Here's why...not that we actually need a study to convince us that massage is good for us. Kind of one of those no brainers right?
Who doesn't love getting a good rub down and walk away from a great massage feeling like the world is a beautiful place. It might not last but every moment of vitality we can grab is precious!
Does a good massage do more than just relax your muscles? To find out, researchers at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles recruited 53 healthy adults and randomly assigned 29 of them to a 45-minute session of deep-tissue Swedish massage and the other 24 to a session of light massage.
Volunteers who received Swedish massage experienced significant decreases in levels of the stress hormone cortisol in blood and saliva, and in arginine vasopressin, a hormone that can lead to increases in cortisol. They also had increases in the number of lymphocytes, white blood cells that are part of the immune system.
Volunteers who had the light massage experienced greater increases in oxytocin, a hormone associated with contentment, than the Swedish massage group, and bigger decreases in adrenal corticotropin hormone, which stimulates the adrenal glands to release cortisol.
Taken from New York Times
I prefer a deep tissue massage personally. I want to kind of have to bite down on something while someone gets the grissle out of my muscles. Can't stand massages I've had by people who don't know what they're doing and just kind of move massage oil around without putting a little elbow grease into it.
Looking forward to a massage ASAP. Thanks New York Times for reminding me to book one. This study just goes to show, yet again, restorative activities should be as important as the sweaty butt kicking workouts.
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