Mechanism of Action of Massage

The effect of massage on the body is based on a complex process determined by neuro-reflex, humoral and mechanical factors.

Nervous reflex factor. During massage, nerve endings (receptors) located in the skin, tendons, ligaments, muscles, blood vessels and internal organs are exposed. The flow of impulses arising from stimulation of these receptors reaches the cerebral cortex, where the signals are synthesized, causing a response from the body, which manifests itself in the form of various functional changes in organs and systems.

Humoral factor. Some substances that are in the skin in a bound (inactive) state, under the influence of massage, pass into a free (active) state, are absorbed into the blood and distributed throughout the body. They clean capillaries and increase their permeability, improve blood supply and metabolic processes in tissues, and increase the rate of transmission of excitation from the nervous system through motor nerves to skeletal muscles.

Under the influence of massage, substances are formed in the tissues, the meaning of which has not yet been fully elucidated, but which, as irritants of the nervous system, can give rise to new reflexes.

Mechanical factor. Massage has an effect on tissues and, in particular, on the movement of blood, lymph, and interstitial fluid, which helps to enhance metabolic processes and skin respiration, eliminate congestion and increase the temperature of the massaged body area.

The structure and nature of the body's responses to massage are different each time and depend on the functional state of the central nervous system, in the case of illness - on its clinical manifestations, on the nature of the massage and the techniques used.

Therefore, the effectiveness of massage depends on the massage therapist’s knowledge of the body’s reactivity and the functional state of the person being massaged. That is why it is extremely necessary for the massage therapist to have contact not only with the person being massaged, but, even better, with the attending physician. In addition, the same massage techniques can, depending on the nature of their application, have different effects.

The nature of the effect of massage on the body of the massaged person is mainly determined by three components: strength, tempo and duration.

The force of a massage is the force of pressure that the massage therapist's hands exert on the body of the person being massaged. It can be large (deep massage), medium and small (superficial massage). Superficial massage increases excitatory processes, while deeper massage with a gradual increase in the force of impact contributes to the development of inhibitory processes.

The pace of the massage can be fast, medium or slow. A fast massage increases the excitability of the nervous system, while a medium and slow massage reduces it. The longer the massage, the more it affects the reduction of excitability of the nervous system.

Thus, massage changes the functional state of the cerebral cortex, increasing or decreasing its excitability.

If you use only the three indicated components of massage (in fact, there are many more of them), then the number of response options for one person being massaged is expressed by the product 3x3x3, i.e. equals 27. The massage therapist should always remember this.

In addition, the response of the person being massaged depends on the techniques used by the massage therapist. With a relatively identical technical level of performance, some techniques (for example, stroking, rubbing) reduce the excitability of the nervous system more, while others (shock, vibration), on the contrary, increase it. At the same time, in the practice of massage, one technique is rarely used; various combinations of them are usually used, which allows the massage therapist to individualize massage sessions and increase the effectiveness of the responses of the person being massaged in each specific case.