For thousands of years in cultures across the globe, massage has been a trusted healing modality. Of course, there are still questions surrounding massage, such as how does regular massage support overall health?
International researchers have been exploring these and other questions for years. In fact, scientific research has revealed that massage can bring about several important physiological changes, as we outline below.
Once you appreciate how massage supports overall health, you may be more motivated to make time for regular sessions with our Portland massage therapists. Relaxation and Stress Relief is the one result shared among all massage techniques. Through deep relaxation, massage activates the parasympathetic nervous system. Multiple studies, including this research, have found that massage relaxes the autonomic nervous system while decreasing several stress hormones such as cortisol and norepinephrine, also known as adrenaline.
NCCAM researchers have also verified that massage can lower blood pressure and heart rate. In other words, you will feel less stressed after a massage, and the decrease in stress will support your overall health.
Reduced Inflammation is a second key benefit of massage. In Science Translational Medicine , Crane and his colleagues studied how massage impacts muscular inflammation. Eleven male participants were directed to exercise until exhausted, to spur exercise-induced muscle damage in their thighs. Biopsies taken before the study, directly following treatment, and after a 2.
