The History of Zone Therapy and Reflexology

The Zone Theory was the precursor to modern Reflexology, which began with Dr. William H. Fitzgerald, M.D in 1913. Dr. Fitzgerald, an American ear, nose and throat surgeon, noted that pressure on specific parts of the body could have an anaesthetizing effect on a related area. He called his work Zone Analgesia.

Dr. Fitzgerald divided the body into ten equal and vertical zones, ending in the fingers and toes. He concluded that pressure on one part of a zone could affect everything else within that zone. Dr. Shelby Riley, D.C., N.D., worked closely with Dr. Fitzgerald and further developed the Zone Theory by added horizontal zones across the hands and feet, together with the longitudinal zones.

Eunice D. Ingham (1889-1974) a Physical Therapist worked closely with Dr. Riley and was fascinated by the concept of Zone Therapy and started developing her foot reflex theory in the early 1930's. She had the opportunity to treat hundreds of patients where each reflex point was carefully and thoughtfully checked and rechecked until she was able to determine that the reflexes on the feet were an exact mirror image of the organs of the body.

Dr. Riley encouraged her to write her first book entitled Stories The Feet Can Tell where she documented her cases and carefully mapped out the reflexes on the feet, as we know them today. This book was published in 1938 and was later translated into seven foreign languages.