One of the byproducts of being an engineer is, I assume that everything I know will be obsolete in 5 years. So when new ideas or facts come along, I’m willing to look at them critically and change my work techniques based on that new knowledge.
One of the things that has surprised me the most about the massage profession is the general unwillingness to admit that something we’ve been doing is either wrong or can be improved on. I’ve seen it in new grads, who follow the teaching of their school to the letter, and with older, more experienced therapists and CE providers who have found a few techniques that work most of the time and never change.
For some of the people in the profession, knowledge is a fixed thing, never evolving, never affecting what they do or say. Holding so fast to these beliefs is not only hazardous to your long term career as a massage therapist, but can also be hazardous to your clients.
Dogma is the established belief or doctrine held by a religion, ideology or any kind of organization: it is authoritative and not to be disputed, doubted or from which diverged.[1]
A couple of old saws that need to be retired
Massage releases toxins from the muscles. Nope. It doesn’t. Quit telling people that. The body does not store toxins in the muscle fiber. The body stores toxins in fat and bone tissue. The body excretes toxins in sweat, feces, and urine. The body processes toxins in the liver and kidneys. The muscles are toxin free.
Massage gets rid of lactic acid. This is newly debunked for me, because research has shown that massage interferes with removal of lactic acid in the muscle. Of course, this assumes that lactic acid in the muscles is bad. It’s not. Lactic acid is used by the muscles as fuel, so when it builds up due to overexertion of the muscle, the muscle has to break it back down into its components for later use. This is done within an hour of exercise.
So what causes delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS)? Scientists are still trying to figure that out. They have disputed the research, done in 1920, that it was caused by lactic acid. See that? We’ve been spouting medical research done on dead frog legs in 1920 as fact for 90 years. Time for an update, don’t you think?
I got taken to task
In a reply to a Facebook post, I quoted a remark by one of the Tour D’ France competitors saying they were going to use massage right after the race to reduce the lactic acid in the muscles. The Facebook reply (by Dale Favier) pointed me to an article[2] which discusses recent finding that massage actually interferes with the re-metabolization of lactic acid. So I stand corrected and won’t be perpetuating that myth anymore.
You need 8 glasses of water a day. No, you don’t. The interesting thing about this myth is, there was never any research done to support the claim to begin with. I’ve actually heard this taken to the extreme that if the water has anything in it, a squeeze of lemon perhaps, that it no longer counts toward your 8 glasses for the day. Bunk. Go read this article at Dartmouth medical school. [3]
This also goes with the ‘drink lots of water after a massage’ rule we tell out clients. It’s not really necessary to drink lots of water after a massage. Your body is regulating hydration levels pretty closely, so drinking a bunch of water is simply going to increase urination requirements. Remember, you’re not flushing toxins from the muscles, so the water is unnecessary. It’s still nice to offer it to people after they’ve been lying on your table for an hour. They might be a little thirsty.
Scientific knowledge evolves, so should yours
Why do some people refuse to accept new research? I don’t know. There are people out there who believe that the world is flat (it’s not, it’s generally spherical), that evolution is a myth (it’s not, we really began as single-cell organisms floating in the ocean), and that cats are aliens performing behavioral experiments on humans (they’re not, oops, gotta go feed the cat her favorite food.)
We all have bits of dogma in our heads
We are products of our upbringing and education. One of the best things I learned in engineering school was how to think critically. How to question established methods in search of new and better ways. What I would like to see more of in the massage profession is a willingness to change our minds when new facts and research come along. I’m not asking for a full scale education in research methods; that’s not likely in a 500 hour course, but at the least a willingness to question what are established methods and myths that have been passed down through the years.
What are the old saws you would like to see put to rest? Everyone has there own personal (least) favorite that they know is bunk but keeps being used.
[1] definition from Wikipedia
[3] http://dms.dartmouth.edu/news/2002_h2/08aug2002_water.shtml
photo credit: aussiegall
Thanks for the heads up on the removal of lactic acid… I stand corrected too! I agree it’s massively important to keep up to date with current research – there’s just an awful lot being produced out ‘there’.
Thanks for the post – Retweeted!
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by RehabSoftwarePro.com. RehabSoftwarePro.com said: RT @kelliawise: When Knowledge Becomes Dogma http://bit.ly/aCy0Pn [...]
The lactic acid thing I think just *sounded* so right. It feels just like that, like something’s burning away in the tissue there, and rubbing does make it feel better, or seems to anyway. One of those bits of soundbite science that goes viral
Unfortunately, disproofs are not nearly so sexy and rarely “take” that way in the public mind. It’s just not nearly so interesting to say, “well, it’s not *that*, and, well, we don’t really know what the heck it is.”
Thanks for taking my snippiness in good part! This is a great blog & I’m happy to have landed here.
Awesome, thanks for spreading research awareness! Posted on twitter.
Sometimes I feel conflicted when I hear fellow therapists say these things to clients. It amazes me how “true” something must be if so many people believe it.
While I agree it is important to think critically, I do not buy the information about water. I am familiar with the recent research and there will probably be another study 5 years down the road saying that research was wrong. In this case, I disregard research and go with intuition. Our bodies need water. People that hydrate with pure water do better. When I decrease my water intake, I notice it physically. I will continue to promote it. As far as the toxins build up in the muscle tissue, now THAT’S interesting, and I am not entirely surprised. It sounded like hogwash to begin with. But, I now have to tell my clients that new research shows that I have been wrong for 5 years. I guess I need to do more research. Thanks for the heads up!
Terye – I was surprised about the research showing that massage interferes with lactic acid reduction, but I take heart in knowing that lactic acid is muscle fuel, not muscle poison. the original research done 90 years ago was flawed but it was the state of the art. We’ve come a long way since hten, but the lactic acid build up theory just seemed to make sense I guess no one thought to verify it until recently.
And, yes, we need water but some people eat a more water intensive diet like soups and fresh veggies and fruit and don’t need to drink as much water. Most Americans, though, eat a very dry diet – breads, chips, crackers, so drinking water is necessary.