Body Sense

Autumn | 2014

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www.massagetherapy.com—your resource for all things bodywork 3 B O D Y T A L K C O M P I L E D B Y B R A N D O N T W Y F O R D Massage Improves Aching Muscles In a randomized, blinded study involving 36 sedentary young adults, lower-extremity massage was found to increase upper-extremity blood flow in patients with exercise-induced muscle injuries. The treatment included a 30-minute leg massage using Swedish techniques ranging in pressure from superficial to deep. While it has long been believed that one of the benefits of massage therapy is increased circulation resulting in improved health and wellness, this study is one of the first to add valuable clinical support to the anecdotal observations and case study results that massage therapists have presented for years. The findings were published in the Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. Read the abstract here: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24583315. Retrain the Brain to Desire Healthy Foods Our brains are programmed by evolution to reward the consumption of high-calorie foods—a mechanism that helps us survive when food is scarce. In a society where food is not scarce, however, the overactivity of this reward system is implicated in the development of obesity. A new study published in Nutrition & Diabetes is said to be the first to demonstrate that the brain can be altered to desire and reward the consumption of healthy foods. The results were achieved through behavioral intervention in the form of an adapted version of the "I" Diet (S. B. Roberts and B. K. Sargent, www.theidiet.com). Researchers tracked changes in brain activity through functional magnetic resonance imaging scans. In addition to showing altered brain activity when shown images of low-calorie foods versus high-calorie foods, subjects who received the intervention achieved significant weight loss versus the control group. Read the full study at www.nature.com/nutd/journal/v4/n9/full/nutd201426a.html. The Health Benefits of Tea Long-term studies performed at the Harvard School of Public Health demonstrated that regular tea drinkers are less likely to develop diabetes compared with people who drink less tea. The polyphenols (a type of antioxidant) in tea—especially green tea—help regulate blood sugar and assist insulin in metabolizing the body's glucose levels. This glucose regulation may also be responsible for tea's association with a lower risk of cardiovascular disease, improved cholesterol, and lower blood pressure. While the studies suggest drinking tea is associated with better health, it is difficult to rule out the possibility that tea drinkers simply live healthier lifestyles overall. The best way to ward off illness and disease remains a healthy lifestyle that includes a balanced diet and plenty of exercise. Read more at www.health. harvard.edu/press_releases/health- benefits-linked-to-drinking-tea.

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