We’ve described a lot of advantages and benefits of massage therapy in this article. Read the complete article to know what are the massage therapy advantages.
Massage Therapy has gained lots of popularity in the last few years and is currently one of the most treatment procedures trusted by many. Once considered an alternative or fringe treatment technique, massage therapy is now not only a popular wellness technique but is equally effective at treating a whole host of health conditions. If you didn’t know, massage therapy guarantees lots of advantages and benefits. This particular technique can be used to help increase circulation, reduce stress, relieve tension, boost sleep and to promote overall relaxation.
It is imperative to note that the term massage therapy incorporates many techniques, and the type of massage offered always depends on your needs and physical. Generally, massage therapists work on muscle as well as other soft tissues to help patients feel good and better. In massage therapy, the therapists use long strokes, kneading, vibration, deep circular motions, and tapping. It is also critical to mention that massage therapy is sometimes initiated using essential oils as a form of aromatherapy.
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What Does Science Say Regarding The Effectiveness of Massage?
Lots of scientific research has been done on the effectiveness of massage therapy. Even though some of the results might be conflicting, much of the evidence shows that there are beneficial effects of massage therapy on pain and other symptoms associated with different health conditions. It is also critical to note that research has revealed that the benefits of massage therapy are mainly short term, a phenomenon that implies that you need to keep getting messages for you to continue enjoying the benefits.
17 Massage Therapy Advantages
As we previously mentioned, there are lots of advantages of massage therapy. Today in this particular post, we want to discuss in excruciating details, some of the scientifically proven benefits of massage therapy. Peruse the article and get to know.
1. Massage therapy guarantees relaxation
When your body is intense and somehow not relaxed or stressed, the chances are relatively higher that it will release unhealthy levels of a stress-inducing hormone, also known as cortisol. If you didn’t know, this particular hormone can potentially result in weight gain, digestion-related complications, migraines, headaches as well as sleeping problems. Research has proven that massage therapy when applied appropriately and with the right massage therapist, it can help reduce the levels of cortisol in your body. It’s soothing and fulfilling properties allow your body to transform into the recovery mode. Ultimately, massage therapy will create lasting feelings of relaxation and improved mood and cognitive function.
2. It helps to reduce stress levels
Stress is usually considered a great risk factor for a number of chronic health conditions. What’s more, it can make your symptoms even worse. When your brain senses any kind of stress, your blood pressure as well heart rate are bound to increase and your muscles will equally tighten up. Extended feelings of stress can be detrimental to your health. Even though it may not be possible to change life’s stressors, studies have proven that we can actually use stress management tools such as massage therapy as a buffer during stressful events.
Typically, there are lots of massage therapy techniques including Swedish, sports, trigger point, deep tissue, and reflexology and thankfully, both are great at managing and reducing stress. Massage helps to relax, soothe tight and painful muscles, enhance your range of motion in the joints, boost blood circulation and lower stress levels. Simply put, Massage therapy has the potential to calm and relax your body thus relieving you of the unwanted stress.
3. Promotes muscle relaxation
In general, the primary purpose of massage therapy is to target and identify the source of the body’s pain, which are often located around the muscles and joints. If conducted by a highly qualified and experienced therapist, this type of wellness technique may help to reduce the tension in your muscles thus enhancing flexibility and providing the much-needed relaxation to the affected muscles. What’s more, massage therapy plays a significant role in promoting circulation to the affected muscles, and in turn, this may help in increasing the flow of nutrients and oxygen to your damaged tissues.
It is also critical to mention that triggers the body to release pain-killing hormones, also known as endorphins which raise serotonin and dopamine levels in the body. The two hormones help the body both physically and emotionally. Simply put, they promote faster healing, effective pain management.
4. Improves circulation
If you want to experience improved blood circulation in your body, massage therapy should be your ultimate treatment option. Improved circulation is part of the good things that happen in the body as a result of the body receiving massage on a regular basis. Improved blood circulation helps the damaged and tense body muscles to receive the much-needed oxygen and nutrients they need to heal. Massage boosts circulation because the pressure it creates helps to transport blood through the congested body areas. The release of this kind of pressure causes new blood rich in oxygen to flow in. It is one of the best massage therapy advantages.
What’s more, the squeezing and gentle pulling helps to flush out the lactic acid from the muscles and this, in turn, improves the circulation of lymph fluid. If you didn’t know, the lymph fluid transports metabolic waste away from the internal organs resulting in improved body function.
5. It helps to improve body posture
Research has shown that a significant number of people are currently experiencing neck, back as well as muscle pain from a variety of possible causes. However, it has also been established that the primary cause of these types of pain is definitely poor posture. The chances are high that you’ll not practice good posture while sleeping or when at work. Chronic back pain, which is arguably the number one cause for missed work days and also among the top causes of disability, often results from poor posture.
Thankfully, massage therapy, if administered correctly, can help alleviate posture-related problems. Massage therapy can possibly help put the body back into its proper alignment. Typically, massage enables your body to relax thus loosening the muscles that were previously tense as a result of poor posture. Consequently, this allows the body to perfectly positioning itself in its natural and pain-free posture.
6. Strengthen the immune system
Lots of scientific studies have shown that one of the advantages of massage therapy is boosting the immune system. Getting a massage treatment not only helps improve body posture but equally helps benefit your immune system. Routine massage sessions guarantee many benefits and strengthening your immune system is one of them. It is common knowledge that people who experience extreme levels of stress are relatively more vulnerable to incidences of injury and illness. Stress also results in poor nutrition, sleep disturbances and these, in turn, may impact on your immune system.
When you are suffering from a weakened immune system, you are easily prone to attacks by various diseases. Massage therapy helps to stimulate your body’s self-defense mechanisms and enhance the body’s capacity to deliver nourishment. In this regard, massage plays a similar role to that of exercise or an intense workout program. It helps to keep your body fine-tuned, thus keeping the body’s immune system resilient, active and strong. It is also imperative to note that massage helps to stimulate the lymph-nodes, a phenomenon that helps recharge the body’s natural defense system.
7. Eases muscle pain
There are potentially endless causes of muscle pain. Also referred to as myalgia, muscle aches are extremely common and nearly everybody has experienced some form of discomfort in their muscles at one point. Of course, this is due to the fact that muscle tissues found in virtually all parts of the body. On most occasions, muscle pain results from excess tension, stress or intense physical activity.
Thankfully, muscle pain and discomfort often respond well to home treatment, and massage therapy is one such type of home treatment that can effectively alleviate muscle pain.
Vigorous workout or activity is known to cause tears in muscle fibers, resulting in an immune reaction; inflammation. Home-based or professional massage therapies may help reduce the extent of inflammation. Typically, massage helps to limit the production of cytokines, body compounds known to play a significant role in inflammation. What’s more, body massage stimulates the production of mitochondria, the small powerhouses found in cells which convert glucose into energy essential for repair and cell function.
8. It soothes anxiety and depression
Today’s economic demands, work commitments, and busy schedules only imply that everybody is bound to suffer from some form of depression and anxiety. Simply put, life comes with periods of stress, and stress, on the other hand, can result in muscle tension, anxiety and depression. Massage therapy is an excellent way for people to get rid of anxiety and depression caused by family dynamics, burnout, uncontrollable life events, stress and much more.
Increased levels of anxiety can take its toll on your body and spirit. Stressful events often result in high levels of anxiety. Massage can help reduce the levels of anxiety. Typically, it incorporates elements of stress reduction, mindfulness and tension relief which is a more holistic approach to the management of both depression and anxiety. Research has also indicated that massage can potentially help reduce the severity of both clinical and situational depression.
9. It improves sleep
If you have ever wanted to sleep better, there is no better answer than massage therapy! Sleep disorders are extremely common and massage therapy has been shown to help enhance sleep patterns and has been used since time immemorial as a natural remedy for sleep-related disorders. Sleep is necessary for good health and is equally essential for promoting normal and perfect metabolism. A sleep disorder can potentially affect your quality of life and the consequences of this can have detrimental effects on your overall wellbeing. Improving your sleep is another popular massage therapy advantages.
Typically, massage helps to reduce stress, release tension, lower heart rate, improve blood circulation and lower heart rate. All these relaxing effects, therefore, makes massage therapy a critical sleep enhancement tool because it helps to restore healthy restful sleep patterns. Massage therapy is usually effective at treating sleep-related problems which stem from migraine headaches, joint stiffness, muscle pain, and stress.
10. It helps to relieve headaches
Did you know that an estimated forty-five million Americans suffer from chronic headaches and migraines? In fact, chronic headaches are arguably the most common medical complaints that healthcare practitioners get every passing year. Of course, there are a number of over-the-counter medications that you can easily use to treat your headaches. However, nobody would want to accumulate lots of medication in his body as a result of chronic migraine or headache! Massage therapy presents a more natural, affordable and effective way to combat chronic headaches.
Typically, there are two types of headaches, including migraines and tension headaches. Tension headaches can occur as a result of muscle spasms, hormonal fluctuations, dehydration, poor neck alignment, anxiety, and stress. On the other hand, migraines often occur as a result of environmental irritants, food sensitivities, blood sugar levels, vascular and neurological problems. Migraines are always severe and may last up to several days. Both migraines and tension headaches have been effectively treated using massage therapy.
11. Eliminate toxins
Massage is usually administered to stimulate the body’s soft tissues, and this may, in turn, help release toxins through the lymphatic and blood system. Massage causes chemicals to be eliminated from the body, a phenomenon that helps to drive out toxins out of your muscles. What’s more, massage has been shown to help stimulate the lymph nodes to move around, and this plays a critical role in driving toxins out of the body. It is also worth to mention that the process of manipulating the body’s soft tissues such as tendons, muscles, skin as well as connective tissues helps the body’s natural healing mechanisms to remain active.
12. Improve flexibility
If you have ever wanted to improve your flexibility and range of motion, look no further than massage therapy. Lots of clinical studies have pointed out that massage helps to enhance muscle flexibility and it’s no secret that many athletes often seek massage treatment to improve their flexibility, especially after strenuous activity. Massage is an excellent treatment option for maintaining and improving motion and flexibility.
On most occasions, massage therapy tends to concentrate on connective tissues, ligaments, tendons, muscles, and joints. Routine massage helps to improve flexibility, your range of motion thus keeping your fluid and joints fairly more flexible. Massage is a great way to relieve your stressed muscles and stimulate the flow of blood in the body. These two factors help to enhance flexibility. It is also imperative to note that the prospect of incorporating stretching and massage therapy into your fitness routine will help reduce muscle soreness after exercise.
13. Reduce fatigue
The massage therapy will help boost mood and better quality sleep and make people feel more rejuvenated. There is no doubt that fatigue is a type of health condition that nearly everyone has experienced at one point in time. Common symptoms of fatigue include prolonged and unexplained feelings of headaches, joint pain, tiredness, sore throat, and insomnia.
Massage is one of the most preferred types of alternative therapies to treat or manage symptoms of fatigue. Massage helps in minimizing restlessness, anxiety, and depression and equally helps to enhance the quality of sleep. When the right technique is incorporate, massage therapy can be incredibly helpful in managing the symptoms of chronic fatigue.
14. It energizes the body
If you thought that these are the only advantages of massage therapy, then you are wrong! This type of treatment technique can use to energize your body. Regular massage has been proven to help the body to function at its optimal levels. Scientific research has proven that massage triggers the release of the so-called feel-good hormones; dopamine and serotonin. What’s more, massage helps to improve blood circulation in all essential parts of the body including the brain. The subsequent supply of nutrients and blood to key sectors of the body will help in energizing the body.
15. It reduces swelling
Nobody should dispute the fact that massage therapy is an excellent treatment option for swelling. It is always the perfect way to reduce both post-surgery and post-swelling incidences. Swelling can occur as a result of injury, surgery or trauma. Of course, it can also occur as a result of a blockage in your lymphatic system. Swelling can seem painful and tender to touch and can equally slow down the healing process.
A broad range of massage techniques can use to reduce or manage to swell. The most common techniques used in reducing swelling are deep strokes, lymphatic drainage and perhaps effleurage. However, these techniques help to stimulate the flow of blood around the affected body area. This stimulation of blood ensures the sufficient flow of both oxygen. And nutrients needed to help repair the damaged tissues for a relatively faster healing process.
16. It improves heart health
The scientifically controlled studies have revealed that massage can possibly help improve heart health and overall cardiovascular function. Even though there are other possible causes of poor heart health, stress is arguably the most common cause of poor cardiovascular health. Typical massage therapy helps to increase the production of endorphins. It improve blood circulation, reduce blood pressure, stress levels and slow heart rate. All benefits which can contribute to enhanced heart health.
It is also imperative to note that massage therapy, when carried out on a regular basis, helps reduce the occurrence of cardiac arrhythmia. It also helps to ease heart and muscle strain. Because it channels the circulation of blood toward the heart while at the same time, helping to relax contracted muscles.
17. It improves chronic constipation
Consistent research has also shown that massage is effective at improving chronic constipation. Constipation happens when your bowel movements become somewhat less frequent are hard to pass. Currently, constipation is one of the most common digestive issues globally. Regular massage can help reduce the severity of constipation by helping you to release waste products as well as gas.
All you need to do is seek an established massage therapist to carry out an abdominal massage on your body. Massage helps in treating constipation by increasing the frequency of your bowel movements, decreasing colonial transit period and relieving abdominal pain and discomfort.
These are just some of the compelling reasons why you should seriously consider incorporating massage therapy into your life. Currently, there are potentially countless massage centers in major urban centers. You can easily find the perfect one that suits your needs and preferences. What’s more, massage techniques are often straightforward and easy to learn. In fact, you can use a massage chair for therapy at home and achieve the best results.
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