The human touch
Posted On: Sunday, Jul. 25 2010 11:29 PM
By Alicia Lacy
Killeen Daily HeraldA 30-minute massage once a month offers more health benefits than just relaxation.
Massage therapy is recognized as an alternative form of medicine and a type of preventive care.
"Your body's like a car. You can't just drive it and drive it. You have to take care of it," said Laura Carter-Hughes, a massage therapist at Le' Spa & Salon in Killeen. "For the most part, most of my clientele sees me once a month."
Massage therapy is the use of soft-tissue manipulation techniques on the body to improve circulation and reduce stress and fatigue.
Types of massages — Swedish, deep tissue or therapeutic, prenatal and hot stones — target and help different areas of the body.
Swedish massage is one of the most common forms. A Swedish massage is designed to relax the body and can be used to increase oxygen in the blood, decrease muscle toxins and improve circulation and flexibility.
A therapeutic or deep tissue massage is similar to a Swedish massage, but it is used to release knots in the muscle, said Carter-Hughes.
Like therapeutic massages, hot stones help release knots and tension in the muscles through the use of smooth, heated stones.
Prenatal massages release tension and reduce stress and aches in pregnant women.
One of the main health benefits of massage therapy is boosting the immune system through lymphatic drainage and flushing toxins out of the body.
"We release a lot of toxins when we do a massage and that's why when people leave, we ask them to drink a whole lot of water," Carter-Hughes said.
She said she recommends drinking room temperature or cool water following a massage.
Susan Wortham, manager of Le'Spa, said cold water slows the body's processes down because it has to warm the water up.
In addition to cleansing the body of toxins in the muscles, massage therapy aids in circulation and range of motion, improves performance for athletes, releases stress and helps with pregnancy pains.
"We can help (pregnant women) with back pains and because there are trigger points that can put them into labor," Wortham said.
"(Massage therapy) releases stress. If you're less stressed, you're less likely to suffer from depression."
Contact Alicia Lacy at
alacy@kdhnews.com or (254) 501-7559. Follow her on Twitter at KDHfeatures.