Can Massage help Night Shift Workers?
Can Massage help Night Shift Workers?
The University of British Columbia (UBC) doctors may soon be releasing results of their study on the effects of massage therapy on stress and inflammation caused by individuals working night shifts. This clinical research started in February 2014 and was schedule for completion last February.
Study on Night Shift Workers
At the end of two night shifts participants were randomly exposed to either a 30-minute-long “upper body massage” or a “reading intervention.”
Their profile was then measured by a device which non-invasively captures electrical signals from the body before and after the massage or reading interventions. Signs of inflammation were also measured in the blood.
By comparing pre-intervention results with those results after the reading or massage, the outcomes of the two types of intervention identify results that can be attributed to massage therapy.
According to a press release from the RMTBC, the outcome of this study will be of interest to the nearly 30 percent of employed Canadians who work the night shift, untraditional hours or inconsistent schedules that have them rotating hours during the evening or night. Some industries have a higher incidence of night shifts due to 24/7 operations. Examples of these could include hospitals, police stations, fire stations, retirement homes, etc.
Protective services employees – such as police officers, firefighters or security guards – have more than a 50 percent chance of having shift work, according to Statistics Canada. Health-care professionals (doctors, nurses and hospital staff) and service employees often have just under a 50 percent chance of working shifts.
Night shifts can cause sleep deprivation, which can be disruptive to normal eating and sleeping patterns, wakefulness and cardio-vascular functions, thereby causing uncontrolled stress. If you are a night shift worker, it is important that you try to maintain a balanced diet and always try to get a restful sleep. Most careers that put you in a spot of having shift work do not have an allotment for sleeping breaks or rest. The loss of sleep usually becomes the root cause of stress as it pushes your appetite and habits off balance.
“Proving efficacy for massage therapy treatment is important not only for good quality patient care, it is also important to advancing RMTs in British Columbia’s integrated health care system,” said RMTBC executive director, Brenda Locke. “This research will provide greater insight into the work RMTs can be doing in the future to better address workplace stress for shift workers in order to improve their quality of life.”
At Adica Massage Clinic we can offer you a variety of different types of massages, such as a therapeutic massage, couple’s massage, hot stone massage and more! We also offer different lengths, such as 30 minutes right up to a 2-hour massage. With your busy lifestyle and hectic work schedule, we can make an appointment to accommodate any of your needs or time conflicts. Give us a call for more information and we will be happy to answer any of the questions you may have!