12 Health Benefits Everyone Ought To Know About Massage
People generally feeling better after massages. Apart from feeling good, there are many benefits associated with massage. It is great to know more about how massage can make us better.
1. Lower level of stress hormones
There are 3 major stress hormones: Adrenaline, Cortisol and Norepinephrine. Massage will move your body from a tense state to a relaxed state, which reduces the level of those stress hormones. A good massage can have lasting effects on your body. This will result in lower blood pressure, reduced heart rate and relax muscles.
2. Eliminate toxins inside your body
The lymphatic system is a network of tissues and organs that help rid the body of toxins, waste and other unwanted materials such as carbon dioxide. Having massage will stimulate the related tissues and activate the lymphatic system. Have you sweated during a massage? Sweating is one of the ways the lymphatic system remove toxins from our body.
3. Reduce the sensitivity of pain
We feel relax during the foot massage, this influence pain perception. Massage stimulates blood flow, relieves muscle spasms. The relaxing emotion preventing the neuron from sending pain signals to the brain. It leads to pain relief through the gate control theory.
4. Improve circulation
Individuals with poor circulation can suffer from cold hands and feet due to accumulation of lactic acid in the muscles. Massage stimulates different parts of the body by applying hands-on pressure. The pressure created will move blood through the congested areas, new blood will flow in by releasing this pressure. Different types of massage technique such as squeezing, twisting will remove lactic acid from muscle tissues. Improved circulation can promote healing to the area with stiff and damaged muscles.
5. Improve insomnia
Can you sleep well? A common cause of insomnia is stress. Having a good massage will help you relax and reduce the level of stress hormones. A study also shows that massage induces longer periods of stage 3 and stage 4 sleep (also known as deep sleep).
6. Boost the Immune system
A study in 2010 from the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine shows that regular body massage can increase the level of oxytocin, which can enhance immune function. Individuals who experience high levels of stress have a bigger chance for illness, massage can help us to restore the natural order of our body. It improves our body’s ability to grow, keeping the immune system strong and resilient.
7. Lower blood pressure
Massage may help protect against high blood pressure, it reduces the chance for heart-related disease. Some research indicates that aromatherapy massage may also help lower blood pressure.
8. Build a good posture
Bad posture can quickly become a bad habit that compromises proper spinal alignment. Therapeutic massage works to help loosen muscles & joints and reinforce the body’s natural movements.
9. Helps Treat Myofascial Pain Syndrome
There is a technique called trigger point therapy. A trigger point is a tight area within muscle causes pain in other parts of the body. Those points can occur due to muscle strain from repetitive movements such as improper posture. By applying pressure on those trigger points, we can release those tense muscle and relief muscle pain. Click here to learn more about trigger point science.
10. Post-surgery rehabilitation
It is important to ensure your body will be able to recover and regenerate fast after any kind of surgery. It is natural for swelling to occur after surgery. The increase in circulation after a massage will help to clear fluid causes the swelling.
11. Prevents scar tissue buildup
A scar may take a year or more after surgery to fully heal. No one wants to have the ugly scar tissue to build up during the process. Having quality massage will ensure blood circulation to the scar area which speeds up soft tissue repair and prevent scar tissue build-up.
12. Reduce lower back pain
In a 2001 study from the International Journal of Neuroscience, foot massage therapy helps reduce lower back pain, less depression and their sleep had improved.
In conclusion
Regular massage sessions provide lots of benefits to the human body. It stimulates different parts of our body, relaxes our muscles. We live in a city full of stress and distraction. Most of us suffer from both physical and mental fatigue. Having a good massage can boost our energy, improve our health and recover our body.