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Massages can feel great. But are they actually good for you?<\/p>\n
In one study, researchers observed that 8.5% of Americans reported using massage for \u201coverall health\u201d in the 2022 National Health Interview Survey. However, definitions of health tend to vary widely, explains the study\u2019s first author, Jeff Levin, an epidemiologist and distinguished professor at Baylor University. For instance, does it refer to physical health, mental health or both? That makes it tough to study, but may explain why it has such broad appeal, Levin explains.<\/p>\n
Research typically seeks to establish precise causal relationships. But the impact of massage seems to be holistic in nature, integrating physical, emotional and neurological effects, explains Niki Munk, licensed massage therapist, associate professor at Indiana University Indianapolis, and research director of the Massage Therapy Foundation.<\/p>\n
While some perceive massage as a luxury, it has historically been part of healthcare, notes Munk. It is increasingly embedded as a feature of hospital care because research and patient experiences corroborate its potential advantages.<\/p>\n
Experts say massage may benefit anyone regardless of their health status.<\/p>\n
Dr Carla Kuon, an associate professor of internal medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, was seeking an opioid-free way to ease patients\u2019 pain. In 2017, inspired by UCSF\u2019s pediatric bone marrow transplant massage program, she raised funds, then launched a similar service for adult patients the following year.<\/p>\n
A 2018 <\/strong>study on the adult service showed the massages were \u201cquite beneficial for distress, pain, tension, anxiety, fatigue and improved sleep\u201d, says Kuon, who is also a faculty member at the Osher Center for Integrative Health. Participants also reported an improved sense of wellness.<\/p>\n According to Kuon, many studies show that pleasant touch creates a soothing effect, sending signals to the brain that you\u2019re safe.<\/p>\n \u201cWe all thrive on caring, compassionate touch,\u201d says Kuon. \u201cI think any person could benefit [from massage] because it releases natural endorphins that promote a sense of wellbeing and happiness.\u201d<\/p>\n Graphic with three lines of text that say, in bold, \u2018Well Actually\u2019, then \u2018Read more on living a good life in a complex world,\u2019 then a pinkish-lavender pill-shaped button with white letters that say \u2018More from this section\u2019<\/p>\n But, she also notes that those who might get the most out of it are \u201cthose who may not regularly experience healthy touch\u201d. Examples include individuals with chronic fatigue syndrome or long Covid, who often experience reduced social interaction.<\/p>\n Individuals \u201cwho have greater experiences of disability, pain and impairment are in a position to experience the larger effects\u201d, agrees Munk.<\/p>\n Massage is one of the techniques Rocco Caputo, a touch therapist at the Memorial Sloan Kettering (MSK) Cancer Center, uses to help patients.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen patients come in, they\u2019re always like: \u2018You\u2019re the massage guy, right?\u2019\u201d Caputo says. \u201cThen you\u2019re everybody\u2019s favorite person.\u201d<\/p>\n Massage helps people re-establish a connection to their body, says Caputo. It puts people into a parasympathetic nervous state, which induces a state of calm. Recent research conducted in part at MSK found that massage helped advanced cancer patients with long-term pain reduction. One of the outcomes of this research is the Imagine project, which aims to implement massage and acupuncture in cancer programs across the US.<\/p>\n Some research shows benefits for those with chronic pain; in Munk\u2019s newest pre-print paper, veterans who received massage therapy twice a week for 12 weeks experienced an improvement in pain severity compared with a control group. These benefits were maintained for a period of three months.<\/p>\n skip past newsletter promotion<\/p>\n Practical advice, expert insights and answers to your questions about how to live a good life<\/p>\n Privacy Notice: <\/strong>Newsletters may contain information about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. If you do not have an account, we will create a guest account for you on theguardian.com to send you this newsletter. You can complete full registration at any time. For more information about how we use your data see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.<\/span><\/p>\n after newsletter promotion<\/p>\n \u201cA lot of pain is a symptom that needs to be managed, not something that\u2019s necessarily going to go away,\u201d says Munk. The study didn\u2019t examine the mechanisms behind the improvement, but Munk suggests that factors such as loosening muscles, relaxation and improved sleep could explain the results.<\/p>\n In another study, Munk found that after 10 massage sessions, patients showed clinically meaningful improvement in lower back pain. Participants aged 50 and older experienced the most significant change.<\/p>\n Massage therapy can probably address many types of pain; early intervention might even prevent some cases from becoming chronic, Munk says. But some researchers, such as the authors of this 2024 systematic review, argue there\u2019s a need for more randomized controlled trials \u2013 viewed by some as the gold standard for measuring effectiveness \u2013 to assess how well it can treat pain.<\/p>\n Causes for the physical effects of massage are still being explored. For example, Shane Phillips, a professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago, co-authored a paper demonstrating that massage enhances blood flow and reduces muscle soreness after exercise. The study found that even people who had not exercised experienced improved vascular function, or the ability of blood vessels to regulate blood flow and pressure, after massage.<\/p>\n One group of participants exercised with a leg press machine, then received leg massages. Testing shows that \u201cblood flow in the arm was changed even though we were providing massage to the lower extremities,\u201d says Phillips. This suggests massage may affect the entire body, not just a specific area.<\/p>\n Were the results due to manual manipulation of the body or emotional responses to being touched? \u201cThat\u2019s not really known \u2013 it may be some of both,\u201d says Phillips.<\/p>\n It\u2019s difficult to untangle the emotional and physical reactions people experience due to massage, says Kuon.<\/p>\n Massage therapy can increase the release of endorphins, natural pain-relievers made by the body, she explains. A wealth of research shows that positive, consensual touch can increase mental wellbeing and reduce anxiety and depression.<\/p>\n Working as a massage therapist, Anne Weisman observed benefits for people living with HIV\/Aids. In subsequent research, Weisman, who is an associate professor and director of Well-Being & Integrative Medicine at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, quantified these observations: participants self-reported a newfound awareness of their body that influenced motivation and resilience. One participant said \u201cmassage therapy reminded her of her human-ness\u201d, recalls Weisman.<\/p>\n Weisman sees the effects of massage as \u201chighly translatable\u201d to different groups of people.<\/p>\n The benefits of massage serve as a reminder of the power of touch overall, says Weisman. Massage is a simple yet effective intervention but is often overlooked, she explains.<\/p>\n Professional massage may be inaccessible for some due to cost. But \u201csome form of therapeutic touch\u201d is essential, says Kuon. Even self-massage or a foot massage can be beneficial.<\/p>\n Caputo recommends incorporating massage techniques into self-care; he has created videos people can follow at home to help with ailments such as headaches and hand pain. (The intended audience for the videos is children, but Caputo says anyone can use them.)<\/p>\n Levin argues for framing massage as a mainstream health intervention. \u201cWhen massage is described as an alternative medicine, whether it\u2019s intended or not, there\u2019s something kind of disparaging about it,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n Massage should be further embedded in the healthcare system, covered by health plans, says Munk. This way, massage can be \u201caccessible to as many people as possible\u201d, she says.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Massages can feel great. But are they actually good for you? In one study, researchers observed that 8.5% of Americans reported using massage for \u201coverall health\u201d in the 2022 National Health Interview Survey. However, definitions of health tend to vary widely, explains the study\u2019s first author, Jeff Levin, an epidemiologist and distinguished professor at Baylor<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":33368,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[51],"tags":[2021,9385,19119,7004],"class_list":{"0":"post-33367","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-health","8":"tag-healthy","9":"tag-magic","10":"tag-massages","11":"tag-touch"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33367","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=33367"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33367\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/33368"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=33367"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=33367"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=33367"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}What are the physical benefits of massage?<\/h2>\n
Are there emotional benefits to massage?<\/h2>\n
How can you incorporate massage into your routine?<\/h2>\n