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One in five Americans have had a massage from a massage
therapist in the past five years and 13% report receiving
one in the past year. This is up 8% from 1997.
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Today, there are more than 60,000 Nationally Certified practitioners
that serve millions of consumers.
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Nationally Certified practitioners provide expertise in
various areas of therapeutic massage and body work, Nationally
Certified practitioners provide expertise in various areas
of therapeutic massager and body work, including Swedish
massage, shiatsu, polarity therapy, Rolfing®, Trager®
techniques, reflexology, neuromuscular therapy and many
more.
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In 1996, massage therapy and bodywork was officially offered
for the first time as a core medical service in the Summer
Olympic Games in Atlanta. At the Games, Nationally Certified
practitioners were providing key medical services.
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Thirty-one states and the District of Columbia now regulate
the practice of therapeutic massage and bodywork. Of those,
twenty-five states, in addition to the District of Columbia,
now use the NCBTMB examination as meeting (in part or in
whole) the requirements of regulation.
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NCBTMB currently has over 600 Approved Providers of Continuing
Education.
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Consumers spend between $2 and $4 billion dollars annually
on visits to massage and bodywork practitioners, totaling
approximately 75 million visits each year.
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The three most often cited reasons for getting a therapeutic
massage are relaxation (27%), relief of muscle soreness,
stiffness or spasm (13%), and stress reduction (10%).
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Health insurers are increasingly expanding coverage to include
alternative medicines. In addition, several healthcare network
providers use NCBTMB to check the National Certification
status of the practitioner.
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Fifty-four percent of primary care physicians and family
practitioners say they would encourage their patients to
pursue massage therapy as a complement to medical treatment.
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Massage therapy accounts for 18% of the 425 million visits
made to alternative healthcare providers each year.
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In 1999, 52% of American adults thought of massage as "therapeutic,"
which is up 47% from 1997.
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An estimated 20 million Americans receive massage therapy
and bodywork each year, according to the National Institute
of Health (NIH).
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Approximately 50,000 massage and bodywork practitioners
provide 45 million one-hour therapy sessions each year.
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Two thirds of Americans have tried at least one form of
alternative therapy or treatment for medical conditions.
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Massage therapy is the third most commonly used form of
alternative medicine in the U.S., having been tried by 35%
of Americans.
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Women are more likely than men to have tried alternative
treatment.
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Forty-two percent of Americans have used some type of alternative
care in the past.
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Americans make more visits to see alternative therapists
than to see primary-care physicians, spending $21.2 billion.
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The number of massage practitioners in the U.S. is between
120,000 and 160,000.
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Massage and bodywork therapy is sought out by a large number
of people in age brackets: 18-24 (22%); 25-34 (31%); 35-44
(25%); 45-54 (22%); 55-64 (19%); and over 65 (9%).
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The most important drive to try an alternative treatment
is a recommendation from a friend or family member, which
leads 62% of their patients to these providers.
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