Courtesy of Kohler Company Thalassotherapy

This is a long-term treatment of seawater in baths, showers, and mud wraps. The premise is that the body absorbs the minerals from the seawater through osmosis. Thalassotherapy is supposed to help clear out the blood and keep the body in a balanced state. It might also be used as an in­halant to aid the upper respiratory tract. In a seawater bath (balenotherapy), the water is heated to 93°F (33.9°C) for optimal skin treatment.

Cleansing Steam

Steam baths offer a way to cleanse and relax at the same time. In a steam bath, the humidity reaches 100 percent and cleans out the body’s pores. A lukewarm shower follows the steam bath to add to the relaxing experience. Or a cold shower can be invigorating. Clients might want a steam bath or shower, or may plan to use a steam tent over a massage table.

Heat

The sauna uses dry heat and humidity at 15 percent to warm and relax the body. The low humid­ity is created by pouring water on hot rocks. Users go into the sauna for 5 to 15 minutes after a short shower. They sit or lay on wooden (cedar) benches in the insulated sauna room. They follow this with another shower, or visit the pool or plunge bath and then rest for a few minutes. Finally, they return to the sauna for about 20 minutes and then rest for 20 minutes before a final shower and light snack.

Heat therapy rooms use infrared heaters to radiate heat to the body. Infrared rooms operate at a lower temperature than saunas, maintain normal room humidity, and take less time to heat up. Pre-built units have some similar features to a sauna: cedar or alder lining, cedar benches with

Courtesy of Kohler Company Thalassotherapy

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Courtesy of Kohler Company Thalassotherapy

Updated: October 12, 2015 — 2:25 am