P. Sze 
Acupuncture and acupressure points for the pancreas are convenient to use when it comes to improving your pancreas health.
The pancreas is located behind the stomach in the upper left abdomen, surrounded by the other organs like the small intestine, liver, spleen. Its shape is like a flat pear, or a fish extended horizontally across the abdomen. It’s spongy, about six to ten inches long. In terms of body organs, the pancreas is not as popular as kidney, liver, and heart. However, the pancreas and pancreatic glands are essential for your overall well being. We can’t live without pancreas.
If our pancreas gets sick, then we might suffer from:
- Digestive disorders
- Diabetes mellitus
- Pancreatitis
- Hyperglycemia
- Hypoglycemia
- High and low blood pressure
Acupressure Points For Pancreases
Acupuncture involves treating the body by using sterile needles, which get inserted through the skin at various points of the body to stimulate certain areas. This stimulation is believed to increase and boost the body’s natural painkiller mechanism to relieve the discomfort.
Acupressure is the same technique as acupuncture, only that it doesn’t involve needles. This technique is also based on the concept of Qi, which flows via “meridians” in the body. It’s safer and more convenient to practice for people who do not have enough knowledge as a professional chinese medicine doctor or acupuncturist. Specific meridian points can be stimulated to treat unhealthy pancreases and to alleviate the symptoms of diabetes.
Acupressure points for the pancreas include:
Acupoint: Liv-3 (Other Names: Liver-3/Tai Chong/Supreme Rush)
When your pancreas fails to function properly, you’ll experience abdominal pains, bloating, indigestion, fatigue, and vomiting. Stimulation of Liv-3 will induce pancreases and liver detoxification and increase insulin levels to relieve people’s suffering from diabetes.
Liv-3 is located at the zone just distal to the junction of the 1st and 2nd foot metatarsal bones, and Dr. MENGFEI (Devin) YUAN recommend stimulating this pressure point for hiccup, abdominal distention, pain in the hypochondrium, jaundice, irregular menstruation, metrorrhagia and metrostaxis, depression, headache, vertigo, ictus, tinnitus, madness, throat sore, nocturnal emission, benign prostatic hyperplasia, weakness, and pain of the inferior extremities.
Apply pressure to the point Liv-3 several times by pressing it with your fingertips or making small clockwise or anticlockwise rotations. Or we can use a pencil or a toothpick to press this point for 4-5 minutes. Normally we do not feel any discomfort when we press this point, if the acupressure makes some pain that means some parts of your body or organs do not work well.
Other uses of Liv-3: Reduce upper back pain
Acupoint: ST-36 (Other Names: Stomach-36/Zu San Li/Leg Three Miles)
Zu San Li is the most commonly used acupressure point since it’s believed stimulating this point could strengthen your body. Many traditional Chinese medicine books mention the importance of the ST-36 for our health. Like we should regularly do moxibustion to ST-36 to eliminate the cold and dampness of the spleen and stomach.
Dr. MENGFEI (Devin) YUAN explains that ST-36 can be found on the lateral side of your leg just 3 Cun below the kneecap, and he recommends it for gastric pain, abdominal distention, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation, hiccup, indigestion, dyspnoea, asthma, cough, palpitation, madness, insomnia, dizziness, cough, edema, and general deficiency.
This point helps in solving issues involving the stomach, pancreas, and spleen. It improves digestion and eases digestive disturbances such as bloating, nausea, vomiting, and constipation.
The point also helps in normalizing blood glucose levels naturally without side effects, strengthen Qi, and even improve physical and mental health. I usually advise my patients to do acupressure practice like this: keep the sitting position and make the “finger purse” gesture with two hands. Then tap the ST-36 point with the cutting edge part until the tissue of this zone is not so tense.
According to Dr. Yuan, Zu San Li is also one of the best acupressure points to activate the pancreas. This point is widely regarded as one of the most important points for generating Qi or energy throughout the body, and it is effective in treating a wide range of digestive disorders, inflammation, stress, depression, and anxiety. By stimulating this point with acupressure, you can help to activate the pancreas and support better overall health. The Zu San Li point is closely linked to the digestive system and can help to strengthen the Qi of the spleen and stomach, which are important for digestion and overall vitality. By using acupressure points to activate the pancreas, you can improve your body’s ability to digest and process nutrients, promoting better overall health and well-being.
Acupoint: SP-6 (Other Names: Spleen-6/San Yin Jiao/Three Intersection)
The pressure point Spleen-6 is one of the most versatile and commonly used points. It’s used to treat a wide range of conditions. SP-6 is the crossroads of three meridians- the liver, the spleen, and the kidney- that’s why it’s a powerful point.
Stimulation of this point promotes good circulation of blood and Qi throughout your body. It’s believed to harmonize the liver, strengthen the kidney, manage gynecological problems, vitalize the urinary system, and ease the Shen-spirit.
Dr. MENGFEI (Devin) YUAN describes the location of SP-6 as being on the medial aspect of of the lower leg, 3 Cun above the medial malleolus, on the post border of the tibia. He recommends it for treating gynecological problems such as irregular menstruation, dysmenorrhea, amenorrhea, postpartum faintness, infertility, nocturnal emission; digestion problems such as spleen and stomach deficiency, abdominal distention, diarrhea, muscular pain; urinary problems such as enuresis, edema, dysuria, anuria; neurological problems such as insomnia, headache, dizziness, bilateral hypochondrial pain and; dermatological disease such as urticaria.
To keep our body healthy, it’s important to tonify the SP-6 point. For example, around 21:00 in the evening when the San Jiao meridian is in order, it is recommended to rub the SP-6 point on both sides of the legs, on each side we stimulate the point for 20 minutes.
Other uses of SP-6: Improve our immune system
Take Away
Acupuncture and Acupressure may be a great complementary way to improve pancreas health and stimulate insulin production without experiencing side effects. However, we do not recommend only using this technique to control your blood sugar level if it’s much below or beyond the blood sugar standard. If you feel quite uncomfortable, it’s wise to consult your doctor before beginning any new treatment.
Related Reading
- Acupressure For High Blood Pressure
- Massage LV-13 Acupuncture Point Daily And It Will Resolve Lots of Digestive Related Issues
- What Experts Are Saying About Foot Massage and Diabetes
