By Chris Woolston From an early age, we learn that the touch of a hand can ease pain. When a toddler bangs his knee in a tricycle accident, he'll instinctively rub the sore spot. Likewise, an office worker with stiff shoulders will probably try to knead them. And if a dancer can't shake the throbbing pain in her back, she just might schedule an appointment with a massage therapist. The healing power of a well-placed hand is so apparent that just about every culture in history has used massage to relieve pain. Massage faded into the background with the arrival of modern medicine, but a growing number of people are turning (or returning) to hands-on relief. According to a 2008 [...]


