Is Massage Therapy really worth the cost?

Hello Jacksonville! I know that many of you come through the doors of Active Medical & Chiropractic because you are looking for a drug-free way to manage your back pain. Patients often tell me that the hands-on therapeutic services we provide like massage therapy really help to reduce their pain.

Well this week a new report has come out that says science backs this up! The Group Health Research Institute in Seattle recently performed a study of 401 back pain patients. Their study demonstrated that massage therapy was just as effective at relieving lower back pain as a combination of acetaminophen (Tylenol) and weekly physical therapy, the standard treatment for this condition. All of the participants in the study had experienced at least three months of pain, and their pain did not come from a specific event such as a car accident.

The study compared the standard treatment to both relaxing (or ‘Swedish’-style) massage and deep-tissue structural massage. The results were the same in both cases, with patients reporting a decrease in pain and an increase in their ability to perform exercises over the course of a year.

Not only did the study participants who received massage treatment improve just as much as those who received medication, they also appeared to improve a little bit faster. That’s right, massage therapy worked more quickly than drugs. That’s quite a result!

Frankly, it’s not news to me that regular massage therapy makes my patients feel better. I see it every day! But it’s great that studies like this are bringing the benefits of massage to more people’s attention.

If you’d like to schedule a massage session for yourself, just give us a call. Our phone # is (904)398-4860. We want you to start feeling better, faster. Today!

Yours in health,

Christopher B. Renne, D.C.

Chiropractic Physician

www.activechirocenter.com