August 2025

Hello, and welcome to this month's article! As summer winds down... It’s nearly time to say goodbye to another summer and gear up for the busy fall season. Still, we have a few weeks of hotter summer temperatures, so stay cool and hydrated by drinking plenty of pure water each day. This can help you to flush toxins from your body, as well.

A great way to close out your summer and prepare for fall is to get your next massage session scheduled. Each massage can help you to maintain a higher level of health and handle all those stressful challenges that life provides.

The most liked benefit of massage therapy is stress reduction and relaxation. People often seek massages to relieve tension, reduce anxiety, and promote a sense of calm and well-being. This can lead to better sleep, which further supports improved health.

And remember to stay active! Read this month’s article about the consequences of too much sitting, if you need some inspiration to get moving.

Enjoy the rest of your summer; see you soon for your next massage!

Why you should treat yourself to a massage
by Michael Adams

If a knot between your shoulder blades keeps coming back or stress is disrupting your sleep, a professional massage could be just what your body ordered.

According to a survey by the American Massage Therapy Association, nearly one-fourth of adults in the U.S. got a massage in the past year.

“Self-care couldn’t be more important than it is right now,” says Carrie Bartlett, a licensed massage therapist. ... “Adding massage to your health and wellness routine will disarm your body’s alarm system. I often see people walk in feeling tense and walk out breathing freely. Over time that calm can translate into lower pain scores, better posture and even stronger immunity.”

Massage therapy as preventive medicine— Just one 60-minute Swedish massage can help reduce your heart rate, blood pressure and cortisol levels, according to studies.

Hands-on techniques, such as myofascial release and trigger-point therapy, help disperse scar-tissue adhesions and quiet overworked nerves.

For desk-bound workers, short weekly massage sessions on the upper back can reduce neck pain and improve range of motion within four weeks, Bartlett says.

Many people who receive massages also report deeper sleep and fewer nighttime awakenings—a bonus for your immune system and brain health.

Bartlett’s tips for making the most of your time on the massage table:

Be honest about pain: Tell your massage therapist what hurts and how deeply they can work.

Consider your posture: Make small changes to your daily routine, such as adding stretching, to maintain the release received from massage.

Hydrate and move your body: Gentle walking followed by drinking water can help flush metabolic waste and reduce next-day soreness.

Build a routine: If you have stress or chronic pain, get a 60-minute massage every two to four weeks. Consistency matters more than occasional massage “marathons.”

Massage is generally safe, but people with uncontrolled blood pressure, acute infections or recent blood clotting events should check with their doctor first.

Source: ahchealthenews.com

Sitting all day linked to an early death—and exercise won’t help
by John Anderer

Who knew a Netflix binge or cushy desk job could be so hazardous? Researchers from the University of California-San Diego suggest that avoiding sedentary behavior (like sitting down all day) may be the secret to a longer life. Older women who sat for 11.7 hours or more daily saw their risk of death jump by 30 percent—even if they exercised vigorously!

It’s an alarming takeaway, but study co-author Steve Nguyen ... used an impressive sample size for his work. His team examined time spent sitting and daily activity measurements collected from monitors worn for up to a week by 6,489 women (ages 63 to 99). Researchers also tracked the participants for eight years, monitoring if any of the women died.

That data was originally collected during a study led by [Professor] Andrea LaCroix. ...

“Sedentary behavior is defined as any waking behavior involving sitting or reclining with low energy expenditure,” Nguyen says in a university release. ...

Exercise ‘incapable’ of reversing the damage— Sedentary behavior, in general, isn’t healthy because it lowers muscle contractions, blood flow, and glucose metabolism.

“When you’re sitting, the blood flow throughout your body slows down, decreasing glucose uptake. Your muscles aren’t contracting as much, so anything that requires oxygen consumption to move the muscles diminishes, and your pulse rate is low,” Prof. LaCroix explains.

Unfortunately, and rather surprisingly, exercise appears incapable of reversing these negative effects. According to researchers, whether women participated in low or even high amounts of moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity ultimately proved inconsequential if paired with excessive sitting; all patterns of exercise showed the same heightened risk if they also sat for long hours.

“If I take a brisk long walk for an hour but sit the rest of the day, I’m still accruing all the negative effects on my metabolism,” Prof. LaCroix continues.

So, what can you do if you sit too long?

“The risk starts climbing when you’re sitting about 11 hours per day, combined with the longer you sit in a single session. For example, sitting more than 30 minutes at a time is associated with higher risk than sitting only 10 minutes at a time. Most people aren’t going to get up six times an hour, but maybe people could get up once an hour, or every 20 minutes or so. They don’t have to go anywhere, they can just stand for a little while,” Prof. LaCroix recommends. ...

The study is published in the Journal of the American Heart Association.

Source: studyfinds.org

The greatest of follies is to sacrifice health for any other kind of happiness.
— Arthur Schopenhauer

The content of this article is not designed to replace professional medical advice. If you’re ill, consult a physician.
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