Many of us enjoy a good massage but beside the ‘feel good’ factor, massage has been shown to have a number of other general health benefits including:
- Improved circulation and muscle tone
- Reduced pain
- Stress reduction and improved emotional wellbeing
- Improved recovery from illness
- Detoxification
It has also been shown that before surgery, massage can aid in relieving much of the tension and anxiety associated with the anticipation of having surgery by lowering a patient’s expectation of pain. The reduced stress in turn helps to improve overall wellbeing and can reduce complications that may otherwise arise post-urgery. Likewise, massage post-surgery has been shown to reduce recovery time, by improving circulation of blood and lymphatic fluid which helps to increase oxygenation of tissues and organs while reducing associated swelling and stiffness. Massage also helps to improve immune function which can reduce the likelihood of infections and further accelerate recovery from any associated illness.
For post-menopausal women, massage has been shown to reduce the severity of symptoms by lowering the production of stress hormones and increasing the production of endorphins. Added to this massage can increase flexibility, improve posture and lower blood pressure.
These are just some of the benefits of massage as there are many more that can be listed. So the question is: why wouldn’t you get massage regularly?
