Other Types Of Lines
Scar Tissue Lines
These lines are seen curving seemingly randomly across the foot and are frequently found in an area where scar tissue has formed. So they can be at the site of an operation, where they follow the incision lines. Or they may be seen somewhere that internal scarring has formed due to an organ being removed or an illness such as pneumonia or a heart attack.
If nothing has been mentioned, ask about the history of any operations or significant illnesses in the area. We know that it is not unusual for clients to forget or not even be aware they suffered from a scar-forming disease in their childhood or distant past.
Working firmly directly along the line seems beneficial, maybe because it helps break down scar tissue. And using any other techniques that can improve circulation to the area, as an impediment to this, is one of the main problems resulting from scar tissue. The chances are high that they will also be in areas of emotional trauma, so gently work to support the area and do some emotional release work, including linking the two ends of the lines, which can be soothing.
photo 21a.
The long curving line is on the foot of a man who had a liver transplant. As can be seen, it cuts right over the area of the liver reflex.
Connector Lines
These are single straight, or gently curving lines that can be seen running diagonally across the plantar foot for no apparent reason (photos 22a. b. & c. following). They look very similar to scar lines and can be confused with them, so it is best to ask further questions of the client to ascertain whether there is any chance they could be scar lines.
These lines vary in length but usually cross over an area, including at least two reflexes, but they do not usually start or end at either the spine or lateral edge of the body. They appear to begin as individual small short lines that follow each other across the foot that gradually intensify and join up to give the appearance of a single line as they strengthen and deepen.
The path the line follows may connect two organs or areas that are affecting the health of each other. For example, it is very common to see lines that either start at the gall bladder reflex and run to the small intestine or start at the pancreas and end at the small intestine or colon.
Naturally, pay more attention to the reflexes where the lines begin and end. Also, I would work firmly back and forth along the length of the line, as clients find they are tender but feel the benefit. And also, practise linking at the two ends for any energy blockages at these points.
photo 22a.
The line connects the mid horizontal colon in zone 3 with the small intestine zone 2.
photo 22b.
This line connects the thyroid/oesophagus/throat area with the pancreas.
photo 22c.
Here the pancreas is connected to the sigmoid flexure.
Crossed Lines
When two or more lines cross over each other, this shows even greater stress and multiple overlapping lines can form triangular or ‘star’-like formations. They probably are connector lines that are running in different directions. So as well as the start and end points of the lines, the place where the lines cross or meet is under great stress, and it is definitely an indication to focus on that particular point.
photo 23a.
A curving line runs from left to right and another from right to left. They cross over at the horizontal colon.
photo 23b.
A mass of four or five lines is spreading out from zone 4 of the small intestine.
photo 23c.
Here three lines converge to form a triangle-like shape over the heart area. One is from the thoracic spine, one under the diaphragm, and one from the neck/shoulder zone 1-2.
Track Lines
Parallel lines
According to Dr. A.S. Wheelwright, an American nutritionist and iridologist, parallel ‘track’ lines running across the plantar foot show historic overgrowths of pathogens and the direction they took as they passed through the organs of the body. The wider broken lines indicate parasites (photo 24b. following), and the narrower lines show bacteria (photo 24a. following). The lines presumably show the path of least resistance in the body to that particular organism at that time in the client’s life.
So although the area affected can be seen to cover particular reflexes, it is not necessarily restricted to them. The greatest number of lines will show which organs have been most affected, and their depth will also show the intensity of the overgrowth. But they tend to be seen mainly on the reflexes to the organs of digestion, especially the small intestine.
He believed the cross lines on the feet indicated stress on organs caused by a concentration of pathogens, and the lines up the necks of the toes indicated vitamin and mineral deficiencies. He was not a reflexologist but used a classic reflexology chart to map which organs had been impacted and called this way of reading the lines ‘Foot Glyphology’.
His work is continued by Dr. Jack Tips, who combines glyphology with iridology, sclerology, and nutrition. Although his work is well known in some parts of the world, his teaching is not taught or practised in Europe, to my knowledge. But he does run online courses, including a foot glyphology course.
Dr. Caason Tan was a student of Dr. Tips and has many of these assessments in his blog posts: multiple glyphology assessments. But they are somewhat randomly placed, so you can try searching through the blog posts archive on the lower left-hand side to access more of them. They are usually found beneath the iridology & sclerology assessments, so a bit of a trawl. But if you find the subject as fascinating as I do, it’s worth locating them.
Crosshatching lines
When multiple lines crisscross over each other, the area is very stressed. This hatching-type effect is commonly seen in the small intestines. Presumably, this kind of formation is seen where multiple overgrowths of bacteria and parasites have created track lines that cross each other. (photo 24a.). I look at these again in the following chapter on ‘Underlying Textures‘.
photo 24a.
Parallel track-like lines indicate the path of bacterial overgrowth through the organs. Here they run across the small intestine and into the horizontal colon.
photo 24b.
There is a mass of quite wide-spaced parallel diagonal lines. They cover the entire small intestine on the left foot and most of it on the right. They are wider apart, so it could indicate parasitic overgrowth here rather than bacterial.
photo 24c.
A combination of parallel track and connector lines gives the small intestine and sigmoid colon a crisscrossed hatched-like appearance.
Chirology And Dermatoglyphics
Chirology is a scientific diagnostic discipline that studies the lines on the hands and fingertips and is used in physical and psychological assessments as a predictive guide to many mainly hereditary conditions. Dermatoglyphics is a similar science but also includes the study of the lines on the feet, although unfortunately for foot readers, it still focuses very much on the hands.
But the lines on the feet develop in the uterus for the same biological reasons as those on the hands, so we can assume that comparative results would be obtained if similar studies were carried out on the feet. So it is interesting to consider how much science can tell from the appearance of the feet in the future and how much overlap there will be with visual reflexology.
I cover dermatoglyphics in more depth in the upcoming chapter on ‘The Future of Foot Reading‘, but I have reproduced here the final paragraph of a very informative analysis of fingerprints and the lines on the hands by Johnny Fincham, a Chirologist:
“In fact, in Germany, dermatoglyphic assessment has been taken very seriously indeed, to the extent that computer programmes have now been designed to perform rapid multi-variate assessments of hand imprints which can predict with up to an 80% accuracy the chances of a new-born child developing heart disease, cancer, leukaemia, diabetes or mental illness. Such is the status of dermatoglyphic analysis in Germany that it has become an integral part of the medical syllabus in many German universities, and it would seem that before too long, the diagnosis of disease from the patterns of the hand will become a quite ordinary and commonplace activity.
The modern study of the hand is thus far removed from the popular image of the soothsaying hand reader uttering mysterious incantations in an arcane language. Rather, through decades of scientific research, the hand has come to be recognised as a powerful tool in the diagnosis of psychological, medical and genetic conditions. For dermatoglyphic research and the discoveries of medical science have corroborated many of the traditional claims of hand analysts and has provided a firm empirical basis for the modern study of chirology.*”
Foot Reading Assessment
photo 25.
Reading
This foot is inverting a lot. It is not relaxed and leaning slightly laterally as it should be but is pulling in towards the medial line,
A stress line at the base of the neck shows the acute angle at which the head & neck are leaning.
The hallux is plantar flexing and entirely separated from the second toe, which also looks as if it is longer than the hallux.
Toes 3-5 are leaning medially and pushing into toe 2.
There is a small line coming from the spine around C7. The arch is very high, so the spine is very curved, with pressure on the lower thoracic and lumbar vertebrae midsections.
It is not flat but coming towards us at an acute angle, so there is tension in the Achilles tendon/sciatic reflex.
There is a short but deep horizontal line that cuts across the kidney. And one more long deep stress line that exits the upper lumbar spine and cuts sharply diagonally down across the small intestine zone 2.
The small toe is bunched and curving under, showing pressure on the ear and shoulder joint. There is also a small vertical stress line beneath the outer ear. There are some small parallel track lines going up into toe 2, perhaps suggesting a pathogenic or vitamin deficiency affecting the eye.
There are 5 very definite lines crossing over the heart reflex in zone 2. And there is another short diagonal line beneath them across the diaphragm. This looks almost like a continuation of a line exiting the spine beneath the ball of the hallux, which carries on into the stomach area. Together with the bottom half of two other lines, this forms a triangular shape over the solar plexus.
There are more short lines over the stomach and pancreas area. Plus, a strong line over the pancreas zone 4 and several other small ones form a star shape. As well as the lines over the kidney mentioned above, there are a lot of short lines cross-hatching over the small intestine that gives it a kind of pitted texture. Several stress lines emanate from the leg/hip into the lower abdomen gluteal area.
Assessment
There are a lot of digestive issues starting in the stomach, but also very much affecting the pancreas and the small intestine. However, the most immediate problem may be heart health, as the crosslines there are very concerning. There is a definite shoulder joint, clavicle and neck issue because of the medial bunching up the smaller three toes and the angle at which the hallux/neck tilts. All this misalignment in the upper body muscles will also pressure the area above the heart.
An overly arched spine needs stretching out, and lower back issues are reflected by the inversion of the foot and the acute angle at which the foot is coming towards us. This tension is also shown by the stress lines coming from the lateral edge of the pelvis. Because it is found in the middle of the back, the extreme arching of the spine will also affect kidney function, and there is a deep stress line across it. The inversion of the pelvic area will not help with the digestive problems.
Emotions
The body language of the foot appears quite introverted or private. It pulls inwards and seems particularly protective of the lower groin/abdomen. So check for any connection to reproductive or sexual issues. The shoulder joint and arm are also pulling inwards, indicating a lack of openness, physical self-expression, and withholding of emotions.
There are several lines around the heart reflex, so there would seem to be a lot of emotional stress associated with this organ. The diaphragm/solar plexus area also has a lot of stress lines and looks quite sunken and depleted. So deep breathing into the area might help with some emotional release.
Advertising material, or comments offensive to another member will be deleted. Unfortunately, it isn’t possible to notify you when your comment has been approved, so you will need to check, but I aim to approve them all within 48 hours. You can also scroll down to go directly to the next chapter.