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What Science Really Says About the Benefits of Massage
Massage is more than a luxury for many people—it is increasingly used in healthcare settings. Current research suggests meaningful benefits for some conditions, while also highlighting important limits in the strength of the evidence.
Massage is often associated with relaxation and self-care, but research suggests its role extends well beyond an occasional indulgence. Healthcare providers are increasingly incorporating massage into clinical settings as growing evidence and patient experiences point to benefits for both physical and emotional wellbeing.
Researchers note that massage appears to work through a combination of physical, emotional and neurological mechanisms rather than a single pathway. It can help encourage a parasympathetic nervous system response—a physiological state associated with relaxation and calm—and may help people reconnect with their bodies.
Clinical applications continue to expand. Research conducted in part at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center found that massage helped patients with advanced cancer achieve long-term pain reduction, contributing to the development of the Imagine project, which seeks to integrate massage and acupuncture into cancer programs across the United States.
Beyond cancer care, evidence suggests massage may provide short-term benefits for a range of painful conditions, including low back pain, neck pain, shoulder pain, knee osteoarthritis and some symptoms of fibromyalgia. Studies have also reported improvements in anxiety, health-related quality of life and pain intensity in certain populations.
At the same time, it's important to keep the evidence in perspective. A large systematic review of research published between 2018 and 2023 found that although massage therapy has been studied extensively, the certainty of evidence for many painful adult health conditions remains low or very low. Similarly, clinical guidance from the U.S. National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health concludes that massage may help some conditions—particularly in the short term—but stronger evidence is still needed for many long-term outcomes.
The takeaway is balanced: massage shows promising benefits, especially for relaxation, pain management and certain musculoskeletal conditions, but it should be viewed as one component of a broader healthcare approach rather than a universal solution. As research continues to improve, our understanding of where massage is most effective will become even clearer.