Massaging: Does it release toxins?

[fossilhound]

A good massage releases endorphins leading to that general feeling of ecstacy.

 

[TraneWreck]

I hope what she released wasn't toxic.

Oh, it's toxic, alright. It will cause a poor, innocent little egg to mutate beyond recognition. That's why you gotta make sure to get that poison out of there as often as possible...

 

[I Ratant]

I hope what she released wasn't toxic.

.
I've never heard it considered toxic, myself.

 

[I Ratant]

I imagine it's possible that if you had lactic acid buildup trapped in the muscle tissue and you got a massage, it would release that lactic acid. I suppose lactate could be considered a "toxin" even though it's a natural metabolite.

.
After loooooong bike rides, I'd have to massage my legs to move the lactic acid out.
It is somewhat of a nuisance.

 

[Tricky]

Oh, there's no doubt that massage can feel great and it has theraputic value. Like kittynh, I think that's great, I just wonder why they have to add all this BS stuff.

And then there's reflexology. The idea that certain zones on your feet can control the other organs is just so patently ridiculous that it is hard to believe that it wasn't invented as a joke. But few people will argue that a foot massage is wonderful. Why isn't that enough? Do people feel so guilty because they're relaxing instead of doing excercise, that they have to make up something that lets them believe what they're doing is somehow improving their health?

 

[Professor Yaffle]

I imagine it's possible that if you had lactic acid buildup trapped in the muscle tissue and you got a massage, it would release that lactic acid. I suppose lactate could be considered a "toxin" even though it's a natural metabolite.

Nope. From one of the articles I linked to above:

Lactic acid is the poster boy for the waste metabolites, probably the only waste metabolite that’s a household name, and most massage therapists still assume that lactic acid can be squished out of muscle tissue and into the bloodstream. This is not a difficult thing to test, and it has been tested, and the results were a bit shocking: massage actually “impairs lactic acid and hydrogen ion removal from muscle.”

 

[I Ratant]

My experience with massaging my legs after those bike rides is that doing that relieves the pain.

 

[Xulld]

I imagine it's possible that if you had lactic acid buildup trapped in the muscle tissue and you got a massage, it would release that lactic acid. I suppose lactate could be considered a "toxin" even though it's a natural metabolite.

Actually a few different studies have shown massage hinders blood flow and also hinders the removal of excess lactic acid.

 

[Skeptic Ginger]

Thanks ProfYaff! That is exactly the sort of thing I was looking for. Good article and well-referenced.

I didn't find this statement in the first article I perused to be well referenced.
Trigger Points

It may be more literally true than you realized! A muscle knot is a patch of polluted tissue: a nasty little cesspool of waste metabolites. No wonder they hurt, and no wonder they cause so many strange sensations: it’s more like being poisoned than being injured. Garden variety back pain is the best known symptom of the common muscle knot. However, knots also cause an astonishing array of other aches and pains, and misdiagnosis is common.

I take it this is not typical of the majority of stuff on the site?

 

[Graham2001]

Ms. Tricky, like lots of people, is a big fan of massages. She has a friend who is a massage therapist. Her friend, and other massage therapists I've known, claim that by massaging you it causes your body to release toxins that have accumulated in your tissues. They always advise "drink a lot of water to rinse the toxins out of your body."

It is with the same as the ones who come to my workplace. One of them went further though. She claimed the massage drew 'negative energies' out of the body and that the end of the day she had to wash her hands in seawater to remove these energies or she would get arthritis...I've looked sideways at them ever since.

 

[littleroundman]

It is with the same as the ones who come to my workplace. One of them went further though. She claimed the massage drew 'negative energies' out of the body and that the end of the day she had to wash her hands in seawater to remove these energies or she would get arthritis...I've looked sideways at them ever since.

Sounds like the masseuse attached to a local chiropractic center near me,

she claims her habit of publicly belching is caused by the need to release the "negative energy" she has absorbed from her clients via her hands.

I kid you not.

 

[Graham2001]

Sounds like the masseuse attached to a local chiropractic center near me, she claims her habit of publicly belching is caused by the need to release the "negative energy" she has absorbed from her clients via her hands.

I kid you not.

That sounds more like an excuse...

As I remember it the masseuse who told me the 'negative energy'/seawater thing was specific that she actually had to go to the beach and wash her hands in the sea and that this would, as I mentioned in my earlier post, carry the 'negative energy' out of her hands and prevent her from developing arthritis in her hands.

It would be interesting to see just how widespread this belief (Massage draws 'negative energy' from the body) is, as it is one step removed from reiki (non-contact massage).

 

[theprestige]

After a cat bite recently, my doctor yelled at me for flexing my arm muscles at all, on account of this would greatly accelerate the spread of toxins deposited from the cat's mouth into my body, increasing the risk of infection, amputation, and death. Then she put my entire forearm and hand in a splint (the bite was on my wrist), and told me not to do any typing for at least three days.

There were also two days of intravenous antibiotics, ten days of giant antibiotic horse pills, and a ten-day quarantine for the cat.

Apparently, cat bites are serious business.

 

[Tatyana]

The only other major 'toxin' produced by the muscle is creatine, which is the breakdown product of creatinine, which is a high energy phosphate carrier, akin to ATP.

It works during anaerobic metabolism. We wee out quite a bit of the excess creatine.

I can't really see how massage would alter the biochemical pathway.

 

[Emet]

After a cat bite recently, my doctor yelled at me for flexing my arm muscles at all, on account of this would greatly accelerate the spread of toxins deposited from the cat's mouth into my body, increasing the risk of infection, amputation, and death. Then she put my entire forearm and hand in a splint (the bite was on my wrist), and told me not to do any typing for at least three days.

There were also two days of intravenous antibiotics, ten days of giant antibiotic horse pills, and a ten-day quarantine for the cat.

Apparently, cat bites are serious business.

I'm only a vet, but it perhaps your Doctor went a bit overboard. Cat mouths are full of bacteria, mostly Pasteurella multocida^WP, which can readily cause infection due to the nature of the bacteria, and the manner of how cats bite.

I've been bitten badly myself--so have many of my colleagues. If medical attention was sought, the wound was cleaned, and only one oral antibiotic was prescribed. Many of us conveniently "forget" the name of the owner of the cat involved if it is an indoor cat, as I believe all bite wounds treated in the US require a call to animal control--which results in a call to the owner from animal control and a 10 day rabies quarantine.

 

[Tricky]

It is with the same as the ones who come to my workplace. One of them went further though. She claimed the massage drew 'negative energies' out of the body and that the end of the day she had to wash her hands in seawater to remove these energies or she would get arthritis.

Damn, I hope I don't get breast cancer in my hands.

 

[bookitty]

It is with the same as the ones who come to my workplace. One of them went further though. She claimed the massage drew 'negative energies' out of the body and that the end of the day she had to wash her hands in seawater to remove these energies or she would get arthritis...I've looked sideways at them ever since.

Every massage therapist I worked with believed some version of this, most commonly that running water (salt optional) would rinse away negative energies.

It's easy to see how this gets started. Massage is really hard on the hands if you're not doing it right. Thumbs, fingers, and especially wrists are bent back while you're applying pressure. Even though the instructor will tell you to keep your wrist straight, it's not easy if you haven't practiced. It's worse when you're new because there's still that idea that massage equals hands.

So it's your first week as "real" massage therapist. You haven't quite mastered a smooth flow that lets you primarily use forearms, elbows and knuckles. Your client wants a deep tissue massage, you've been digging in with palms and thumbs.

Afterward, your hands hurts. So you go into the bathroom and let cold water run over them until they feel better. Icing is a common treatment for muscle strain, it works. It works quickly, too. It feels as if the pain is literally washing away. Confirmation bias and a generally woo environment combined with an effective treatment = Bad vibes are washed away with water.

Lymphatic massage was the latest fad when I quit. Many therapist were offering it in association with traditional Swedish. This is ridiculous. The lymphatic system is fairly delicate, the pressure of Swedish massage can temporary damage the teeny-tiny lymph capillaries. It should be one or the other. Also, a therapist who hasn't been trained will adjust a Swedish style to a lymphatic massage. This doesn't really work because there is equal focus on both sides of the body. On the right side, it's in the wrong direction.

 

[bookitty]

I didn't find this statement in the first article I perused to be well referenced.
Trigger Points

It may be more literally true than you realized! A muscle knot is a patch of polluted tissue: a nasty little cesspool of waste metabolites. No wonder they hurt, and no wonder they cause so many strange sensations: it’s more like being poisoned than being injured. Garden variety back pain is the best known symptom of the common muscle knot. However, knots also cause an astonishing array of other aches and pains, and misdiagnosis is common.

I take it this is not typical of the majority of stuff on the site?

Trigger points came up briefly during my training, during a class in acupressure if memory serves. I have no idea if there is any science to it. Sorry.

People do have knots, especially in the shoulders and back. Tight spots that are "crunchy" when you find them. They feel like there's little bits of rice crispies in there. These spots are very tender. Massage doesn't always work. It makes the area feel better but even after intense work, it is still tighter than the surrounding muscles and that odd crystal feeling is still there.

Not to be confused with tendons. Many people would come to me complaining of tightness in their thigh muscles. It was actually the fascia that lays over the muscle on the outside of the thigh. Running a tennis ball over the area for a few minutes a day helps better than massage.

 

[TubbaBlubba]

The only other major 'toxin' produced by the muscle is creatine, which is the breakdown product of creatinine, which is a high energy phosphate carrier, akin to ATP.

It works during anaerobic metabolism. We wee out quite a bit of the excess creatine.

I can't really see how massage would alter the biochemical pathway.

Creatinine is the breakdown product, actually. Creatine is the phosphate carrier, eating tons of it is common among bodybuilders.

Incidentally, measuring creatinine levels is a standard test of kidney function.

 

[jhunter1163]

Apparently, cat bites are serious business.

Someone needs to Photoshop something up for that. "Cat Bites: Srs Bsnss"