Nurturing touch has been correlated with positive social and physical development in infants. As one ages, touch continues to play an integral role in human social interactions. Throughout a lifetime, healthy touch remains important to help a person to grow and thrive. In fact, senior citizens – just like babies – still need touch in order to stay healthy and maintain a positive quality of life.
Many seniors can experience isolation and depression due to retirement, widowhood or disability. Massage offers them an emotional lifeline – a connection to and compassion from another human being. On a physical level, massage gives seniors a path to pain reduction, improved circulation and increased mobility.
Caring touch is an accessible, therapeutic remedy for staving off age-related illness. In fact, recent evidence points to improved health outcomes for seniors receiving body-based therapies such as massage1 in conjunction with a conventional medical treatment plan.
The National Center for Health Statistics predicts that the population of seniors in the U.S. will double by 2030.2 Hence, the need to prevent and manage age-related disease and disability will be greater than ever. Massage has the potential to lessen the health burden on seniors personally, and on our healthcare system as a whole. Seniors who receive massage on a regular basis experience improved overall health, greater mobility and independence, and a reclaimed quality of life.
As our population ages, seniors Health, and the need for compassionate interaction between human beings grows more important than ever. Indeed, as infants need touch in order to survive, the same can be said for the elderly. And on the receiving end, seniors can be reassured of massage’s capacity to improve their well-being, help maintain independence and provide them with a better quality of life for many years to come.
This is an original article from Dreamclinic, Inc. Dreamclinic is a Health and Wellness company committed to sharing information about commonly experienced health conditions and how they may be impacted through the use of bodywork and other natural approaches. Dreamclinic offers massage, acupuncture, and Reiki sessions at its Greenlake and Queen Anne clinics, as well as onsite massage at workplaces around Puget Sound. Contact us to learn more about how Dreamclinic can help you, your family or your workplace experience greater health.
References:
1. http://nccam.nih.gov/research/results/spotlight/070810.htm
2. http://www.amtamassage.org/articles/4/eTouch/detail/2356
Image: http://massage1sttherapy.ca
Other Resources:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2865952/
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/04/140402105744.htm