massage therapy A touch therapy, also called
therapeutic massage or bodywork, that acts on the
body as well as the mind and the emotions. About
25 percent of people who seek massage therapy
do so to relieve PAINand stiffness related to mus-
culoskeletal injuries, and a third are interested in
stress relief. There are dozens of therapeutic mas-
sage techniques and methods, though all share the
common intent of stimulating the flow of BLOOD
through the muscles and soft tissues to cleanse
metabolic toxins, tone MUSCLEtissues, and release
tension.
Though a doctor may recommend massage
therapy in conjunction with PHYSICAL THERAPY, the
two have distinctly different approaches. Physical
therapy is fix-oriented: there is a problem and
massage can help make it better. Therapeutic mas-
sage in the context of physical therapy is one com-
ponent of a treatment plan that might also include
therapies such as hydrotherapy (whirlpool or
soaking bath), ULTRASOUND, and electrotherapy
(gentle stimulation of the muscles with mild elec-
trical current). The treatment plan focuses on the
injured body part, and the massage therapist or
physical therapist does not usually massage other
parts of the body.
INFANT MASSAGE
Many neonatal care units use massage therapy
with premature infants. The gentle touch of the
massage therapist seems to calm and relax these
babies born before their bodies are quite ready
to process the stress of external stimulation.
Studies show that infants who receive massage
therapy gain weight and grow faster, and go
home earlier from the hospital.Massage therapy independent of physical ther-
apy has a holistic orientation, approaching manip-
ulation of the body within the context that the
body holds physical, emotional, and spiritual ten-
sion. The massage therapist may focus on a partic-
ular area of the body that he or she detects is
holding more tension than other parts of the body.
Though the intent is not necessarily one of HEAL-
INGa musculoskeletal injury, massage therapy typ-
ically results in improvement of FLEXIBILITY and
mobility. When the muscles release stored physi-
cal tension, they often also release stored emo-
tional tension. The result of this release can be
quite profound. Many people begin to cry during
massage therapy or find themselves recalling past
experiences that caused them pain or grief. From
a holistic perspective, this release is essential to
healing in a broad context.
Massage therapy also facilitates the flow of
lymph, helping the body to clear metabolic toxins
stored in the muscles. Particularly in people who
are sedentary, lymph flow may be sluggish.
Chronic health conditions also may impair lymph
circulation. People who have had lymph nodes
surgically removed (lymphectomy) to treat cancer
may have gaps in the lymph circulatory struc-
tures; massage therapy helps LY M P H to work
around those areas to restore its movement
(lymphatic drainage). As the LYMPHATIC SYSTEMis
key to immune function, stimulating lymph
circulation improves resistance to illness and
INFECTION.
In the United States, each state regulates the
practice of massage therapy. Thirty states have
specific education, training, and certification
requirements. Health experts recommend that
regardless of state standards, massage therapists
should have passed the certification requirements
of the National Certification Board for Therapeutic
Massage and Bodywork (NCTBMB) and belong to
the American Massage Therapy Association
(AMTA). Naturopathic (NDs), CHIROPRACTIC(DCS),
and osteopathic physicians (DOs) are among the
practitioners who most often also have formal
training in massage therapy. In addition to an
individual’s credentials, however, the most impor-
tant factors in selecting a massage therapist are
trust and comfort.
See also LYMPHEDEMA; REFLEXOLOGY; REIKI.medicinal herbs and botanicals Plants have
been the source of HEALINGtherapies for all of
known history and among all societies. The earli-
est written records across cultures make reference
to teas, berries, salves pounded and mixed from
leaves and barks, seeds, roots, and other plant
parts as remedies for ailments ranging from
HEADACHEto digestive upset to GOUT. The ubiqui-
tous aspirin, whose chemical basis is salicylic acid,
derives from the bark of the willow tree. For cen-
turies Native Americans chewed this bark to82 Alternative and Complementary Approaches