July 2026
Hello, and welcome to this month's article! How are you doing? Are you finding time to relax and rejuvenate this summer? When busy schedules seem to demand all your attention, it’s important for you to make some time to take care of yourself. Feeling your best just makes life so much better!
Could there be a better way to support your health than with regular massage sessions?
This month’s issue contains excerpts from an extensive article on the many health benefits massage can provide.
Most folks who get professional massages are aware that massage helps them to feel better, but understanding more about the ways it can improve your overall health should make you truly appreciate what a wise choice massage is. Read on to learn more.
If you have specific questions about massage and your health, please ask when we’re together again.
Enjoy the rest of your summer; see you soon for your next appointment!
Massages have more health benefits than you might have realized
by Jocelyn Solis-Moreira
Massages seem like an indulgent treat, but they actually have health benefits that don’t require a prescription or a doctor’s visit. And you’re not doing your body any favors by not going regularly. “We have so much stress worked up in our bodies — you can’t stay on top of it by just getting a massage every once in a while,” Karen Taylor, owner of Simply Massage, explained to VailDaily.
By going more often, you can reap many short- and long-term health benefits that keep your body healthy, from relieving stress to boosting immunity and reducing your risk for cancer. ... Here are surprising ways a massage can get you living your best life.
Massages help to relieve stress — ...[S]tress gradually takes a toll on the body, and without a healthy coping mechanism, you’ll likely crash and burn. According to the Mayo Clinic Health System, getting a one-hour massage decreases stress hormone levels called cortisol by 30 percent. As cortisol goes down, serotonin — a chemical in the brain involved in enhancing mood — goes up by 28 percent. ...
Massages help with joint flexibility— Massages are not only good for relieving muscle tension, as they also do wonders for flexibility. ... According to Advanced Massage, joint flexibility naturally decreases as you get older. Other factors that further reduce joint flexibility are injury, a lack of exercise, chronic sitting, and just not using enough of your joints every day. ...
[M]assage can increase overall flexibility in the body and target specific muscles such as the ones found in the legs, back, and hip muscles. ...
Massages help with your mental health— While massages focus on physical touch, they can also touch on a person’s mental health. “Massage is an excellent way to relieve stress, anxiety, tension, worry, and even depression ...” Michelle Ebbin, massage therapy expert and author of The Touch Remedy, told American Spa. ...
A 2017 review explained that having a massage altered brain activity in the ... brain areas involved in regulating fear and stress. Along with evidence of brainwaves showing a relaxation response after a massage, the neurological signs correlated with reported decreases in depression, anxiety, and heart rate. ...
Massages improve your heart health— Massages relax muscles, and your heart muscle is no exception. ... The Institute for Integrative Healthcare says that adding massage therapy to other preventative actions such as quitting smoking, eating healthy, and exercising can further help lower heart disease. They also report the various strokes performed in massages can increase blood circulation and stimulate skin receptors to send messages for the central nervous system, especially the body’s fight-or-flight-response to relax.
“Massage is also great to increase circulation within the body, which improves tissue quality and allows people to move and function better,” Kipp Dye, MSPT, owner of OrthosportsMED Physical Therapy, told Massage Magazine. The relaxation techniques also cause blood vessels to widen, decreasing blood pressure and rapid heart rates. ...
Massages help manage pain— As massages relieve muscle tension and knots, a benefit of this is reduced pain. “Therapeutic massage can be used to treat a range of conditions, the most common of which is low back pain, followed by neck and shoulder pain. I also use therapeutic massage to treat headaches and jaw pain,” Arthur Madore, a massage therapist at the Osher Center for Integrative Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, told Brigham Health Hub.
According to Harvard Health Publishing, massages could help stimulate nerve fibers and block pain messages to and from the brain. ...
A massage helps you sleep better at night— People aren’t sleeping as much as they should. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says “1 in 3 adults don’t get enough sleep.” Losing sleep is associated with several conditions, including obesity, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease.
According to Sleep.org, massages improve sleep quality by boosting a chemical in the brain called serotonin. They also say getting a 3-minute back massage does more for your health than a 35-minute nap. By managing stress-hormone levels, massage can also reduce the number of sleep disturbances.
Massages boost your immune system— No one likes being sick, and massages may help prevent sickness like the cold or the flu by increasing your immune response. “Researchers working with patients with compromised immune systems have found massage therapy can improve how the immune system functions,” Jeff Smoot, President of the American Massage Therapy Association, said in a press statement. ...
A 2010 study found that receiving one Swedish massage increased several proteins involved in fighting infection. Two years later, the same researchers reported a study finding increased production of proteins associated with the immune system when people received a massage once or twice a week for five weeks.
Massages stimulate the lymphatic system— Massages help boost the immune system, and a major way it does so is by stimulating the lymphatic system. Thought of as the body’s sewer system, the lymphatic system transports excess fluid that’s drained from cells and tissues. This fluid is called lymph, and it eventually is dumped back into the bloodstream. Doing so maintains fluid levels in the body.
The lymphatic system has other immune roles, such as protecting the body by producing white blood cells in an invader’s presence. “Therapeutic massage manipulates the body’s soft tissue, so it also stimulates the flow of fluid in the lymphatic system, which can improve natural immunity,” Arthur Madore, a licensed massage therapist told Brigham Health Hub.
Source: msn.com
That should be the measure of success for everyone. It's not money,
it's not fame, it's not celebrity; my index of success is happiness.
— Lupe Fiasco
The content of this article is not designed to replace professional medical advice. If you’re ill, consult a physician.
© 2026 Massage Marketing. Used with permission; all rights reserved.
