# drinking water after back massage? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 6, 2006, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-water-after-back-massage/343313 "2006-02-06T23:08:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![StewieGriffin420](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@StewieGriffin420](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StewieGriffin420)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2006, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-water-after-back-massage/343313/1 "2006-02-06T23:08:14Z")
Massage therapists will tell you to drink lots of water after a massage, because a massage releases toxins from the muscles into the bloodstream. is this true? ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2006, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-water-after-back-massage/343313/2 "2006-02-06T23:13:19Z")
No. ---
**Author:** ![sunacres](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@sunacres](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sunacres)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2006, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-water-after-back-massage/343313/3 "2006-02-07T04:14:34Z")
Well, yes and no. Many substances get released during massage, ALL of which are toxic in sufficient quantities. (Everything is toxic if you have too much). It’s always a good idea to stay fully hydrated, it’ll help you feel your best. ---
**Author:** ![CynicalGabe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@CynicalGabe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CynicalGabe)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2006, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-water-after-back-massage/343313/4 "2006-02-07T04:18:25Z")
> [@sunacres](#): > > Well, yes and no. Many substances get released during massage, ALL of which are toxic in sufficient quantities. (Everything is toxic if you have too much). Must… resist… several obvious jokes… ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2006, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-water-after-back-massage/343313/5 "2006-02-07T04:23:23Z")
> [@sunacres](#): > > Well, yes and no. Many substances get released during massage, ALL of which are toxic in sufficient quantities. This smells like pseudoscientific bullshit. What specific substances does massage “release”? ---
**Author:** ![sunacres](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@sunacres](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sunacres)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2006, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-water-after-back-massage/343313/6 "2006-02-07T04:55:54Z")
Whoa! Didn’t mean to trigger your bullshitmeter friend! Sqeeze any cells, anywhere (say an apple, or a lime, or your thigh) and fluid will depart the permeable membrane. And that fluid, all of it, _can_ be toxic. OK? That’s all I meant. I’m right behind your caution regarding quackery from massage therapists, and I didn’t mean to support the widespread and truely meaningless use of “toxins” by them. But your “no” was, though perhaps appropriate, inaccurate. ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2006, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-water-after-back-massage/343313/7 "2006-02-07T05:01:14Z")
> [@sunacres](#): > > qeeze any cells, anywhere (say an apple, or a lime, or your thigh) and fluid will depart the permeable membrane. And that fluid, all of it, _can_ be toxic. :dubious: Lemme get this straight. The fluid–the stuff that’s _in the cells_–can suddenly become toxic when it’s “squeezed out” of them? Forgive me if I find that extremely difficult to swallow. Would you care to explain the mechanism behind this? ---
**Author:** ![sunacres](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@sunacres](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sunacres)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2006, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-water-after-back-massage/343313/8 "2006-02-07T05:18:06Z")
No no no. I’ve not made my point well at all. I’m sure the typos haven’t helped. WATER is “toxic” if you consume too much of it. “The stuff that’s in the cells” is _potentially_ toxic stuff in that sense, whether inside the cell or outside. No intent to imply transformation by moving through the cell walls! I was trying (ineffectively, clearly) to point out that “toxins” is not a meaningful term in the context of the OP. ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2006, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-water-after-back-massage/343313/9 "2006-02-07T05:25:11Z")
> [@sunacres](#): > > I was trying (ineffectively, clearly) to point out that “toxins” is not a meaningful term in the context of the OP. I see. I thought my “No” conveyed that quite succinctly, if perhaps a bit cryptically. There is a great deal of [myth](http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=602783) associated with massage concerning it’s effects and benefits. ---
**Author:** ![sunacres](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@sunacres](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sunacres)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2006, 5:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-water-after-back-massage/343313/10 "2006-02-07T05:49:48Z")
Hey, tell me about it. Many parts of my “training” in massage school involved introductions to eyeroll-inducing ideas. We spent a full day massaging each other’s “energy fields.” OTOH, many would agree that massage feels great. How scientific is that? ---
**Author:** ![brossa](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brossa/32/3040_2.png) [@brossa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brossa)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2006, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-water-after-back-massage/343313/11 "2006-02-07T13:42:54Z")
Sorry, **Q.E.D.** , but there is the germ of truth to this advice. A sufficiently vigorous massage can in theory result in the release of myoglobin from damaged muscle cells. This myoglobin eventually makes its way to the kidneys, where in sufficient concentration it can clog the filtering apparatus of the nephron. This results in a variable amount of kidney injury depending on the load of myoglobin, up to and including renal failure requiring dialysis. Of course, this degree of renal injury usually occurs after massive muscle damage such as crushing injuries. Try googling rhabdomyolysis ([cite](http://ndt.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/extract/21/1/233)) Treatment for rhabdomyolysis includes (among other things) aggressive hydration to effectively dilute the myoglobin in solution and keep urine output up. Even if there is not enough myoglobin in the bloodstream after a deep tissue massage to cause kidney injury, there may be enough to make the patient’s urine dark red or brown for a while. Having them drink a lot of water will minimize the color change if nothing else. Is it likely that a spa massage will result in renal failure in a healthy person? No. Does the massage therapist know about rhabdomyolysis? Probably not, they are just repeating advice that they were told to give. Do alternative health care providers talk about ‘toxins’ way too da\*n much? Yes. Is the advice to drink water after a massage totally lacking in validity? No. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2006, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-water-after-back-massage/343313/12 "2006-02-07T18:49:58Z")
Some use heat or substances that produce heat, thus you perspire more, thus re-hydration is good. The reason give is mostly BS, but it’s still a good idea. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2006, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drinking-water-after-back-massage/343313/13 "2006-02-07T19:31:54Z")
Plus, barring a few unusual medical conditions, there’s almost never any good reason **not** to drink a lot of water on any given day.