Your contribution to either of these entities will help support the future of massage research. Simply send a check or money order in any amount to either organization of your choice.

The Touch Research Institutes (TRIs) are dedicated to studying the effects of touch therapy. The TRIs have researched the effects of massage therapy at all stages of life, from newborns to senior citizens. In these studies the TRIs have shown that touch therapy has many positive effects.

The first Touch Research Institute was formally established in 1992 by Director Tiffany Field, Ph.D., at the University of Miami School of Medicine via a start-up grant from Johnson & Johnson. The TRI was the first center in the world devoted solely to the study of touch and its application in science and medicine.

The TRI's distinguished team of researchers, representing Duke, Harvard, Maryland, and other universities, strive to better define touch as it promotes health and contributes to the treatment of disease. Research efforts that began in 1982 and continue today have shown that touch therapy has numerous beneficial effects on health and well-being.

The second TRI is located in the Philippines. A group of neonatologists there have replicated earlier studies showing that preterm infants' weight gain can be facilitated by massage therapy.

A third TRI is located at the University of Paris and studies the role of touch in psychopathology.

A fourth TRI is located at the UCLA Medical School Pediatric Pain Center and is focused on the use of touch therapies with children's pain syndromes.

Massage Therapy Foundation advances the knowledge and practice of massage therapy by supporting scientific research, education and community service. Since the inception of the Foundation's granting programs in 1993, over $302,000 has been awarded to fund research, and almost $172,000 has been awarded to fund Community Service projects.

By underwriting scientific research, partnering with community organizations, and through education and information sharing, the Foundation encourages excellence and innovation in the field of therapeutic massage.  For more information on the Foundation, please visit www.massagetherapyfoundation.org.