Hydrotherapy Body Detox with Sauna and Steam baths
Do you know that the skin discharge over one pound of wastes and toxins every day? Our body can expel toxins and wastes through perspiration and respiration. Yes, our skin breathes too. Hydrotherapy or water therapy with sauna or steam baths, or more accurately hydrothermal therapy, induces the body to generate a large amount of sweat, an important detoxification fluid that carries toxins and wastes to the surface of the skin for elimination. Therefore, it’s always a good practice to include sauna or steam baths into your body detox program. These approaches are so effective at expelling toxins out of the body that they are incorporated into detox programs tailored for drugs addicts. Research has also shown that sauna therapy can efficiently drive out heavy metals and pesticides trapped in our bodies.
Hydrotherapies have well known benefits for our skin. Our skin is the largest organ of our body and also the largest elimination organ. Its ability to eliminate wastes is affected by water we bath in, pollutants in the air, harmful rays from the sun, dust particles, etc. Skin cleansing is an important part of any detoxification program. And hydrotherapy by means of steam bath or sauna is considered amongst the most accessible and commonly used form of treatment.
Sauna and Steam Baths have been a part of our culture since ancient times. Different communities have has different versions of it, but the benefits of these methods have been known to us for centuries. The benefits to be derived from this treatment are many:
- By increasing the average temperature of our body, we provide it with condition suitable for a large production of white blood corpuscles. This provides a large boost to our immunity system and helps our body fight disease causing germs and bacteria.
- It leads to excessive sweating. This helps cleansing the skin thoroughly of any dirt, impurities or dead cells. When the pores of the skin are clear, toxins can exit more easily.
- It increases our heart rate and hence our blood circulation, which enhances the flow of toxins for elimination.
- Heat works wonders on tired and strained muscles and this treatment will help relax and soothe our muscles.
- This treatment also helps with relieving mental stress and strain. The impact of a hot steam bath on the sense of our well being is legendary.
- Steam baths also provide a huge relief from cold and congestion. Steam loosens up the mucous and clears our nasal passageways to allow us to breathe freely. Steam baths are also known to have an immediate effect on alleviating symptoms caused by allergies.
For starters, each sauna or steam bath session should not last more than 15 minutes. Since your body will be dehydrated as you sit in a high temperature chamber, make sure you drink a glass or two of water before starting. Bring bottled water in with you to sip. If possible, take hot herbal tea such as peppermint or ginger during sessions as they will help facilitate the body to remove toxins through sweating more effectively as these teas have sweat inducing properties. Remember to shower afterward to ensure toxins that were forced to the surface of your skin are rinsed away. Another tip is to shower with water as cold as you can tolerate so that your vessels will constrict and squeeze the last speck of toxins out from your pores. Remember to moisturize afterward.
While this treatment is very popular and easily accessible at spas and fitness centers, it is important to learn some of the risks involved. If hydrotherapy with sauna or steam baths is done prolonged period of time, it could lead to dehydration and overheating. People are also known to experience breathlessness and faintness in a sauna so listen to your body. People with heart conditions and blood pressure problems as well as pregnant women and children are advised against using this treatment. If you’re adamant, consult your doctor first, and proceed slowly.
Though many people enjoy unwinding in a steam baths, some favor a dry sauna. Try both. You may like one more than the other or both. Sauna or steam bath can be enjoyed once or twice a week to support the detoxification of your body.