The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has warned against using massage to correct body contours.
The agency's website notes that like any medical procedure, manual or instrumental massage can have adverse effects.
It notes that massage is often advertised as a noninvasive procedure, but this is not entirely true.
FDA doctors note that manual massages "for weight loss" can leave you with bruising, reddening of the skin, swelling and nodules under the skin, not to mention pain. These side effects may be short-lived, experts admit.
From hardware massage, the harm can be more significant - frostbite, changes in pigmentation, paradoxical fatty hyperplasia, loss of sensitivity. And in these cases, the consequences may have to be addressed with surgery.
The FDA has also reminded us that cellulite is not a disease to be gotten rid of, but a normal skin condition and poses no health risks.