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Happy 2020! For a lot of us, the new year means a fresh start and brings resolve to take better care of our bodies. Maybe you’ve had your fair share of wine & delicious food over the past few weeks. (Most of us have the tendency to eat a bit more over the holidays.) Should you detox with a juice cleanse? Or perhaps a massage will flush those toxins from your body!

With the general rise of health consciousness, there’s also been an increase in the idea of “detoxing.” It’s hard to avoid the plethora of ads on TV or Facebook these days, trying to grab our attention with detoxification promises.

You can choose from the latest diet craze, a cleanse that’s endorsed by a famous actress, or a foot pad that claims to pull your toxins out via the soles of your feet…

And some massage therapists claim that massage can help flush toxins out.

But what exactly are these toxins? And do these detox methods really work?

In truth, there’s little scientific evidence to prove that detoxes of any kind work, and that goes for massages as well.

While there are plenty of health benefits to massage, ridding your body of toxins is not one of them. I’m here to debunk the myth of toxins, and get down to the nitty gritty of what actually makes massage so good for you.

What are “Toxins?”

Let’s take a look. These indefinite “toxins” sound scary… definitely something that you should try to avoid or get rid of at all costs.

But toxins are just a normal part of life. Like anything else, in small doses & within context, they are generally fine.

Perhaps what we actually fear are “poisons,” which are different from toxins. Poisons are harmful substances, but it’s important to remember here that even good things in too-large doses can be considered poison. (Ingesting large amounts of certain vitamins or minerals, for example.)

Toxins are a kind of subset of poisons; they are poisons produced by living things. Technically, drinking alcohol, getting a massage, and hard exercise can all produce toxins. But these toxins are just part of how our bodies metabolize, rebuild, & process substances on a daily basis.

Consider: Your doctor wouldn’t recommend that you give up your exercise routine to avoid toxins, and any toxins created by massage certainly won’t be harmful either.

No, Massages Won’t Cleanse Your Body of Toxins.

In truth? Your body does a pretty great job of flushing toxins all on its own. If you are in good health, your kidneys & liver should already be doing a great job of removing toxins.

Except for very rare occasions like overconsumption of drugs or alcohol, your body doesn’t need extra help detoxing. It just needs time to do what it does best.

Detox regimens, like juice cleanses or “detoxing massages,” don’t really do much to release toxins from your body. Unfortunately, these quick-fix claims are mythical. In fact, many of these juice cleanses are actually just crash diets with major caloric deficits that can leave you feeling weak, sluggish, & tired. And they certainly are not sustainable ways to meet your body’s nutritional needs.

But can’t a therapist dig in & work those toxins out?

If you’ve received an intense massage that left you feeling sore, tired, or disoriented, what you’ve actually experienced is post-massage soreness and malaise (PMSM). Excessive pressure is ill-advised for extremely vulnerable patients, such as the elderly or those with health issues.

Besides that, it’s not what I offer.

If you work with an experienced, knowledgeable massage therapist, PMSM should not be an issue.

Not only should a responsible LMT not claim that she can detox you, but also, it is inappropriate for them to overwork your muscles or to use excessive pressure.

It‘s not my style, and other therapists shouldn‘t go beyond beneficial levels of pressure when you‘re on their table. “No pain, no gain“ does not apply here.

The Water-Toxin Myth

You may have heard that it’s necessary to drink water after a massage… because some have claimed that massages send toxins directly into the bloodstream, & the best way to flush ’em out is to drink plenty of water to encourage your kidneys to remove those toxins from your body.

This rumor has been going around for many years. However, this myth is… busted!!

It never hurts to drink plenty of water, so it can’t hurt to rehydrate after a massage session. But massages don’t flush toxins into the bloodstream, and water wouldn’t help this process even if it was true.

Know that massage doesn’t liberate environmental pollutants from cells or “squish” them into your bloodstream or excretory systems to be expelled. Again, that’s what your kidneys and digestive system are designed to do.

The Lactic Acid Myth

Here’s another myth that LMTs used to circulate in the early 2000s… that massage breaks up lactic acid in the muscles after a long run or hard workout.

The soreness and stiffness you experience after your first run of the season actually isn’t from lactic acid building up in your muscles, it’s what’s called Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS).

When you work out, it’s like pulling on a long rope; some of the fibers in your muscles may break during the workout, in what are essentially tiny microtears. Unlike pulling on a rope that loses some of its strength, your muscles rebuild themselves and become larger and stronger.

Your massage therapist can reduce the pain and stiffness after a hard workout.  When you heavily work out a muscle group, it loses some of its flexibility & tenses up, making it easier to tear. Massage can ease this tension. Also, you may see improvement with inflammation & swelling, or experience less fatigue… gearing you up to conquer your next race, conditioning class, or hot yoga session.

Other Benefits to Massage Therapy

Don’t worry. Although I’m not gonna claim to detox your body…there are still plenty of reasons for regular massages, & benefits from receiving even an occasional massage.

With massage, you can potentially:

• Reduce stress hormones like cortisol
• Get help dealing with the side effects of cancer treatment
• Improve joint function and reduce pain for those with osteoarthritis
• Lessen muscle soreness after a hard workout
• Speed healing of overworked, sore muscles
• Reduce inflammation and helping the muscles’ repair process
• Lessen fibromyalgia-related pain
• Help with anxiety and insomnia
• Lessen the effects of temporomandibular joint pain (TMJ)

Massage has countless health benefits, but flushing toxins isn’t one of them.

If you’re looking to remove pollutants and poisons from your life, there’s no quick fix: you have to do so with conscious lifestyle changes.

Once you let go of the “myth of toxins,” though, you can let go! Enjoy your massage appointment, & the many benefits you’re receiving from your time on my table.