress reduction, the elimination of tension throughout the body and a peaceful state of mind.

A small room or house where dry or wet heat sessions are experienced, with temperatures typically ranging from 70°C (158 °F) and 100°C (212 °F)

A traditional hands-on technique that originated in Japan, from the Japanese, 'shi,' meaning finger, and 'atsu,' meaning pressure.

A physiologic state of relative unconsciousness and inaction of the voluntary muscles, the need for which recurs periodically.

An applied force or system of forces that tends to strain or deform a body.

Tai chi (also written as T'ai Chi, Taiji, Tai Chi Chuan, etc.) is an ancient Chinese exercise system (originating 2,000 years ago as a martial arts strategy) that uses gentle, slow, deliberate, meditative body movements.

Any number of therapies that use materials from sea; common staples include seaweed, algae, and seawater.

Yoga is an ancient system of relaxation, exercise, and healing with origins in Indian philosophy. Early descriptions of yoga are written in Sanskrit, the classical literary language of India.