Can massaging your face and neck “cleanse” your brain?

In your busy work, do you often have such moments: after a day of high-intensity mental work, in the evening, your brain seems to shut down, your reaction slows down, and you just want to empty your mind? In fact, this is because our brain is like a factory that is always running. Continuous work will accumulate "garbage", that is, metabolic waste. If these garbage cannot be cleared out, they may become the "culprit" of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease.

Scientists have long known that the brain has its own "wastewater system", namely cerebrospinal fluid. It is a transparent liquid that flows between brain tissues like clear water, "flushing" out the waste of brain metabolism and draining it out of the body along special channels.

Previously, scientists from the Korea Basic Science Institute and the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology discovered that cerebrospinal fluid flows to the deep lymph nodes in the neck through the meningeal lymphatic vessels at the skull base and the nasopharyngeal lymphatic plexus. In this whole system, the lymphatic vessels are responsible for transporting waste and immune cells, just like the sewers in the city; and the lymph nodes are filters that are distributed along the lymphatic vessels and capture those harmful molecules step by step. One of the most concerning waste discharged is the beta-amyloid protein associated with diseases such as Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease.

But the problem is that as we age, the brain's sewage system gradually ages. The flow of cerebrospinal fluid slows down, and waste begins to accumulate. Scientists also want to "clear the sewers," but these lymphatic vessels are located deep in the neck, and regulating them with drugs or surgery is risky and technically challenging.

Massaging the face and neck may provide a deep "cleansing" effect on the brain. Image source: Korean biz.chosun website

Recently, the team used fluorescent tracing technology to track the flow path of cerebrospinal fluid and discovered a superficial lymphatic network about 5 mm below the skin of the face and neck of mice and monkeys. They observed that cerebrospinal fluid first entered the primary lymphatic vessels in the meninges at the base of the skull, then passed through the lymphatic vessels around the eyes, nasopharynx, and hard palate above the mouth, and finally flowed into the submandibular lymph nodes through the superficial lymphatic vessels of the neck covered with smooth muscles.

With this channel very close to the skin, scientists soon came up with a bold idea: Is it possible to "push" the cerebrospinal fluid down through external stimulation, such as massage?

They designed a mechanical stimulation device with a small cotton ball attached to the top. When the mechanical device was used to gently stimulate the skin around the eyes and jaws of mice, the amount of cerebrospinal fluid discharged increased significantly, up to three times the usual level, which is equivalent to returning to the level of young mice. The same effect was obtained in monkeys. Interestingly, however, strong massage may be counterproductive, so the intensity of stimulation must be precisely controlled.

This technology is completely non-invasive and does not involve drugs, surgery, or implanted electrodes. It only mechanically massages the skin to help the brain "detoxify". Doesn't it sound amazing? However, Steven Proulx, a neurologist at the University of Bern in Switzerland, pointed out that whether this method can really prevent diseases such as Alzheimer's disease remains to be further studied. But this achievement still provides a new possibility. Animal experiments have shown that massaging and stimulating the muscles around the lymphatic vessels can increase the excretion of cerebrospinal fluid that removes waste. Perhaps in the future, we can give our brains a deep "cleanse" by doing a simple "facial care" every day.

(Original title: "Can massage of face and neck "clean" the brain?")