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Can Regular Professional Massage Improve Nutritional Status and Reduce Perceived Stress in Healthy Adults?: The Massage Therapy and Health Pilot Study.
Author(s) -
Walter Bill,
Kavanaugh Ian T,
Eldridge Galen D,
Gehrke Malinda M,
Oberg Erica B,
Sasagawa Masa,
McCrory Megan A
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.21.6.lb54
Subject(s) - anxiety , massage , medicine , confounding , depression (economics) , obesity , physical therapy , trait anxiety , psychiatry , alternative medicine , pathology , economics , macroeconomics
Anxiety, or perceived stress, may lead to obesity and chronic disease via behavioral, hormonal, and metabolic effects. Massage Therapy (MT) may help reduce anxiety and depression (Moyer et al 2004) and aid sleep in hospitalized patients (Richards et al 2003). Although MT is used by 5% of US adults (Barnes et al 2004), little research has been done on the heath effects of MT. Nonsmokers (n=38; aged 36.3±8.6 y (SD)) participating in ongoing studies of diet and obesity in our laboratory and recruited from local massage businesses were asked about MT use and grouped according to MT use history. In those who received MT ≥ 1 time/mo for the past 6 mo (regular MT, or RMT users (n=9)), MT frequency and years of use were 1.9±1.3 times/mo and 4.9±7.1 y, respectively. In analyses controlled for confounders, RMT users tended to have a lower BMI (23.5±1.5 vs 26.3±0.8 kg/m 2 (SEM); p=0.106), and had higher carbohydrate (51±3 vs 45±1 %kcal; p=0.04) and sugar (23±2 vs 18±1 %kcal; p=0.02) intakes, higher dietary restraint (10.6±1.1 vs 7.9±0.6; p=0.04), and higher state and trait anxiety scores (e.g. state anxiety 49.7±1.8 vs 45.4±0.9; p=0.04) compared to those not receiving RMT. Among all MT users (current + past), state anxiety (r=−0.50; p=0.085) tended to be inversely associated with years of MT use. These preliminary data suggest that MT may help reduce perceived stress in individuals with high anxiety. [Funded by NCCAM 5T32AT00815 and DK062400 ]