Pharmaceutical Sciences showed that aromatherapy massage significantly reduced psychological stress among elderly nursing home residents.
Reduces Depression A study from Nashville’s Meharry Medi- cal College of 43 HIV patients revealed that Swedish massage reduced their symptoms of depression. Lead research- er Russell Poland, Ph.D., a professor of psychiatry and biobehavioral sciences, observes, “When we designed the study, we didn’t expect to see such a large ef- fect of massage. We remain surprised.” The benefit was echoed by a Uni-
versity of California-Los Angeles study of 95 volunteers that displayed in- creases in their production of oxytocin hormone simultaneous with reductions in adrenocorticotropin hormone. Oxy- tocin is linked to compassion, empathy, maternal affection and social connec- tion, while lowered adrenocorticotropin effects less stress.
Relieves Pain Researchers in the Gynecology and Obstetrics Department of Brazil’s Uni- versity of Sao Paulo studied 46 birthing women and determined that lumbar massage during labor reduced pain by 27 percent. In another study at Beijing’s Chinese PLA General Hospital, deep massage brought relief to 64 patients suffering from chronic low back pain. Relief was reported by a third of
110 headache patients in a Turkish medical school study. Dhaka Medi- cal College Hospital, in Bangladesh, found similar results in a study of 500 headache sufferers, many of which had
migraines. Research from the Univer- sity of Miami’s School of Medicine showed that massage reduced arthritis pain and increased both grip strength and range of motion among 42 rheu- matoid arthritis patients. Lead researcher Tiffany Field,
Ph.D., director of Miami University’s Touch Research Institute, says, “We have known that massage therapy reduces substance P, [a neuropeptide] which causes pain, and that it increases serotonin, the body’s natural pain killer. We also know that deep sleep is criti- cal to lowering substance P, increasing serotonin and reducing pain.”
Expands Acceptance Lucy Liben, dean of massage therapy at the Swedish Institute, affirms the recent research as evidence docu- menting the numerous health ben- efits of massage therapy. “More and more consumers are seeking massage therapy for help with a variety of medi- cal issues and conditions. Doctors are increasingly referring patients for such treatment and hospitals are enlisting more therapists to provide care for patients,” says Liben. “Perhaps most importantly,” she
adds, “research is offering us guidance in our work as massage therapists in how to provide the most effective care for chronic pain or musculoskeletal problems, during cancer treatment, dur- ing the changes of pregnancy or for any number of other health-related issues.”
Case Adams is a California naturopath and author of 25 books on natural heal- ing. Learn more at
CaseAdams.com.
What Researchers Now Know
Breast Cancer: A French study of 129 breast cancer patients found massage generally reduced lymph- edema, a swelling of the lymphatic system, following treatments. The total reduction of lymphedema vol- ume was 33 percent among those receiving massages, according to Gynecologic Oncology.
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: Thirty minutes of massage with trigger point reduced symptoms and improved function in a study of 21 carpal tun- nel patients (Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies).
Constipation: Massage therapy increased the average number of bowel movements among 33 hospitalized Korean children, as reported in the Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing.
Dementia: Research from Spain’s Extremadura University on 120 institutionalized elderly adults diag- nosed with dementia found massage therapy generally helped improve behavior and sleep.
Migraines: Craniosacral massage reduced migraine occurrence in a study of 20 migraine sufferers from Iceland’s University of Akureyri, as published in Complementary Thera- pies in Clinical Practice.
Osteoporosis: A study of 48 post- menopausal women receiving traditional Thai massage showed increased bone formation after just four weeks. The massage group’s serum P1NP levels—which assesses bone formation—increased by 15 percent, while the control group saw no increases (BMC Complementary & Alternative Medicine).
Stroke: Massage therapy tended to speed rehabilitation after strokes for 45 Russian patients in a study pub- lished in Vopr Kurortol Fizioter Lech Fiz Kult.
natural awakenings May 2014 39
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