Wednesday, March 14, 2007

What Are the Benefits of Massage?

There are many physical, mental and emotional benefits of massage. Different types of massage or bodywork share many of the same benefits, while each individual type has some benefits specific to it. What I am presenting here are the shared benefits.

Physical Benefits

The physical benefits come from the direct manipulation of the body’s soft tissues (muscles, ligaments, tendons, and the connective tissue called fascia) and directly or indirectly of the body’s organs/glands.

Many of the benefits are to the muscles, tendons, ligaments and joints: Massage effectively does the following: loosens tight muscles and stretches connective tissue around muscles; eases muscle pain, tension, cramps and spasms; decreases muscle fatigue; firms up muscles; increases muscle strength; quicker recovery from strains (a stretch, tear, or rip in the muscle, tendon or muscle fascia) and sprains (a traumatic joint twist resulting in stretching or total tearing of a ligament and/or to elements of a joint); and improves flexibility; loosens joints; and improves the range of motion of joints.

Some benefits affect the body as a whole: Massage causes the body to relax, stimulates the circulation of the blood, lowers blood pressure for people with hypertension, assists in the removal of toxins from the body, improves lymphatic drainage of metabolic wastes, improves the immune function, delivers nutrients to tissues and cells more efficiently, firms up skin tone, calms the nervous system, and an increase in energy.

Others benefits include quicker healing from injury and illness; aid in recovery from medical and surgical procedures; and relieving the symptoms of many disorders and dysfunctions, including but not limited to the following: asthma; arthritis; carpal tunnel syndrome; chronic and acute pain syndromes; Myofascial pain; headaches; multiple sclerosis; Alzheimer’s; cancer; and temporomandibular joint (TMJ) dysfunction.

Mental and Emotional Benefits:

Most of the mental and emotional benefits of massage are a result of the release of various hormones and chemical substances within the body. The major reason that many people receive massage is for relaxation (mental as well as physical). Massage also relieves stress, depression, anxiety and irritation; improves the length and quality of sleep; increases the ability to concentrate; and improves the sense of well-being.

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