The Science and Art of Massage
Articles
[B]Massage Therapy For Health[/B]
Pradeep Chauhan
March 02, 2008
Massage is known to increase the circulation of blood and flow of lymph. The direct mechanical effect of rhythmically applied manual pressure and movement used in massage can dramatically increase the rate of blood flow. Also, the stimulation of nerve receptors causes the blood vessels (by reflex action) to dilate, which also facilitates blood flow.
Therapies
Manual vibratory massage is part of the preventive physiotherapeutic activities performed in intensive care units. The vibratory massage can be performed manually or as electro vibratory massage. The manual massage is a fast rhythmical vibration performed by the arm and shoulder muscles of the masseur and transferred to the patient's thorax by the hand. The hand of the masseur has to achieve a tremor with a frequency of 8 to 11 tremors/s. The aim of the pilot study was to examine the influence of manual vibratory massage on the pulmonary function of postoperative patients who were receiving mechanical ventilation, with special interest being focused on pulmonary ventilation and perfusion and cerebral blood flow velocity.
Therapeutic massage can be used to promote general well-being and enhance self-esteem, while boosting the circulatory and immune systems to benefit blood pressure, circulation, muscle tone, digestion, and skin tone. It has been incorporated into many health systems, and different massage techniques have been developed and integrated into various complementary therapies.
Massage Therapy, a combination of science and art, provides a relaxing experience by artistic hand strokes on the body to rejuvenate the mind and body and eliminate stress scientifically. The concept of massage is evident throughout history.
Long-term stress inhibits the balancing process by denying the body the opportunity and interrupting the cycle. Chronic long-term stress, often self-imposed by modern work pressures, economic and social aspirations coupled with environmental stress of urban living maintain imbalance with all its attendant problems.
In trigger point massage (also called pressure point massage), the therapist uses a variety of strokes but applies deeper, more focused pressure on myofascial trigger points--"knots" that can form in the muscles, are painful when pressed, and cause symptoms elsewhere in the body as well.
A therapist giving a deep tissue massage uses patterns of strokes and deep finger pressure on parts of the body where muscles are tight or knotted, focusing on layers of muscle deep under the skin.
Regular massage strengthens and tones the entire body system. It can stimulate or alternately calm the nervous system, help to ease tension, stiffness and pain leaving the recipient with an enhanced sense of well being.
Touch is the core ingredient of massage therapy and also combines science and art. Practitioners learn specific techniques for massage and use their sense of touch to determine the right amount of pressure to apply to each person and locate areas of tension and other soft-tissue problems.
Your body prepares for action: your muscles tense, your heart rate, breathing rate, and blood pressure all increase, your liver dumps sugar into your blood stream for energy, and your adrenal glands pump adrenaline into your system. Your body also shuts down the digestive, urinary, and reproductive systems, which are not needed for immediate.
West African Green Tea for High Cholesterol
West African Green Tea may help lower cholesterol and triglyceride levels in patients at risk for heart disease, a new study suggests.
Researchers from North Carolina A&T State University in Greensboro, North Carolina and Sinai Medical Center in Baltimore, Maryland explained that the Vert (green) is a special type of green tea widely consumed in West Africa and locally associated with many health benefits. However, limited research has been conducted to evaluate its health benefits, such as its enhanced hypolipidemic potential.
Researchers (1) evaluated the cholesterol- and triglyceride-lowering effects of West African green tea (WAGT) as affected by diet and tea intake, (2) determined the impact of WAGT consumption on the CHD risk ratio and (3) explored possible mechanisms through which WAGT improves serum lipid profile.
In the study, 45 male Wistar rats were randomly assigned to one of nine treatment combinations, three diets (regular, high-cholesterol, and trans-fat diets) and three fluid sources (no tea, diluted tea, and concentrated tea). After six weeks of feeding, animal blood, liver and feces were harvested. Total cholesterol, HDLc, LDLc and triglycerides in serum, liver and feces were determined. The concentrations of bile acids in feces were also measured.
The study found that WAGT significantly lowered serum and liver cholesterol (30 percent and 15 percent, respectively) and increased serum HDL cholesterol (good cholesterol) (30 percent). It also reduced liver enlargement caused by storage of excess lipids in high-cholesterol diet.
Researchers found that overall, the CHD risk ratio was cut by two-thirds in rats fed high-cholesterol diet and WAGT. A marked increase in fecal total lipids, cholesterol (60 percent) and bile acids (50 percent) was observed in rats that consumed WAGT compared to the control group.
Researchers concluded that the beneficial effects may be attributed to the significantly high flavonoid content of WAGT.
Green tea has also been studied in the treatment of arthritis, asthma, cancer prevention, dental cavity prevention, diabetes, fertility, heart attack prevention, high cholesterol or triglycerides, memory enhancement, menopausal symptoms, mental performance/alertness, prostate cancer (treatment), sun protection/ skin damage, weight loss (maintenance) and anxiety.
For more information on integrative therapies for high cholesterol or heart disease, please visit Natural Standard's Condition Center.
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References:
1) Rehrah D, Ahmedna M, Yu J, et al. Enhanced cholesterol- and triglyceride- lowering effect of West African green tea. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture. Volume 87, Issue 7 , Pages 1323 - 1329. Published Online: 2 Apr 2007. View Abstract.
2) Natural Standard Research Collaboration: The Authority on Integrative Medicine. www.naturalstandard.com. Copyright © 2007.
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