BackgroundStress can cause psychological and physiological changes. Many studies revealed that massage can decrease stress. However, traditional Thai massage has not been well researched in this regard. The purpose of this study was to investigate the immediate effects of traditional Thai massage (TTM) on salivary alpha-amylase levels (sAA), heart rate variability (HRV), autonomic nervous system (ANS) function, and plasma renin activity (PRA).Material/MethodsTwenty-nine healthy participants were randomly allocated into either a traditional Thai massage (TTM) group or Control (C) group, after which they were switched to the other group with a 2-week wash-out period. Each of them was given a 10-minute mental arithmetic test to induce psychological stress before a 1-hour session of TTM or rest.ResultsWithin-groups comparison revealed that sAA was significantly decreased (p<0.05) in the TTM group but not in the C group. HRV and ANS function were significantly increased (p<0.05) and PRA was significantly decreased (p<0.05) in both groups. However, low frequency per high frequency ratio (LF/HF ratio) and ANS balance status were not changed. Only sAA was found to be significantly different between groups (p<0.05).ConclusionsWe conclude that both TTM and rest can reduce psychological stress, as indicated by decreased sAA levels, increased parasympathetic activity, decreased sympathetic activity, and decreased PRA. However, TTM may have a modest effect on stress reduction as indicated by a reduced sAA.
Routine practice of TTM may last 1 -2 hours depending on available time of clients. We doubt that 1 hour and 2 hours may yield different results. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the immediate effects of different duration of treatment of traditional Thai massage (TTM) on stress, heart rate variability (HRV) and autonomic nervous system (ANS) function. Seventeen healthy participants were randomly allocated to receive either 1 hour of TTM (1-TTM) group or 2 hour of TTM (2-TTM) group after which they were swabbed to receive the other one with a 2 -week washed out period. Stress, HRV, and ANS function were measured before and immediately after the TTM treatment. Within-groups comparison demonstrated that stress index was decreased (p<0.05) in both groups. Stress resistance, the standard deviation of the normal-to-normal intervals (SDNN) and root mean square of successive differences (RMSSD) were increased (p<0.05) in both groups. Low frequency per high frequency (LF/HF) ratio was decreased (p<0.05) in 1-TTM group. HF and ANS activity were increased (p<0.05) in 1-TTM group whereas LF and ANS balance status were not changed in both groups. However, all of them were not significant difference for between groups comparison. We concluded that a single session of either 1 or 2 hours of TTM could decrease stress and increase heart rate variability whereas only the 1-hour TTM could increase ANS function.
Delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) is usually caused by repeated exposure to eccentric muscle contraction or unfamiliar exercises. Eccentric exercise causes muscle cells damage leading to loss of muscle strength, increase muscle pain, muscle weakness, stiffness and swelling resulting in decreased physical performance and psychological distress. The purpose of this study was to compare the effects between heat and cold therapy and exercise on DOMS symptoms and functional capacity. Twelve healthy male participants were divided into two groups: Heat and Cold therapy (HCT) group (6 persons) and Exercise (E) group (6 persons). The experiment was performed on 2 times included postinduced DOMS and after getting recovery treatment. This study found that pain was significantly decreased (p<0.05) in both groups but not significantly different between-group comparison. Conclusion, HTC therapy and E treatment could decrease immediate muscle pain after induced DOMS, And may be a guideline for further studies and additional experiments.
The study on the effects of resistance exercise by using elastic band found that it could increase muscle strength and physical performance, but the study of the effects of flexible stick with aerobic exercise are also less. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of flexible stick on muscle strength, muscle endurance, and flexibility in healthy subjects. Twenty-five subjects (20.5 ± 1.1 years; BMI: 21.4 ± 4.1 kg/m2) were included in this study and they performed a moderate aerobic dance with resistance training exercise by using flexible stick for 40 minutes per time which included a 5-minute of warm up, a 30-minute of exercise, and a 5-minute of cool down, 3 times per weeks, for 4 weeks. Weight, back muscle strength, abdominal muscle endurance, and flexibility were measured before and after doing the exercise. This study found that there was significant increase in back muscle strength (p=0.33), abdominal muscle endurance (p=0.001), and flexibility (p=0.0001) after exercise. However, 4 weeks of exercise did not affect on body weight. We concluded that 4 weeks of aerobic exercise with flexible stick could increase back muscle strength, abdominal muscle endurance, and flexibility in healthy subjects.
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