Massage Therapy Research

The therapeutic benefits of massage continue to be researched and studied. Recent research has shown the effectiveness of massage for the following conditions:

       Massage therapy for cancer-related fatigue.¹⁰

       Massage for chronic low back pain.¹¹

       Massage therapy for osteoarthritis of the knee.¹¹

       Massage after surgery to help with post-operative pain.¹¹

       Research has also shown massage to be effective in:

Boosting the body’s immune system functioning.¹²

Decreasing the symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome.¹³

Reducing anxiety and lowering blood pressure in stroke patients.¹⁴

Reducing headache frequency.¹⁵

Easing alcohol withdrawal symptoms.¹⁶

Decreasing pain and anxiety in hospitalized cancer patients.¹⁷
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Who Gets Massage, Where And Why?

According to a 2007 Consumer Survey, almost a quarter of all adult Americans (24 percent) had a massage at least once in the last 12 months and 34 percent of adult Americans received a massage in the last five years.

Forty-three percent of women and 25 percent of men have had a massage in the last five years.

Baby boomers have more massages with respondents aged 45 to 64 having an average of seven massage during the past 12 months compared to those aged 18 to 44 who

While the use of massage is growing, the reasons people are turning to massage therapy are also expanding.

More and more people recognize it as an important element in their overall health and wellness. · Almost one-third of adult Americans say they’ve used massage therapy at least one time for pain relief.

Of the people who had at least one massage in the last five years, 30 percent report they did so for health conditions such as pain management, injury rehabilitation, migraine control, or overall wellness.

Eighty-seven percent agree that massage can be effective in reducing pain. 

Eighty-five percent agree that massage can be beneficial to health and wellness.

 References:

¹⁰  The National Institutes of Health, Website:  www.clinicaltrials.gov

¹¹  Field, T., Hernandez-Reif, M., Ironson, G. Massage Therapy Effects on Breast Cancer. (unpublished); 1998.Ironson, G., Field, T., et.al. Massage Therapy is Associated with Enhancement of the Immune System’s Cytotoxic Capacity. Intern. J. Neuroscience. 84:205-217;  1996.Zeitlin, D., et.al. Immunological Effects of Massage Therapy During Academic Stress. Psychosomatic Medicine. 62:83-87; Jan/Feb 2000.

¹²  Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies. 2004

¹³  Complementary Therapies in Nursing and Midwifery. 2004, Vol. 10, pp. 209-216.

¹⁴  American Journal of Public Health. October 2002.

¹⁵  The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine. April 2005, Vol. 11, No. 2. pp.311-313.

¹⁶  Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 2002, Vol. 34, No. 3.

¹⁷  Ferrell-Torry A.T. and Glick O.J. The Use of Therapeutic Massage as a Nursing Intervention to Modify Anxiety and the Perception of Cancer
      Pain. Cancer Nurse.16(2): 93-101; Apr 1993