Who doesn’t like a massage? They feel great, leave you feeling relaxed and clear-minded, relieve stress, and much, much more. Massage therapy does you a world of good–some of these top ten benefits might even surprise you.
1) Manage anxiety and depression
Massage therapy reduces your levels of cortisol, a stress hormone, and boosts production of serotonin and dopamine. The effect you feel is a happier, less stressed mood, and lower blood pressure.
2) Ease pain
The majority of people experience back pain at some point in their life. Massage is an excellent way to decrease stiffness and pain in the back and increase range of motion. It has very similar results to other effective treatments such as medications, acupuncture, exercise, and yoga.
3) Improve sleep
There’s a reason many people doze off on the massage table. A massage increases delta waves, the brain waves associated with deep sleep.
4) Boost immunity
Multiple studies have linked massage to better functioning of the immune system. Massage decreases cortisol, which is known for destroying your natural killer cells, and gives your immune cells a boost.
5) Beat PMS
Studies have found that massage can lessen PMS symptoms like bloating, mood swings, and cravings.
6) Raise alertness
Even just a 15-minute chair massage has been shown to boost alertness–a study showed by the Touch Research Institute showed improved responses to a series of math questions.
7) Stop/Reduce headaches
Massages not only stop pain but stop tension headaches as well. Getting a massage regularly can reduce the number of migraines one experiences over time as well as limit how painful each migraine is.
8) Prolong your youthful glow
Massages increase blood flow, which encourages toxins to leave and nutrients to enter cells. A regular rub down can make a big difference in your complexion and hair.
9) Ease painful medical treatments
Massage therapy can be particularly helpful for people living with or undergoing treatment for serious illnesses, like cancer. Various studies have shown that massage can relieve fatigue, pain, anxiety, depression and nausea in cancer patients.
10) Ease pregnancy pains
Regular pre-natal massages ease pregnancy pains and generally assist with shorter, easier labor.
