Abdominal massage for constipation: what the research says

Abdominal massage sounds like something from a spa menu, not a nursing research journal. Yet it has been tested in randomized trials for constipation since at least 2009, in people with everyday constipation and in people with neurological conditions. The results are more encouraging than you might expect, with some important caveats.

Here's what the studies found, and how to try it safely at home.

What the largest review found

A 2025 systematic review and meta-analysis pooled 23 studies with 1,431 adults with chronic constipation. Compared with control groups, abdominal massage (Huang et al., 2025):

• increased bowel movements by about 1.6 per week on average
• shortened gut transit time by about 21.5 hours
• improved constipation symptoms
• did not significantly reduce laxative use

The effect on bowel movement frequency appeared somewhat larger in functional constipation, the everyday kind without a clear medical cause, than in constipation linked to opioid medications or nerve-related bowel problems. No adverse reactions were observed in people without nerve-related bowel problems.

The caveats matter. Results varied a lot from study to study, and the review included quasi-experimental studies as well as randomized trials. That makes the exact numbers less certain than they look.

A closer look at two trials

Everyday constipation. In a Swedish randomized trial, 60 people with constipation either continued their prescribed laxatives alone or added abdominal massage. Over eight weeks, the massage group had less severe digestive symptoms overall, including lower constipation and abdominal pain scores, and more bowel movements than the control group. Laxative use didn't change, which led the researchers to describe massage as a complement to laxatives rather than a substitute (Lämås et al., 2009).

Multiple sclerosis. A UK trial randomized 189 people with MS and bothersome bowel problems, 81% of them women, with an average age of 52. Everyone received bowel management advice, and the massage group also received individual training and did abdominal massage daily for six weeks. The main bowel symptom score improved slightly more with massage, but the difference wasn't statistically significant. The massage group did have more bowel movements, about 0.6 more a week, and more often felt completely empty. Of the participants interviewed, 85% continued the massage, and no adverse events were reported (McClurg et al., 2018).

Why might it work?

Nobody knows for sure, and the UK team specifically called for research into how massage works. Possible explanations include gentle pressure helping to move contents along the colon, and the relaxation that comes with massage making it easier to go. For now, those are hypotheses, not established mechanisms.

How to try it at home

The studies used different techniques. The review saw differences between approaches such as circular massage, acupressure and massage devices, but there were too few studies to say which is best. This gentle circular version is a common starting point:

1. Get comfortable. Lie on your back with your knees bent and a pillow under your head. Warm your hands first.
2. Start low on the right. Place your palm just inside your right hip bone and make small, slow circles with light, steady pressure, working upward toward your ribs.
3. Go across. Continue the small circles across your upper belly, just below the ribs, from right to left.
4. Come down the left side. Work down the left side of your belly toward your left hip bone. This path follows the direction stool travels through the large intestine.
5. Repeat and finish. Repeat the whole path several times, then finish with slow, wide circles around your belly button in the same direction.
6. Keep it short and regular. Aim for about 10 minutes a day at a consistent time, such as before getting up in the morning.
7. Track it. Continue for six to eight weeks, similar to the length of the trials above, and note your bowel movements and stool form.

The pressure should feel comfortable and soothing. Massage shouldn't hurt, and it isn't meant to be deep.

Check with a doctor first if

• You're pregnant or recently gave birth
• You've had recent abdominal surgery or have a hernia
• You have inflammatory bowel disease, a known abdominal mass, or abdominal pain that hasn't been checked
• Massage causes pain, or your symptoms get worse

See your doctor promptly for constipation with blood in the stool, black stools, unexplained weight loss, vomiting or severe pain, or for a change in bowel habits that lasts more than a few weeks. Massage can be a useful add-on, but it shouldn't delay a checkup for new symptoms.

Sources

1. Huang SY, Chiao CY, Chien LY. Effectiveness of abdominal massage on chronic constipation in adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Int J Nurs Stud. 2025;161:104936. PMID 39531948
2. Lämås K, Lindholm L, Stenlund H, Engström B, Jacobsson C. Effects of abdominal massage in management of constipation--a randomized controlled trial. Int J Nurs Stud. 2009;46(6):759-67. PMID 19217105
3. McClurg D, Harris F, Goodman K, et al. Abdominal massage plus advice, compared with advice only, for neurogenic bowel dysfunction in MS: a RCT. Health Technol Assess. 2018;22(58):1-134. PMID 30375324

This article is for general information and isn't medical advice. Talk to your healthcare provider before trying abdominal massage if you're pregnant, have had recent surgery or have an abdominal condition.