Posted on June 22, 2008 in Latest News
The use of massage is ever rising, making the investigation of the relation between diabetes and massage quite timely. From 1990 to 1997, the proportion of U.S. consumers using massage jumped from 7 to 11% of the population, the most statistically significant increase of any complementary medicine (CM) modality. Nearly three-fourths of those who seek massage do so for a specific health complaint.
What Studies Say
Diabetes Care identified one study on insulin absorption in type 1 diabetes. No studies were found examining whether massage can increase insulin sensitivity in the peripheral tissues resulting in increased glucose clearance in type 2 diabetes. RS Dillon of Diabetes Care observed that eight lean, well-controlled patients with type 1 diabetes, using their usual dosages of regular and intermediate-acting insulin, who massaged their insulin injection sites with an electric vibrator for 3 min at 15 min post-injection, experienced higher insulin levels and lower serum glucose levels by 15 min after the start of massage and 29 min post-injection.
Adverse Effects
A potential adverse effect of massage for diabetes appears to be the risk of inducing hypoglycemia in insulin-using patients. This risk is extrapolated from massage studies using healthy volunteers. None of the studies of massage and diabetes reports adverse effects. However, it is not clear from the reports whether adverse effects did not occur or whether they did occur but were just not measured or not reported.
For those suffering from peripheral nerve damage, gentle friction of the lower extremities can be added only after a sufficient amount of effleurage has been completed. This may require 7–10 treatments of effleurage before introducing friction.
Comments
Leave a Reply
