e-touch, a massage newsletterSM

October 2003 | Vol. 4, No. 10
© 2003 American Massage Therapy Association^®
All rights reserved.

In large part, society portrays the perfect woman as intelligent, slender and beautiful. Magazine covers glorify models and celebrities who fit into this description. The constant pressure from the media to look your best may have factored into the increase of eating disorders over the past several decades.

Eating disorders—namely anorexia and bulimia—also can be caused by emotional or physical distress. People who have had eating disorders say that they were in a stressful situation that they couldn't control, but that food intake was one area where they had complete control.

So is massage therapy useful for people with this disorder? In recent years, positive research has shown that massage therapy may be effective alongside a treatment plan for those with eating disorders. Read more in this issue's feature, "Benefits of Massage as Adjunct Therapy for Eating Disorder Clients."

NOTE: Internet browsers and E-mail programs differ widely. If Web and/or E-mail links from this issue are not highlighted on your screen, simply copy and paste them into your browser’s address line or E-mail form as appropriate.

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The 1960s was a pivotal decade that forever changed the way millions of women viewed their bodies. Beginning with the British model Twiggy, a cultural icon in the 1960s, through today, women have been "thinking thin." In fact, Twiggy was once described as having "the body of a starvation victim and the face of an angel."¹

Society, too, places a lot of pressure on women to be beautiful and slender, evidenced by lanky runway models, the glamorous women on magazine covers and the stars of Hollywood.

This idea that thin is beautiful not only changed the way women saw themselves, but the way they ate. As such, eating disorders have become more and more prevalent in women—namely young girls—as well as in men.

Because eating disorders are perpetuated by how a person views his or her image, they are classified as mental disorders. Anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa are the clinical names to describe the two main types of eating disorders.

Usually beginning with some type of physical or emotional stress, "The typical anorexia and bulimia patient is a young woman somewhere between adolescence and college age ... more than 90 percent of all eating disorder patients are female."³ Eating disorders are not limited to a certain race or social status.

According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-4th Edition (DSM-IV), "Individuals with this eating disorder keep their body weight below a minimal normal level by exercise, control of food intake and other means."⁴

Anorexic individuals: 1) have a body weight of less than 85 percent of what they should have; 2) are terrified of gaining weight, even though to others they are extremely underweight; 3) have a negative thinking about their bodies, and deny that there is a problem; and 4) have not menstruated within a three-month span (a criteria for women only), called amenorrhea.

Anorexics tend to consume a very small amount of calories per day. Viewing themselves as overweight, they typically wear loose-fitting or baggy clothes to cover themselves, which hides the fact that they are thinning. They also may have fine hair that grows all over the body as an added layer of insulation.

The anorexic lifestyle over several years can lead to osteoporosis, infertility, low blood pressure and a slowing of the heart rate.

According to DSM-IV, "Individuals with this eating disorder control their body weight in spite of binge overeating by purging (self-induced vomiting) or use of laxatives, diet pills or other means."⁵

Bulimic individuals: 1) have repeat binging episodes where they consume a large amount of food, and do not feel able to stop eating; 2) use inappropriate means to expel the food from their body in order not to gain weight, such as purging, taking laxatives or heavy exercise; 3) have these episodes at least twice a week within a three-month period; and 4) have a skewed sense of their body image.

The signs are much harder to recognize in a bulimic individual, as the binging and purging usually takes place in private, and these individuals do not have the dramatic weight loss that anorexics experience.

The bulimic lifestyle over several years can lead to: eroded enamel on teeth, ulcers, loss of colon functioning and electrolyte imbalances.

In the last five years, two studies came out that presented research on eating disorders and the use of massage therapy, one on bulimia and the other on anorexia. The Touch Research Institutes facilitated both studies.

The study on bulimic individuals was published in 1998. Researchers took 24 adolescent bulimic females, and randomly assigned them to either the massage therapy group or the control group. What they found was that after a massage, those in the massage group reported immediate improvements in anxiety and depression. At the end of the study, these women continued to improve in anxiety and depression levels, and also showed improved functioning in psychological and behavioral measures.

The other study, which used 19 anorexic women with the mean age of 26, was published in 2001. Similarly set up to the study on bulimics, the women were randomly assigned to either receive a standard treatment for anorexia or the treatment plus massage therapy twice a week for five weeks. The massaged women also showed lower stress and anxiety, and after the five weeks, they were less dissatisfied with their bodies, as reported on the Eating Disorder Inventory.

In other findings, the women who were selected to receive massage in both surveys showed increases in dopamine levels, which also was thought to contribute to eating disorders. The positive results reported in both studies reveal that massage, in addition to conventional treatment, may be an effective stress reducer for individuals with eating disorders, but certainly, more research in this area is necessary.

A person suffering from an eating disorder needs to seek professional help, such as from a psychiatrist. A massage therapist cannot help with the physical or emotional problems troubling a person that lead to their poor eating habits. Anyone, however, can suggest that the person seek professional help.

According to Ruth Werner, author of A Massage Therapist's Guide to Pathology, "Massage therapists are in a position to provide nurturing, restorative, educated, and nonjudgmental touch to a population of people who may have little or no other access to this important sensor 'food.'"²

Loving touch, in the form of massage therapy, can be very good for clients with this condition, but massage therapists must continue to assess the client's condition and tailor the massage session appropriately to the client's needs. "The main cautions for bodywork concern the possibility of cardiovascular weakness, and these can be circumvented by choosing modalities that do not focus on increasing circulation."²

Massage therapy truly can make people feel good about themselves, which is why it can be such a useful addition to any eating disorder treatment plan.

~ Michelle Wolf is the marketing development project manager at the American Massage Therapy Association. Contact her at: mwolf@amtamassage.org.

2. "Statistics: Eating Disorders and Their Precursors," National Eating Disorders Association, www.nationaleatingdisorders.org; accessed 17 September 2003.

3. Werner, Ruth. A Massage Therapist's Guide to Pathology. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2002.

"Americans spend more than $40 billion dollars a year on dieting and diet-related products. That’s roughly equivalent to the amount the U.S. Federal Government spends on education each year."

"In the United States, conservative estimates indicate that after puberty, 5 to 10 million girls and women and 1 million boys and men are struggling with eating disorders, including anorexia, bulimia, binge eating disorder or borderline conditions."

Don’t forget: AMTA’s 2003 National Convention is taking place October 22–26 in Richmond, Virginia—our 60th anniversary Diamond Jubilee!

6 Things To Do During Your Stay In Richmond

Stroll down Monument Avenue.
Explore Civil War history at Richmond National Battlefield Park and the Museum of the Confederacy.
Journey down Route 5, and explore plantation homes.
Drive one hour to historic Colonial Williamsburg.
Go white-water rafting down the James River.
Spend an afternoon shopping at Shockoe Slip.

AMTA's National Massage Therapy Awareness Week^® (NMTAW^™) is happening October 19–25. This year's theme is "Relieve Pain with Massage." Watch AMTA's Web site in October for the release of the results of the 2003 Massage Therapy Consumer Survey and AMTA member client surveys of massage for pain relief.

Pain, which has been called the fifth vital sign, has been a hot topic in the media as of late. In fact, HealthNewsDigest.com has reported that leading national pain organizations and a new national pain policy act submitted to Congress in September say that "chronic pain is the nation's leading public health problem, affecting 1 in 5 Americans."

The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) also recognizes pain as a public health problem, and in 2001 adopted standards to guide accredited hospitals and other health-care settings for pain management. They list massage therapy as an example of non-pharmacological pain relief.

Don't forget to plan your personal NMTAW event to demonstrate the use of massage for pain relief!

Spend a few moments answering the October poll question at the link below. It’s quick, and it’s easy! See the results in the November issue of e-touch.

Last month’s question
Which massage and bodywork modality do you practice most often?

Modalities that had five or less responses are not represented in this chart. These include acupressure, CranioSacralSM Therapy, energy work, geriatric massage, infant massage, Lomi Lomi, lymphatic drainage, movement education, Asian bodywork, Polarity Therapy, pregnancy massage, pressure point therapy, reiki, reflexology, Russian massage, shiatsu, Somatic MovementSM, stone therapy, structural integration and Thai massage.

Massage Therapists Needed: 20 certified/licensed massage therapists are needed to volunteer their time and services for the world’s 10th largest marathon and our nation’s 6th largest athletic event on October 26 (Sunday) at the Marine Corps Marathon Headquarters in Crystal, Virginia. For more information, contact Michael Tetreault by October 12 at 800-816-2671, ext. 151.

Volunteer Through The Pennsylvania Myotherapy Institute: If you are a massage therapist in the Hanover, Pennsylvania area, consider volunteering your talents for a couple events. For AMTA's National Massage Therapy Awareness Week^®, give complimentary massages to promote your practice. Therapists are needed from October 20–25. The school will do all the promoting and arranging of the appointments in advance. Also, from December 22–23, the school is hosting "In the Christmas Spirit," where volunteers can give massages to area charity organization workers, firefighters, police officers and others who give to the community. For more information about either of these events, call Audrey at the Pennsylvania Myotherapy Institute at 717-633-6277.

If you are looking for volunteer massage therapists for an event,
E-mail the information to: etouch@amtamassage.org.

Post-Convention Workshop, an AMTA Foundation Benefit
“Dirty-Dozen” Myoskeletal Techniques for Neck, Shoulder and Hand Pain
Led by Erik Dalton, Ph.D.
Sunday, October 26 from 12:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Monday, October 27 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
12 Contact Hours
Massage tables required

Research
Langdon S. Roberts—“Determining the Efficacy of Massage Techniques: The Effects of Patterns of Subjective and Objective Pressure Upon Muscular Tension Levels” (Muscular Therapy Institute, Brighton, MA): $20,000
Sheleigh Patricia Lawler—“Massage Therapy as a Nonpharmacological Treatment for Migraines and Chronic Tension Headaches” (Department of Psychology, University of Auckland, New Zealand): $19,980

Community Service
Peter Harvey—“Improving the Quality of Life for HIV+ People Through Massage” (Vermont CARES, Burlington, VT): $2,000
Marvin Gross—“Union Station Foundation Massage Therapy Program” (Union Station Foundation, Pasadena, CA): $4,823
Roberta Wentworth—“Expanding Mental Health Treatment Options to Include Massage Therapy” (Counseling Services, Inc., Saco, ME): $4,425
Charita Graham—“Body-Mind-Health” (Lester and Rosalie Anixter Center, Chicago): $3,493
Steve Sano—“Handicapped Children’s Association’s Pediatric Massage Therapy Program” (Handicapped Children’s Association, Johnson City, NY): $4,540

Scholarship
Nina Elshiekh—Faculty, Medical Arts Massage School ($2,000)
Jennifer Johnston—Muscular Therapy Institute ($1,250)
Gudrun Scheffler—Connecticut Center for Massage Therapy ($1,250)
Catherine Croteau—Kine Concept Institute Ontario ($1,250)
Neely Tang—Pennsylvania School of Muscle Therapy ($1,250)

A special thank-you to the donors, who support our mission of advancing the knowledge and practice of massage therapy by supporting scientific research, education and community service. A list of all of our donors can be found on the Web site.

To learn about the AMTA Foundation’s Granting Program or to apply for a grant, visit www.amtafoundation.org, or call 847-869-5019, ext. 167.

Get together with a friend after a hectic week, and give each other massages! Instead of running around crazy trying to find something relaxing to do after a long week, try making a peaceful atmosphere at your home, and practice 10-minute massages on each other. Start out easy with a hand or a foot. You will be surprised how good it feels, and how it will lower your blood pressure. It doesn't take a lot of effort, but the results are amazing.

October 4
The Science of Fascia: Anatomy and Clinical Application
Bloomington, Minnesota
800-888-4777, ext. 446
www.nwhealth.edu

October 5–11
Special AMTA/Home Depot National Massage Therapy Awareness Week
847-864-0123, ext. 133

October 19–25
AMTA’s National Massage Therapy Awareness Week^®
Theme: "Relieve Pain with Massage"
847-864-0123, ext. 149

October 22–26
AMTA 2003 National Convention
Richmond, Virginia
847-864-0123, ext. 143 (registration contact)
847-864-0123, ext. 113 (exhibitor contact)

January 20–24
AMTA COS Annual Meeting
New Orleans, Louisiana
847-864-0123, ext. 143

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Your ad can appear in e-touch for a month, two months, a year or more. Would you like to reach massage therapists and consumers interested in massage and massage-related products and services? Contact Christina Rompon at: 847-864-0123, ext. 113, or by E-mail at: adsales@amtamassage.org.

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