So how can soaking in a bath make you feel better?
Soaking is a simple and inexpensive therapy that can not only make you feel great but can relieve a litany of physical and mental ailments. It helps to wash and draw out toxins that have been stirred up by a massage. Toxins are also eliminated from the body with a good soak. I have often used a bath, with success, in my massage practice for nurturing wounded, aching muscles and speeding healing.
Water Does Absorb Through Skin
Dr. Robert Polisky, a dermatologist in Elk Grove Village, Illinois, says the skin, which wards off injury, microorganisms, and chemical agents, is water-resistant but not waterproof. Water is repelled by the outer layer but not completely shut out. When you take a long bath, you can see that. Your skin engorges and wrinkes, which is the result of the keratin becoming waterlogged.
Even though the body is not designed to hydrate actively through the skin, there is a slight hydrating effect to the body and muscles—enough to cause the decrease in muscle soreness that I have experienced when it is done. Those that follow a massage with at least 10 minutes of soaking are less sore the next day.
Where The Water Meets The Muscle
I think the slight amount of extra hydration that the muscles need can reach them through soaking much faster than by drinking. The fluid gets to the muscles faster. Studies show that there is an increase in cutaneous hydration for 20 min with the larger increase occurring within the first 10 min. I have seen this effect in my massage clients over the years, with hydrotherapy baths producing less soreness after the treatment and faster recovery times.
Studies Have Shown What Experience Has Known
Studies over the years have repeatedly shown that soaking improves low back pain, muscle spasms, range of motion, mental and emotional health, and varicose veins among others. The addition of hydrotherapy to any rehabilitation program is well known to be effective. Bathing three or more times weekly, soaking for at least 10 minutes, can change your life. These baths all have different effects. Some are aimed at spiking the immune system, others at sedation, while others excel at easing muscle pain and fading bruises. Or a combination of all the above and a lot more.
Three Therapeutic Baths
Hot Tub Bath
Temperature: 100° to 106° F It is usually best to start at 98° and slowly raise the temperature to the desired point.
Time: two to twenty minutes
Drink cool water freely and keep forehead cool. If necessary, apply a cool cloth or ice pack to the chest or back of the neck. Bath can be ended with a cool shower.
Effects:
- If this bath is prolonged, it will produce profuse sweating. This is good since perspiration takes toxins out of the body.
- When ended with a cool shower and a warm bed, this bath is an excellent tonic when feeling a bit off.
- Raising the body temperature in a very hot bath kills numerous strains of bacteria and viruses, which will keep your sick days to a minimum.
- Running the bath a bit cooler, at 100 ° to 102° as a warm bath, is especially effective in relieving tight or cramping muscles.
Neutral Tub Bath
Temerature: 94° to 97° F, up to 99° in the winter.
Time: Fifteen minutes to 3 or 4 hours; usually twenty to thirty minutes.
Drink hot tea freely. The air in the bathroom should be warm. Wet the forehead and face in cool water. Cool the bath 2° to 3° at the close.
Effects:
- The neutral bath is the best treatment for sedative purposes. It equalizes the circulation and reduces the amount of blood in the brain and spinal cord.
- It is also a great bath to bring down high fevers. When my kids were growing up we would sit in a tepid bath with them until their fever dropped.
- This bath is also a great therapy for tired and sore muscles. If used for insomnia, get out and go right to bed.
Cold Tub Bath
Temperature: 55° to 90° F
Time: A plunge only or 20 minutes depending on the temperature and effect desired. It is best not to go into this bath chilled. Take a hot shower or bath first.
Effects:
- Cold baths increase the oxidation of wastes in the body. Thus these wastes lose their toxicity and are more easily removed by the kidneys.
- Cold water is a direct tonic to the nerve cells. The dull, listless, and restless will yield to the brightening of mental powers. Insomnia is replaced by quiet and refreshing slumber.
Salt, Clay, and Oil Baths
Adding magnesium chloride to the bath (or magnesium sulfate (Epsom salt)) can bring dramatic health benefits. Magnesium is an immediate muscle relaxer. If you need to moisturize your skin, add one-half cup olive oil. And a clay bath excels at removing toxins such as heavy metals and chemicals.
There’s Nothing Like Soaking In A Bath
Very few things effect the body as dramatically as a bath. The effects of water are more stimulating to the immune system than anything else. No part of the body remains unaffected. As a simple and free health cure, the power of hydrotherapy baths must never be forgotten.
Take a bath tonight and find out!
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