Whether it be a mother rubbing her young infant’s belly to help with constipation or skilled technicians massaging the Bhudda as depicted in ancient drawings, massage has been practiced for centuries to achieve a therapeutic effect on the body. 

The Yellow Emperor’s Classics of Internal Medicine, written in China around 1000 BC, makes reference to massage in the treatment of paralysis and decreased circulation.  During the Tang Dynasty, (619AD-907AD) there were professors of massage at the Imperial Medical Bureau. 

Massage was also used in the Roman baths and Hippocrates (460-375 BC) described treating a dislocated shoulder with massage.  French surgeon, Ambroise Pare (1510-1590) penned the first modern European literature on massage in a book describing massage applications for surgical patients.  

The development of Swedish massage techniques, the most popular form of massage practiced in North America today, can be accredited to the work of Swedish physical educator and fencer, Per Ling.  Ling’s system called, medical gymnastics, included remedial exercise and massage therapy and was embraced by many physicians.  Thanks to the writing of Ling’s followers, Swedish massage became well known and practiced internationally by the end of the 19th century. 

In Ontario, massage therapy has been regulated since 1924.  The 1993 Regulated Health Professions Act in Ontario brought massage therapy under the same legislation that governs nurses, doctors, dentists and chiropractors.