Strivept - Physiotherapy Kitchener Massage Therapy Improves Your Pain and Stress Leve | Page 4

Almost 80% of Canadians have
accessed complementary therapies at
least once in their lifetime
• A recent Fraiser Institute survey has revealed that 8 in 10 Canadians (79%) have used
a form of alternative medicine. This marks an increase from 74% in 2006 and 73% in
1997, when two previous similar surveys were conducted. Interestingly enough, the
preferred types of complimentary therapies have stood their ground over time, with
acupuncture and massage therapy being in the top 4. The most common health
conditions reported were back or neck problems (34%), allergies (27%), and arthritisor
rheumatism (23%). To help better address these and complement their treatment
plans, over three-quarters adult Canadians have accessed at least one form of care
that falls outside of mainstream healthcare. This number has increased by 5% since
2006 which can only mean positive progress after years and years of stigma and
disbelief.
• In 2016, massage was the most common type of therapy with 44% of Canadians having
tried it at least once, making it also one of the most rapidly expanding therapies. With
current lifestyle patterns which are guaranteeing more musculoskeletal problems than
ever before, it comes as no surprise that people are investing more in manual
therapies to relieve tension and pain.
• Massage might just be one of the oldest forms of medical care, dating back to ancient
Egypt where tomb paintings portray people being massaged. But how are the
techniques actually benefitting the body? In a modern approach the beneficial effects
of massage therapy are best described as a gathering of interconnected adaptive
responses. Just imagine that the human skin has over 5 million touch receptors and
about 3,000 can be found at a fingertip level.