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Conducted by an independent research firm, the annual survey is the ninth commissioned by the American Massage Therapy Association (AMTA).

It shows that one in five U.S. adults got a therapeutic massage in the last year. Three-fourths of them would recommend it to others — one reason for the body therapy's growing popularity.

Among those who actually had a massage in the past year, 28 percent say massage therapy gives them "the greatest relief from pain." Another 28 percent say medication gives them the greatest relief. Chiropractic comes in third at 11 percent, followed by 8 percent who got the most pain relief from physical therapy, 3 percent who said acupuncture was best for their pain, and 1 percent whose pain best responded to biofeedback.Survey Findings

The survey, conducted by Opinion Research Corp. International in Princeton, N.J., surveyed a national sample of 1,014 U.S. adults. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percent. It found that:

* 90 percent of Americans feel massage is good for a person's health.

* 93 percent agree with the statement that massage can be effective for pain relief.

* Use of massage in people age 65 and older has tripled from 4 percent in 1997 to 15 percent in 2005.

* 22 percent of Americans had a massage in the past year; 34 percent had a massage in the last five years.

* 73 percent of those who had a massage would recommend it to a person they know.

* 46 percent of respondents at some time had a massage to relieve pain.

* Among respondents who discussed massage with their health care provider, 57 percent said this health professional strongly recommended massage or encouraged them to get a massage.


Whole-Body Approach To Pain

Massaging sore muscles obviously reduces pain. But massage is really meant as a whole-body approach, says AMTA vice president and licensed massage therapist M.K. Brennan, RN, LMBT.

"One of the things about massage that helps pain is that it goes down to the heart of where people feel their pain," Brennan tells WebMD. "There is the overall sense of well-being one can get from the massage approach. And the stress responses in the body associated with pain, such as elevated cortisol, are reduced through massage."

For these reasons, massage can be used to treat many different kinds of pain, says Tiffany Field, PhD, director of the Touch Research Institute at the University of Miami School of Medicine.

"Basically we have found massage to be effective in chronic pain syndromes in arthritis and diabetes; in depressive disorders such as ones that involve addiction like eating disorders; in chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia and other autoimmune disorders — HIV-associated diseases, too," Field told WebMD in a June 29 interview. "We have looked at the A-to-Z of medical conditions, and we have not found a single condition massage has not been effective for."

(WebMD)
Brennan says all trained massage therapists learn the same basic techniques. As they go on to advanced training, massage therapists may specialize in one or more specific kinds of massage. There are more than 200 of these techniques, according to the Massage.com web site.


Qualifications For Therapists

Brennan recommends that a person seeking therapeutic massage look for a well-trained professional. Most states, she says, require that massage therapists be licensed or registered. And the AMTA web site maintains a referral list of massage therapists who meet certain standards:

* Graduate from a minimum 500 in-class-hour massage therapy training program, or

* Pass the National Certification Examination in therapeutic massage and bodywork, or

* Possess a current AMTA-accepted license to practice, and

* Earn continuing education credit, and

* Uphold the AMTA Code of Ethics.

"If you are looking for someone dealing with chronic or acute pain issues, you may want to look for someone who does sports massage, neuromuscular massage therapy, orthopedic massage, or someone who does craniosacral work or uses strain/counterstrain techniques," Brennan says. "But any list like this leaves out some qualified professionals. The best thing to do is to find a qualified massage therapist and talk with him or her about what you want massage for, be it relaxation or pain relief. Then ask what is their experience in addressing that issue."

Brennan says weekly massage is most effective but admits that not everyone has the time or money to get massage therapy that often.

Field, however, has a solution. Though there's no replacement for a qualified massage professional, she recommends that families learn basic massage techniques.

"In our studies, we try with adults to get them two 20-minute massages a week," she says. "With kids, we use parents as therapists so they can give their children massages every night, 10 minutes before bedtime. We say this because most of the children in our studies have chronic illnesses and can really benefit from a daily dose of massage."

Sources: 2005 Massage Therapy Consumer Survey, Opinion Research Corp. International, Princeton, N.J., conducted Aug. 11-14, 2005. M.K. Brennan, RN, LMBT, vice president, American Massage Therapy Association. Tiffany Field, PhD, director, Touch Research Institute, University of Miami School of Medicine.

Article courtesy of http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/10/26/health/webmd/main982596.shtml

Free Massage Information]]> Massage Articles http://massagelotion.net/massage-blogs/index.php?itemid=14 Mon, 25 Jun 2007 18:21:53 -0500 http://massagelotion.net/massage-blogs/index.php?itemid=13 newborns can help their children sleep through the night and cry less by giving them a gentle massage, according to new research from Warwick Medical School and the Institute of Education at the University of Warwick.

The researchers, led by Dr. Angela Underdown, examined nine previous studies on baby massage that included 598 infants younger than a year old. In the studies, health workers had trained the parents in baby massage.

"There are indications that infants who were massaged were more relaxed, probably due to lower levels of stress hormones such as cortisol, compared to infants who did not receive massage," Underdown said.

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Infant Massage -- long practiced in Africa and Asia -- has been shown to be as effective as rocking in helping babies cry less and sleep through the night. Typically, the massage involves touching the baby with light pressure from head to toe, gently moving the muscles beneath the skin, while looking into the baby's eyes.

"As there are indications that infant massage may have an effect on sleep and crying, this would seem a useful technique that parents can use with their babies to help them relax and promote sleep," Underdown said.

The researchers found no negative effects of infant massage, and noted that mothers suffering from postnatal depression who massaged their infants built better relationships with their babies.

Underdown urged parents interested in learning the technique to seek advice from midwives or health workers.

According to natural health advocate Mike Adams, modern-day medicine has caused people to forget "the healing power of therapeutic touch," and its positive health effects.

"All humans need loving physical contact, including babies," Adams said. "Parents can literally boost their baby's immune function, accelerate healing and speed recovery from physical stress by giving their babies the gift of human touch. It's powerful medicine."


Click Here For Free Massage Oils & Massage Lotions]]> General http://massagelotion.net/massage-blogs/index.php?itemid=13 Mon, 13 Nov 2006 18:23:30 -0600 http://massagelotion.net/massage-blogs/index.php?itemid=12
In two studies, hand massage and gentle touching during conversation helped ease agitation and restore appetite in dementia patients over short periods of about an hour.

"Although the available reliable evidence supports the use of massage and touch, it is so limited in scope that it is not possible to draw general conclusions about benefits in dementia," say lead authors Dr. Niels Viggo Hansen and colleagues.

"However, even if touch therapy aims only to reintroduce something which has been lost in the professionalization and institutionalization of care, it may still turn out to be a relatively effective, inexpensive and low-risk intervention," said Viggo Hansen, of the Knowledge and Research Center for Alternative Medicine, part of Denmark's Ministry of Health.
Free Massage Oils and Massage LotionsThe review appears in the latest issue of The Cochrane Library, a publication of The Cochrane Collaboration, an international organization that evaluates medical research. Systematic reviews draw evidence-based conclusions about medical practice after considering both the content and quality of existing medical trials on a topic.

The Cochrane reviewers could only find two small studies, involving a total of 110 participants, of high enough quality to include in the review. Although the effect on behavior in the two studies was short-lived, some researchers and caregivers suggest that massage might also improve memory and cognition in those with dementia.

Cynthia Bologna, a Petaluma, Calif., massage therapist who works extensively with people with dementia, said she often works with patients to bring about short-term effects such as relaxation.

However, Bologna has noticed some long-term effects and said her clients "respond with recognition to the quality of my touch" even when they don't remember her name or recognize her from visit to visit. "So whereas I'm not sure about long-term cognitive memory, it seems as though their sensory memory is being enhanced," she said.

Viggo Hansen N, Jorgensen T, Ortenblad L. Massage and touch for dementia The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2006, Issue 4.

The Cochrane Collaboration is an international nonprofit, independent organization that produces and disseminates systematic reviews of health care interventions and promotes the search for evidence in the form of clinical trials and other studies of interventions. Visit http://www.cochrane.org for more information.
Free Massage Oils and Massage Lotions]]> Massage Articles http://massagelotion.net/massage-blogs/index.php?itemid=12 Fri, 3 Nov 2006 14:51:17 -0600 http://massagelotion.net/massage-blogs/index.php?itemid=11 The review looked at studies in which women used a massage technique in the last four or five weeks of pregnancy to train the lower genital tract for childbirth. During perineal massage a women kneads the tissue below the vagina to prepare the tissue to expand more easily during birth.
There was a 15 percent reduction in episiotomies among the women who practiced perineal massage the review found, based on results from three trials, including data from 2,434 women.
The findings appear in the most recent issue of The Cochrane Library, publication of The Cochrane Collaboration, an international organization that evaluates medical research. Systematic reviews draw evidence-based conclusions about medical practice after considering both the content and quality of existing medical trials on a topic.Lead reviewer Dr. Michael Beckmann and his colleagues also discovered an added benefit: Three months after birth, women who had practiced massage were less likely to report perineal pain -- whether or not they had an episiotomy.

Those positive results were most clear for mothers having their first vaginal birth. But Beckmann said the statistical trend of the research suggests that the benefits would also hold true for the other, smaller sub-groups of women in the study -- given larger sample sizes, more time and research.

An episiotomy is performed in up to 35 percent of vaginal births in the United States each year, affecting as many as 1 million women. But Beckmann said the number of episiotomies performed around the world is dropping following a general shift toward reserving the surgical procedure for emergencies.

A May 2005 article in the Journal of the American Medical Association cast doubt on many of the rationales offered for routine episiotomy. That evidence review found episiotomy does not reduce pain or improve healing in the short term, or prevent incontinence or impaired sexual function in the long term – when compared with natural tears.
Many expectant mothers have heard about Kegel exercises to strengthen the pelvic-floor muscles before birth, but perineal massage isn't as well-known or recommended as often.
"It's not standard in obstetrics, but there is interest in this area," said Beckmann, an obstetrician with the QE2 Jubilee Hospital in Queensland, Australia.
"It's amazing the number of women who are fearful about cuts and tears and afraid of an episiotomy," said Sally Avenson, a certified nurse midwife in western Washington state.
As more women demand greater control and involvement in their childbirth plan, Avenson said, preventing an episiotomy -- or the spontaneous tears that can occur at childbirth -- has gained mainstream attention, and become a goal for all providers who care for pregnant women.
Perineal massage is now common in some corners of maternal health care, Beckmann said, so "it's nice to see there's some evidence behind it." He now says expecting women should be provided information on perineal massage and its likely benefits.
In the three reviewed studies, women practiced perineal massage for as little a four minutes three to four times a week, and as much as 10 minutes daily, beginning in week 34 of their pregnancy.
Pregnant women may not hear about perineal massage from their obstetrician, but midwives have recommended the practice for years. Avenson, a lecturer with the University of Washington's department of Family and Child Nursing, said it is difficult to separate the effect of perineal massage alone. But she includes the technique in her discussions about "perineal management."
"It goes along with a plan for exercise and nutrition. You can't isolate the perineum from health," she said.
"It's not anything where I guarantee you won't tear, but it is something you have power to do," said Avenson, who's led her own midwifery practice for 25 years.]]> Massage Articles http://massagelotion.net/massage-blogs/index.php?itemid=11 Thu, 2 Nov 2006 17:28:47 -0600 http://massagelotion.net/massage-blogs/index.php?itemid=10
In the study "Vagal activity, gastric motility, and weight gain in massaged preterm neonates," published in July in The Journal of Pediatrics, the TRI team revisited a 1986 study that first revealed that massage therapy facilitates weight gain among preterm infants. Additional studies have yielded the same result. This time, researchers wanted to find out why. They set out to test whether moderate-pressure massage stimulates vagal activity, leading to more efficient food absorption through increased gastric motility and the release of food-absorption hormones, such as insulin.
Free Massage Oils & Lotions Click Here!In the study, which was conducted through the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, 48 hospitalized preterm infants were randomly placed into a control group, a massage-therapy group, or a sham massage-therapy group. The massage-therapy group received three 15-minute periods of massage per day for five days. First the infant lay prone, and was stroked with moderate pressure for five one-minute segments: from the top of head to the neck and then back again; from the neck across the shoulders; from the upper back to the waist and back again; from the thigh to the foot and back on both legs; and from the shoulder to the hand and back again on both arms. In a supine position, both of the infant’s legs and arms were extended and flexed.

The sham group received the same protocol, except light pressure was used during the massage strokes.

Measurements taken during the study included mean weight gain and calories consumed per day, heart rate, automatic nervous system function and gastric motility. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to assess equivalence across groups and for group differences in weight gain, calorie consumption and days until discharge. Group (control vs. massage vs. sham) by time (pre/during/post) ANOVAs were conducted on vagal and sympathetic activity and gastric motility measures. Pearson’s correlation analysis was used to assess the relationships between weight gain, vagal activity and gastric motility.

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Data analysis revealed that weight gain was significantly related to changes in vagal tone during the massage, and changes in gastric motility after the massage. The massaged preterm infants gained 27-percent more weight than infants in the control group, even though they did not consume more calories. Their vagal activity peaked during the massage and remained higher than baseline through the 15-minute post-stimulation period.

The moderate-massage-therapy group also exhibited 21-percent greater weight gain than the sham massage group. This latter group did not exhibit a significant change in vagal activity or gastric motility during the treatment or post-treatment phases of the study. "These moderate- versus light-pressure massage therapy findings suggest the involvement of pressure receptors and/or baroreceptors," the study authors noted.

"The change in vagal activity elicited by massage therapy was significantly related to weight gain during the 5-day treatment period. This suggests that neonates who demonstrated increased vagal activity during massage are more likely to benefit from massage therapy," they concluded.

—Source: Touch Research Institutes, Department of Pediatrics, University of Miami School of Medicine; and University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, in Miami, Florida. Authors: Miguel A. Diego, M.A., Ph.D.; Tiffany Field, O.T.R., M.S., Ph.D.; and Maria Hernandez-Reif, M.S., Ph.D. Originally published in the Journal of Pediatrics, July 2005, Vol. 147, Issue 1, pp. 50-55.
]]> Massage Articles http://massagelotion.net/massage-blogs/index.php?itemid=10 Fri, 20 Oct 2006 20:13:45 -0500 http://massagelotion.net/massage-blogs/index.php?itemid=9
When a woman is pregnant, she is often uncomfortable, with low back and other pains. Her obstetrician will tell her this is normal. However, a good pre-natal massage can alleviate the pain she is feeling, improve her mood and mental attitude, and thus help the baby by having a happier mom.

An expectant mom will feel lighter, with increased capability to maintain good posture after a massage, which is essential in pregnancy. Prenatal massage is especially beneficial for improved circulation and removal of toxins from the body, which is especially helpful for expectant moms. Of course, I tell everyone to drink lots of water after a massage to help remove the toxins dislodged from the body during the massage.
Free Massage Oils and LotionsAs massage therapists, we have special ways to treat pregnant women. In the second trimester, we might bolster her and have her lay on her tummy comfortably. Later in the pregnancy, we might utilize a position where she lays on her side. We can easily provide soothing massage strokes to her back using this position.

An expecting mom needs lots of attention on her back, especially her lower back. During a pre-natal massage, I spend a lot of time in this area. Her neck and shoulders are also a focus, as stress is commonly found there. I focus on her legs, using centripetal strokes toward the heart to reduce blood pooling common in the legs of pregnant women. I do a full body massage for expecting moms, which includes the head/scalp, feet, hands, and face. Gentleness is key while in areas like the shoulders and lower back, I am able to provide a deep enough stroke to address the pain the patient might be feeling due to temporary additional weight during pregnancy.

I normally don’t massage women in their first trimester of pregnancy without the permission of their obstetrician. After the first trimester, and after the baby is born, massage is extremely beneficial.

After the baby is born, every new mom is under all kinds of stress – sleep deprivation, a complete change in her life, and physical stress due to caring for the newborn. New moms need special pampering and comfort. I really enjoy working with new moms to help them adjust to the physical and emotional demands of their babies with all the love they can give. By comforting them and making them feel physically better, I feel that I am doing a wonderful service for the whole family.

A lactating new mom once asked me after the massage, because of released toxins, if her breast milk was safe for the baby. Good question, but yes, no new toxins were introduced that were not already there.

It’s not an easy task, bringing this new generation into this world. Anything we can do as massage therapists to enhance the pregnancy and post-partum to alleviate discomforts is an honor!

About the author:
Denise Conlon, one of the licensed massage therapists at Aegean Skin and Massage Therapies in Boca Raton. Denise worked as a Doula for five years, and is certified in infant massage. The word "doula," comes from the Greek word for the most important female slave or servant in an ancient Greek household, the woman who probably helped the lady of the house through her childbearing. The word has come to refer to "a woman experienced in childbirth who provides continuous physical, emotional, and informational support to the mother before, during and just after childbirth." (Klaus, Kennell and Klaus, Mothering the Mother).
Free Massage Oils and Lotions]]> Massage Articles http://massagelotion.net/massage-blogs/index.php?itemid=9 Sat, 14 Oct 2006 02:29:05 -0500 http://massagelotion.net/massage-blogs/index.php?itemid=8
An expert?s massage with aromatic massage oil does much more than create a pleasant sensation on the skin. The massage oil penetrates into the skin working on the soft tissues (the muscles, tendons, and ligaments) to improve muscle tone. The massage oils reach beneath the deep layers of the skin and possibly stimulate the affected organs for instant relief. Massage oils thus stimulate blood circulation and assist the lymphatic system (which runs parallel to the circulatory system) thereby improving the elimination of waste throughout the body.
Massage oils like Grapeseed oil, Jojoba oil and Sweet Almond oil are very light on the skin as they soak quickly leaving the skin soft, nourished and moisturized with out any greasy feeling. Massage oils can be categorized as the following to serve four different purposes:

Free Massage Oil SamplesENERGIZING
Energizing Massage Oils boost your spirits and energy as well as relax your muscles. Most Energizing Massage Oil contains peppermint, lemon, rosemary, spearmint and tangerine as essential oils.

RELAXING
Relaxation Massage Oils is beneficial at the time of stress, muscle cramps and tension. They make your body muscles relaxed and releases tension. The Relaxing Massage Oil blend generally contains ylang, clary sage, bergamot essential oils, and lavender.

SPORTS
Sports massage oils relieve you from spasms, muscle cramps, tension and reactivate your muscles to face the challenge once again. Sports Massage Oil mostly contains lavender, rosemary, peppermint, eucalyptus, and ginger essential oils.

SENUSOUS
The Sensuous Massage Oils are for those intimate moments; to make your partner go wild for you. These types of massage oils contain sandalwood, patchouli and rose essential oils.

Massage oils thus in general help us to:

1. Relaxing.
2. Soothing.
3. Healing.
4. Releasing tension, stiffness, cramps and pain.
6. Improving breathing.
7. Improving circulation.
8. Enhancing well-being.

Tip: It is important that you do not go out in the sun for at least 8 hours after using any of the massage oils as you may get skin irritation if exposed to sun. Body massage is not prescribed for pregnant women or children under the age of 3. It is always advisable that you undergo allergy test prior to using body massage oil for safety purposes.

SunSign Oils
Website]]> Massage Articles http://massagelotion.net/massage-blogs/index.php?itemid=8 Tue, 10 Oct 2006 14:27:37 -0500 http://massagelotion.net/massage-blogs/index.php?itemid=7
A team of University of Melbourne researchers have reviewed all available literature on complementary and self-help treatments commonly used by young people with depressive disorders.

Therapies that involve art, books, light, relaxation, distraction and massage were included in the review, published in the Medical Journal of Australia.
Click Here For Free Massage Oils & LotionsWhile many of these have had success with depressed adults, Professor Anthony Jorm and his colleagues said their work "found limited evidence, mainly of poor quality, for such treatments in children and adolescents".

About three per cent of Australians aged six to 17 suffer from depression.

Antidepressants are rarely prescribed for mild to moderate cases because of concerns about safety and effectiveness.

And recent studies raising concerns about suicidal tendencies triggered by medication have encouraged some with more severe depression to go drug-free.

Parents often turn to alternative therapies but Prof Jorm's review found evidence to support them was limited and often baseless.

The so-called natural antidepressant St John's Wort, vitamin C, the amino acid glutamine and exercise were among the few treatments that had adequate supporting evidence.

The specialists also found evidence that light therapy - which involves exposure to simulated sunshine in a light box - was effective in winter but not year-round.

Massage and relaxation techniques had a proven immediate effect on emotional state but there was no evidence to support their long-term effectiveness, they said.

Book therapy and the so-called distraction technique had "insufficient evidence" and art therapy - drawing and painting to express feelings - "does not appear to be effective".

Based on their findings, the researchers called for more research into the safety and effectiveness of these alternatives.

"Given that antidepressant medication is not recommended as a first line treatment for children and adolescents with mild to moderate depression there is a pressing need to extend the range of treatments available for this age group," Prof Jorm wrote.

He also recommended that GPs discuss the pros and cons of complementary treatments with the patient or parent to help them make an informed decision.

This may stop them relying on health information on the internet, which he said was of "widely variable quality".

]]> General http://massagelotion.net/massage-blogs/index.php?itemid=7 Sat, 7 Oct 2006 01:33:40 -0500 http://massagelotion.net/massage-blogs/index.php?itemid=6
Sound.

It's something we take for granted. But a dozen cancer patients at the Bennett Cacer Center have learned it can also heal.

They were recent participants at what has been billed a "sound therapy" workshop, the third held at the Bennett Center this year. According to Amy Zabin, music therapist at Bennett, sound waves can help balance the body. "Chemo throws off the body," she says. "Sound therapy can be an internal massage that's deeply relaxing and can restore body harmony."

With sound therapy, participants tap lightly on quartz crystal bowls with rubber-tipped mallets, producing a humming sound, a vibration. These vibrations spread through the body "and result in a very delicate internal massage of all the cells," says Zabin.

While one person taps the bowl, another lies on a mattress covered with colorful sheets and closes his or her eyes to "let" the sound in. Deborah Pantalena, a registered holistic nurse, gently passes tuning forks over the body. One person said they felt like electric shocks.

A man, who asked to be identified only as Keith, fell asleep, while others stayed conscious but clearly relaxed.

It may sound like hocus-pocus but one woman swears the stomach virus she had the night before, and the nausea that remained, were cured by the session. She asked not to be identified, but likened the experience to "floating on a cloud."

Then there is Barbara Peloso, 49, of Pound Ridge, N.Y., who says she's in pain every day. Struck in the chest by a horse's hoof, Peloso's sternum was crushed and her lungs collapsed. She was air-lifted to a major trauma center.

"I saw my dad in this beautiful garden. He said, don't come in here. Then I went looking for my sister and I was on a merry-go-round. The whole time I'm watching them cutting my clothes off me. There was light everywhere."

Her father and sister are dead.

Peloso was in a coma the entire time she was "talking" to her father, and clinically dead when she arrived at the trauma center, and though this all happened 27 years ago, it's exactly what she felt at the workshop.

"I felt like a seesaw in water, right before you said to come out of it," Peloso tells Zabin. "I don't know how else to describe it," she says, wonder in her voice. "I just started crying." Though she had just completed treatment for breast cancer that day, which can be an emotional time, Peloso feels it was the workshop that opened her to her feelings.

This was Norwalk resident Laura Randall's second time participating in the workshop. "The first was life-changing," says this 41-year-old breast cancer survivor. "My father died right before I was diagnosed, and I have medical power-of-attorney for my mother because she's very sick, and our family kind of fell apart. This reminded me that I need to take care of me."

And what a place to do so. The atrium proves the perfect venue for such a workshop, with its lush, green plants and rushing water. Add to this setting the sound of the vibrating bowls and the haunting flute music played by Zabin, and it becomes impossible not to feel pleasantly drowsy, at peace.

Michael Weiner of Bridgeport, a prostate cancer survivor, also came to the last sound workshop. Did he like it? "Definitely. Without question." When the man who fell asleep on the mattress needs to be awakened, Weiner gently reaches out and touches his leg. Later, the two are in deep conversation about prostate cancer treatments.

At the conclusion of the session, people look slightly dazed, but happy. "I feel 20 pounds lighter," says Peloso.

"Your body takes in these waves," says Pantalena. "You feel it in your cells, your skin, your back. The vibrations we make from tapping the bowls are healing waves penetrating your every cell, soothing your body, soothing your mind, soothing your soul."

For more information, contact Fran Becker, Bennett Cancer Center, 276-7841.

Copyright © 2006, Southern Connecticut Newspapers, Inc.

By Deborah Disesa Hirsch
Special Correspondent

Published October 3 2006

]]> Massage Articles http://massagelotion.net/massage-blogs/index.php?itemid=6 Sat, 7 Oct 2006 01:31:12 -0500 http://massagelotion.net/massage-blogs/index.php?itemid=5 "Parkinson's Disease Symptoms are Reduced by Massage Therapy and Progressive Muscle Exercises," was conducted by the Touch Research Institute at the University of Miami, along with staff from the university's neurology department and Duke University's pharmacology department.
Sixteen adults diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, a chronic disease of the central nervous system characterized by tremor, muscle weakness and rigidity, were randomly assigned to receive either massage therapy or progressive muscle relaxation, for 30 minutes twice a week for five weeks.
The massage consisted of 15 minutes in the prone position, focusing on the back, buttocks, ribs, thighs, calves and feet; and 15 minutes in the supine position, focusing on the thighs, lower legs, feet, hands, forearms, upper arms, neck, face and head.
Urine samples were collected to determine participants' stress-hormone levels.
According to the physicians and the subjects' self-reports, daily functioning improved for those in the massage-therapy group.
"These data are consistent with previous research showing improvement on activities of daily living following massage therapy, for example, for patients with multiple sclerosis and spinal-cord injuries," state the study's authors. "Together these findings suggest that massage therapy enhances functioning in progressive or degenerative central nervous system disorders or conditions."
The urine samples revealed a decrease in the stress hormones norepinephrine and epinephrine for the massage-therapy group and an increase in dopamine and epinephrine for the progressive-relaxation group.
"These findings suggest that progressive muscle relaxation exercises may increase dopamine levels, which have been associated with both a progression of the disease and a slowing of the disease," state the study's authors.
Both groups reported more effective sleep by the end of the study, but the massage group alone reported less sleep disturbance.
- Source: The Touch Research Institute and the department of neurology at the University of Miami School of Medicine; Duke University Department of Pharmacology. Authors: Maria Hernandez-Reif, Ph.D., Tiffany Field, Ph.D., Shay Largie, Christy Cullen, Julia Beutler, Chris Sanders, William Weiner, Dinorah Rodriguez-Bateman, Lisette Zelaya, Saul Schanberg and Cynthia Kuhn. Originally published in the Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies, July 2002, Vol. 6, No. 2, pp. 177-182