Massagemay help protect against high blood pressure (hypertension) which is a major risk factor forheart disease.
Some studies suggest that getting a massage may help calm the part of the nervous system responsible for involuntary responses to dangerous or stressful situations (sympathetic nervous system).
Although there has not been a lot of research on massage and blood pressure, some evidence shows that adding massage to your stress management routine could help you keep your blood pressure in check.
This article will go over what scientific evidence says about massage and hypertension. You’ll also learn other lifestyle changes that can help you control your blood pressure.
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What the Numbers In Your Blood Pressure Reading Mean
What the Science Says
Studies have suggested that different forms of massage could help lower blood pressure, but the findings don’t always agree. It’s also unclear how long the effects last and whether massage would be a long-term strategy for helping someone manage their blood pressure.
Swedish Massage
Some researchers have looked at whether getting a Swedish massage can help lower a person’s blood pressure.
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Other Kinds of Massage
Other forms of massage might also be useful—for example, those that target specific areas of the body, like the back and feet.
Some studies have suggested that the positive effects of massage on blood pressure might also be seen in people with cardiovascular conditions like congestive heart failure.
Researchers who have reviewed many studies on blood pressure and massage therapy have mostly indicated that more research is needed before the practice could be broadly recommended.
One of the biggest limitations of the research that has been done on massage therapy and blood pressure is that the studies did not involve a lot of people. Future studies would hopefully be larger and include a diverse group of participants.
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How Long Do the Effects Last?
Most of the research on massage and blood pressure only looked at the effects in the short term. We don’t know how long the benefits of a massage on blood pressure will last for most people.
A 2018 trial of a small number of women with pre-hypertension found that the blood-pressure-lowering effects of a 10-15 minute massage sometimes lasted about 72 hours after the massage.
However, those effects didn’t seem to last when the researchers checked the blood pressure readings of the participants two weeks later.
While the positive effects of massage on blood pressure might be seen quickly, they may also go away just as fast.
Massage Therapy for Arthritis
Can Massage Raise BP?
Some forms of massage—likesports massageor"trigger point" release—might actually raise blood pressure.
Reflexology, another complementary health practice that involves applying pressure to different parts of the body, has also been shown to possibly raise blood pressure in healthy people.
These types of massage tend to cause more discomfort than gentler methods. If people feel pain during these massages, that could be why theirblood pressure goes up.
What Should Your Blood Pressure Be?
Aromatherapy Massage
Research has shown that the holistic healing practice of aromatherapy—which uses different scents from essential oils—may help lower blood pressure.
A 2012 trial found that using aromatherapy with essential oils helped lower blood pressure in people with high blood pressure and those at risk (prehypertension).
Can Aromatherapy Help Your Heart?
Tips for Lowering Blood Pressure
There are many options fortreating high blood pressure. While some people do need to takemedicationto keep their levels in check, there are also many lifestyle changes that can help, including:
How Long Will It Take to Lower My Blood Pressure?
Summary
Some evidence suggests that massage can help people with high blood pressure. For example, Swedish massage and aromatherapy massage may help lower blood pressure, though it’s not clear how long the effect will last.
Whether you take medication for your blood pressure or not, there are other lifestyle changes that can help you keep your blood pressure under control, such as eating a heart-healthy diet, getting regular exercise, quitting cigarettes, cutting back on salt and alcohol, and maintaining a weight that’s healthiest for your body.
How to Lower Your Systolic Blood Pressure
A Word From Verywell
There isn’t enough research to say that massage therapy is a sure way to control your blood pressure, but getting a massage on a regular basis may lower your stress.
Feeling less stressed may help prevent high blood pressure. Other stress management techniques likeyoga,meditation, andtai chican also help.
If you’re interested in trying to use massage to manage your blood pressure, ask your healthcare provider first. It might be fine for you to use self-treatments, but you should not avoid or delay standard care for high blood pressure, as doing so could haveserious health consequences.
What It Means If Your Blood Pressure Is Ab
18 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Supa’at I, Zakaria Z, Maskon O, Aminuddin A, Nordin NA.Effects of Swedish massage therapy on blood pressure, heart rate, and inflammatory markers in hypertensive women.Evid Based Complement Alternat Med.2013;2013:171852. doi:10.1155/2013/171852Givi M.Durability of effect of massage therapy on blood pressure.Int J Prev Med.2013;4(5):511-6.Supa’at I, Zakaria Z, Maskon O, Aminuddin A, Nordin NA.Effects of Swedish massage therapy on blood pressure, heart rate, and inflammatory markers in hypertensive women.Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2013;2013:171852. doi:10.1155/2013/171852Mohebbi Z, Moghadasi M, Homayouni K, Nikou MH.The effect of back massage on blood pressure in the patients with primary hypertension in 2012-2013: a randomized clinical trial.Int J Community Based Nurs Midwifery. 2014;2(4):251-258.Gholami-Motlagh F, Jouzi M, Soleymani B.Comparing the effects of two Swedish massage techniques on the vital signs and anxiety of healthy women.Iran J Nurs Midwifery Res. 2016;21(4):402-409. doi:10.4103/1735-9066.185584Alimohammad HS, Ghasemi Z, Shahriar S, et al.Effect of hand and foot surface stroke massage on anxiety and vital signs in patients with acute coronary syndrome: A randomized clinical trial.Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice. 31:126-131. doi:10.1016/j.ctcp.2018.01.012Walaszek R.Impact of classic massage on blood pressure in patients with clinically diagnosed hypertension.J Tradit Chin Med. 2015;35(4):396-401. doi:10.1016/s0254-6272(15)30115-1Jamali S, Ramezanli S, Marzieh Kargar Jahromi, Zare A, Poorgholami F.Effect of Massage Therapy on Physiologic Responses in Patients with Congestive Heart Failure.Biosciences Biotechnology Research Asia. 13(1):383-388. doi:10.13005/bbra/2044Arslan, Ceyhan, Mollaoğlu.The influence of foot and back massage on blood pressure and sleep quality in females with essential hypertension: a randomized controlled study.Journal of Human Hypertension. 2020;35(7):627-637. doi:10.1038/s41371-020-0371-zNelson, N.Massage therapy: understanding the mechanisms of action on blood pressure. A scoping review.Journal of the American Society of Hypertension. 9(10):785-793. doi:10.1016/j.jash.2015.07.009Field, T.Massage therapy research review.Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice. 24:19-31. doi:10.1016/j.ctcp.2016.04.005Niu JF, Zhao XF, Hu HT, Wang JJ, Liu YL, Lu DH.Should acupuncture, biofeedback, massage, Qi gong, relaxation therapy, device-guided breathing, yoga and tai chi be used to reduce blood pressure?: Recommendations based on high-quality systematic reviews.Complement Ther Med. 2019;42:322-331. doi:10.1016/j.ctim.2018.10.017Givi M, Sadeghi M, Garakyaraghi M, Eshghinezhad A, Moeini M, Ghasempour Z.Long-term effect of massage therapy on blood pressure in prehypertensive women.J Educ Health Promot. 2018;7:54. Published 2018 Apr 3. doi:10.4103/jehp.jehp_88_16Cambron JA, Dexheimer J, Coe P.Changes in blood pressure after various forms of therapeutic massage: a preliminary study.J Altern Complement Med. 2006;12(1):65-70. doi:10.1089/acm.2006.12.65Padial ER, López NT, Bujaldón JL, Villanueva IE, del Paso GR.Cardiovascular effects of reflexology in healthy individuals: evidence for a specific increase in blood pressure.Alternative Medicine Studies. 2012;2(1):e4-e4. doi:10.4081/ams.2012.e4Kim IH, Kim C, Seong K, Hur MH, Lim HM, Lee MS.Essential oil inhalation on blood pressure and salivary cortisol levels in prehypertensive and hypertensive subjects.Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2012;2012:984203. doi:10.1155/2012/984203Ju MS, Lee S, Bae I, Hur MH, Seong K, Lee MS.Effects of aroma massage on home blood pressure, ambulatory blood pressure, and sleep quality in middle-aged women with hypertension.Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2013;2013:403251. doi:10.1155/2013/403251Eguchi E, Funakubo N, Tomooka K, Ohira T, Ogino K, Tanigawa T.The Effects of Aroma Foot Massage on Blood Pressure and Anxiety in Japanese Community-Dwelling Men and Women: A Crossover Randomized Controlled Trial.PLOS ONE. 2016;11(3). doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0151712
18 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Supa’at I, Zakaria Z, Maskon O, Aminuddin A, Nordin NA.Effects of Swedish massage therapy on blood pressure, heart rate, and inflammatory markers in hypertensive women.Evid Based Complement Alternat Med.2013;2013:171852. doi:10.1155/2013/171852Givi M.Durability of effect of massage therapy on blood pressure.Int J Prev Med.2013;4(5):511-6.Supa’at I, Zakaria Z, Maskon O, Aminuddin A, Nordin NA.Effects of Swedish massage therapy on blood pressure, heart rate, and inflammatory markers in hypertensive women.Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2013;2013:171852. doi:10.1155/2013/171852Mohebbi Z, Moghadasi M, Homayouni K, Nikou MH.The effect of back massage on blood pressure in the patients with primary hypertension in 2012-2013: a randomized clinical trial.Int J Community Based Nurs Midwifery. 2014;2(4):251-258.Gholami-Motlagh F, Jouzi M, Soleymani B.Comparing the effects of two Swedish massage techniques on the vital signs and anxiety of healthy women.Iran J Nurs Midwifery Res. 2016;21(4):402-409. doi:10.4103/1735-9066.185584Alimohammad HS, Ghasemi Z, Shahriar S, et al.Effect of hand and foot surface stroke massage on anxiety and vital signs in patients with acute coronary syndrome: A randomized clinical trial.Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice. 31:126-131. doi:10.1016/j.ctcp.2018.01.012Walaszek R.Impact of classic massage on blood pressure in patients with clinically diagnosed hypertension.J Tradit Chin Med. 2015;35(4):396-401. doi:10.1016/s0254-6272(15)30115-1Jamali S, Ramezanli S, Marzieh Kargar Jahromi, Zare A, Poorgholami F.Effect of Massage Therapy on Physiologic Responses in Patients with Congestive Heart Failure.Biosciences Biotechnology Research Asia. 13(1):383-388. doi:10.13005/bbra/2044Arslan, Ceyhan, Mollaoğlu.The influence of foot and back massage on blood pressure and sleep quality in females with essential hypertension: a randomized controlled study.Journal of Human Hypertension. 2020;35(7):627-637. doi:10.1038/s41371-020-0371-zNelson, N.Massage therapy: understanding the mechanisms of action on blood pressure. A scoping review.Journal of the American Society of Hypertension. 9(10):785-793. doi:10.1016/j.jash.2015.07.009Field, T.Massage therapy research review.Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice. 24:19-31. doi:10.1016/j.ctcp.2016.04.005Niu JF, Zhao XF, Hu HT, Wang JJ, Liu YL, Lu DH.Should acupuncture, biofeedback, massage, Qi gong, relaxation therapy, device-guided breathing, yoga and tai chi be used to reduce blood pressure?: Recommendations based on high-quality systematic reviews.Complement Ther Med. 2019;42:322-331. doi:10.1016/j.ctim.2018.10.017Givi M, Sadeghi M, Garakyaraghi M, Eshghinezhad A, Moeini M, Ghasempour Z.Long-term effect of massage therapy on blood pressure in prehypertensive women.J Educ Health Promot. 2018;7:54. Published 2018 Apr 3. doi:10.4103/jehp.jehp_88_16Cambron JA, Dexheimer J, Coe P.Changes in blood pressure after various forms of therapeutic massage: a preliminary study.J Altern Complement Med. 2006;12(1):65-70. doi:10.1089/acm.2006.12.65Padial ER, López NT, Bujaldón JL, Villanueva IE, del Paso GR.Cardiovascular effects of reflexology in healthy individuals: evidence for a specific increase in blood pressure.Alternative Medicine Studies. 2012;2(1):e4-e4. doi:10.4081/ams.2012.e4Kim IH, Kim C, Seong K, Hur MH, Lim HM, Lee MS.Essential oil inhalation on blood pressure and salivary cortisol levels in prehypertensive and hypertensive subjects.Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2012;2012:984203. doi:10.1155/2012/984203Ju MS, Lee S, Bae I, Hur MH, Seong K, Lee MS.Effects of aroma massage on home blood pressure, ambulatory blood pressure, and sleep quality in middle-aged women with hypertension.Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2013;2013:403251. doi:10.1155/2013/403251Eguchi E, Funakubo N, Tomooka K, Ohira T, Ogino K, Tanigawa T.The Effects of Aroma Foot Massage on Blood Pressure and Anxiety in Japanese Community-Dwelling Men and Women: A Crossover Randomized Controlled Trial.PLOS ONE. 2016;11(3). doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0151712
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Supa’at I, Zakaria Z, Maskon O, Aminuddin A, Nordin NA.Effects of Swedish massage therapy on blood pressure, heart rate, and inflammatory markers in hypertensive women.Evid Based Complement Alternat Med.2013;2013:171852. doi:10.1155/2013/171852Givi M.Durability of effect of massage therapy on blood pressure.Int J Prev Med.2013;4(5):511-6.Supa’at I, Zakaria Z, Maskon O, Aminuddin A, Nordin NA.Effects of Swedish massage therapy on blood pressure, heart rate, and inflammatory markers in hypertensive women.Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2013;2013:171852. doi:10.1155/2013/171852Mohebbi Z, Moghadasi M, Homayouni K, Nikou MH.The effect of back massage on blood pressure in the patients with primary hypertension in 2012-2013: a randomized clinical trial.Int J Community Based Nurs Midwifery. 2014;2(4):251-258.Gholami-Motlagh F, Jouzi M, Soleymani B.Comparing the effects of two Swedish massage techniques on the vital signs and anxiety of healthy women.Iran J Nurs Midwifery Res. 2016;21(4):402-409. doi:10.4103/1735-9066.185584Alimohammad HS, Ghasemi Z, Shahriar S, et al.Effect of hand and foot surface stroke massage on anxiety and vital signs in patients with acute coronary syndrome: A randomized clinical trial.Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice. 31:126-131. doi:10.1016/j.ctcp.2018.01.012Walaszek R.Impact of classic massage on blood pressure in patients with clinically diagnosed hypertension.J Tradit Chin Med. 2015;35(4):396-401. doi:10.1016/s0254-6272(15)30115-1Jamali S, Ramezanli S, Marzieh Kargar Jahromi, Zare A, Poorgholami F.Effect of Massage Therapy on Physiologic Responses in Patients with Congestive Heart Failure.Biosciences Biotechnology Research Asia. 13(1):383-388. doi:10.13005/bbra/2044Arslan, Ceyhan, Mollaoğlu.The influence of foot and back massage on blood pressure and sleep quality in females with essential hypertension: a randomized controlled study.Journal of Human Hypertension. 2020;35(7):627-637. doi:10.1038/s41371-020-0371-zNelson, N.Massage therapy: understanding the mechanisms of action on blood pressure. A scoping review.Journal of the American Society of Hypertension. 9(10):785-793. doi:10.1016/j.jash.2015.07.009Field, T.Massage therapy research review.Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice. 24:19-31. doi:10.1016/j.ctcp.2016.04.005Niu JF, Zhao XF, Hu HT, Wang JJ, Liu YL, Lu DH.Should acupuncture, biofeedback, massage, Qi gong, relaxation therapy, device-guided breathing, yoga and tai chi be used to reduce blood pressure?: Recommendations based on high-quality systematic reviews.Complement Ther Med. 2019;42:322-331. doi:10.1016/j.ctim.2018.10.017Givi M, Sadeghi M, Garakyaraghi M, Eshghinezhad A, Moeini M, Ghasempour Z.Long-term effect of massage therapy on blood pressure in prehypertensive women.J Educ Health Promot. 2018;7:54. Published 2018 Apr 3. doi:10.4103/jehp.jehp_88_16Cambron JA, Dexheimer J, Coe P.Changes in blood pressure after various forms of therapeutic massage: a preliminary study.J Altern Complement Med. 2006;12(1):65-70. doi:10.1089/acm.2006.12.65Padial ER, López NT, Bujaldón JL, Villanueva IE, del Paso GR.Cardiovascular effects of reflexology in healthy individuals: evidence for a specific increase in blood pressure.Alternative Medicine Studies. 2012;2(1):e4-e4. doi:10.4081/ams.2012.e4Kim IH, Kim C, Seong K, Hur MH, Lim HM, Lee MS.Essential oil inhalation on blood pressure and salivary cortisol levels in prehypertensive and hypertensive subjects.Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2012;2012:984203. doi:10.1155/2012/984203Ju MS, Lee S, Bae I, Hur MH, Seong K, Lee MS.Effects of aroma massage on home blood pressure, ambulatory blood pressure, and sleep quality in middle-aged women with hypertension.Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2013;2013:403251. doi:10.1155/2013/403251Eguchi E, Funakubo N, Tomooka K, Ohira T, Ogino K, Tanigawa T.The Effects of Aroma Foot Massage on Blood Pressure and Anxiety in Japanese Community-Dwelling Men and Women: A Crossover Randomized Controlled Trial.PLOS ONE. 2016;11(3). doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0151712
Supa’at I, Zakaria Z, Maskon O, Aminuddin A, Nordin NA.Effects of Swedish massage therapy on blood pressure, heart rate, and inflammatory markers in hypertensive women.Evid Based Complement Alternat Med.2013;2013:171852. doi:10.1155/2013/171852
Givi M.Durability of effect of massage therapy on blood pressure.Int J Prev Med.2013;4(5):511-6.
Supa’at I, Zakaria Z, Maskon O, Aminuddin A, Nordin NA.Effects of Swedish massage therapy on blood pressure, heart rate, and inflammatory markers in hypertensive women.Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2013;2013:171852. doi:10.1155/2013/171852
Mohebbi Z, Moghadasi M, Homayouni K, Nikou MH.The effect of back massage on blood pressure in the patients with primary hypertension in 2012-2013: a randomized clinical trial.Int J Community Based Nurs Midwifery. 2014;2(4):251-258.
Gholami-Motlagh F, Jouzi M, Soleymani B.Comparing the effects of two Swedish massage techniques on the vital signs and anxiety of healthy women.Iran J Nurs Midwifery Res. 2016;21(4):402-409. doi:10.4103/1735-9066.185584
Alimohammad HS, Ghasemi Z, Shahriar S, et al.Effect of hand and foot surface stroke massage on anxiety and vital signs in patients with acute coronary syndrome: A randomized clinical trial.Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice. 31:126-131. doi:10.1016/j.ctcp.2018.01.012
Walaszek R.Impact of classic massage on blood pressure in patients with clinically diagnosed hypertension.J Tradit Chin Med. 2015;35(4):396-401. doi:10.1016/s0254-6272(15)30115-1
Jamali S, Ramezanli S, Marzieh Kargar Jahromi, Zare A, Poorgholami F.Effect of Massage Therapy on Physiologic Responses in Patients with Congestive Heart Failure.Biosciences Biotechnology Research Asia. 13(1):383-388. doi:10.13005/bbra/2044
Arslan, Ceyhan, Mollaoğlu.The influence of foot and back massage on blood pressure and sleep quality in females with essential hypertension: a randomized controlled study.Journal of Human Hypertension. 2020;35(7):627-637. doi:10.1038/s41371-020-0371-z
Nelson, N.Massage therapy: understanding the mechanisms of action on blood pressure. A scoping review.Journal of the American Society of Hypertension. 9(10):785-793. doi:10.1016/j.jash.2015.07.009
Field, T.Massage therapy research review.Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice. 24:19-31. doi:10.1016/j.ctcp.2016.04.005
Niu JF, Zhao XF, Hu HT, Wang JJ, Liu YL, Lu DH.Should acupuncture, biofeedback, massage, Qi gong, relaxation therapy, device-guided breathing, yoga and tai chi be used to reduce blood pressure?: Recommendations based on high-quality systematic reviews.Complement Ther Med. 2019;42:322-331. doi:10.1016/j.ctim.2018.10.017
Givi M, Sadeghi M, Garakyaraghi M, Eshghinezhad A, Moeini M, Ghasempour Z.Long-term effect of massage therapy on blood pressure in prehypertensive women.J Educ Health Promot. 2018;7:54. Published 2018 Apr 3. doi:10.4103/jehp.jehp_88_16
Cambron JA, Dexheimer J, Coe P.Changes in blood pressure after various forms of therapeutic massage: a preliminary study.J Altern Complement Med. 2006;12(1):65-70. doi:10.1089/acm.2006.12.65
Padial ER, López NT, Bujaldón JL, Villanueva IE, del Paso GR.Cardiovascular effects of reflexology in healthy individuals: evidence for a specific increase in blood pressure.Alternative Medicine Studies. 2012;2(1):e4-e4. doi:10.4081/ams.2012.e4
Kim IH, Kim C, Seong K, Hur MH, Lim HM, Lee MS.Essential oil inhalation on blood pressure and salivary cortisol levels in prehypertensive and hypertensive subjects.Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2012;2012:984203. doi:10.1155/2012/984203
Ju MS, Lee S, Bae I, Hur MH, Seong K, Lee MS.Effects of aroma massage on home blood pressure, ambulatory blood pressure, and sleep quality in middle-aged women with hypertension.Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2013;2013:403251. doi:10.1155/2013/403251
Eguchi E, Funakubo N, Tomooka K, Ohira T, Ogino K, Tanigawa T.The Effects of Aroma Foot Massage on Blood Pressure and Anxiety in Japanese Community-Dwelling Men and Women: A Crossover Randomized Controlled Trial.PLOS ONE. 2016;11(3). doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0151712
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