Ten percent of U.S. men used massage in the last year, compared to 18 percent in 2009, according to the 14th annual consumer survey sponsored by the American Massage Therapy Association (AMTA).
The association attributes the drop in the economic climate of the last two years.
According to similar findings by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, about 57 percent of men have visited a physician within the past year, compared with 74 percent of women, stated an AMTA press release.
Massage use in women for 2010 was 25 percent, compared to 26 percent in 2009.
As a result of the lower use of massage by men, for the first time in three years, the percentage of all adults who had a massage in the previous 12 months dropped from 22 percent in 2009 to 18 percent in 2009, the AMTA press release stated.
The number of all adults who had discussed massage with their doctor dropped from 18 percent in 2009 to 16 percent in 2010, a drop that can also be attributed to men’s decreased doctor visits, the AMTA press release stated.
Each year in October, the American Massage Therapy Association releases results of its annual consumer survey.
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