Therapeutic baths at home for osteochondrosis

As you know, taking a bath quite effectively relieves fatigue accumulated throughout the working day. In addition, this is an excellent method that doctors recommend using as a preventive measure for various diseases. This is especially true for people with problems with the musculoskeletal system. In this case, taking a bath can relieve tension from the patient’s muscles, which will significantly reduce pain. Baths for osteochondrosis dilate blood vessels, which helps improve blood circulation.

Before you begin such procedures, you need to know that when taking baths if you have osteochondrosis, you should take into account some very important rules. The temperature of the water for taking a bath must correspond to the state of human health, that is, the temperature of the water depends on the stage of the disease.

Hot baths for wellness

A bath is considered hot if its temperature is 40ºC or higher. It should be borne in mind that this procedure has a strong effect on the body. A hot bath helps increase metabolism, sweating profusely and removing harmful substances. But it is also important to consider that this is a serious burden on the blood vessels and heart. The duration of a hot bath should be no more than 10 minutes; longer procedures are not recommended even for people who do not have health problems. If a person has a compromised cardiovascular system, taking hot baths is contraindicated.

Is it possible or not to take a bath with osteochondrosis?

The disease is a consequence of the natural aging of cartilage tissue. Unfortunately, now an increasingly younger population is discovering signs of generalized osteochondrosis, which affects, without exception, all parts of the spinal column: thoracic, lumbar, and cervical (see Symptoms). This is due to reasons contributing to the development of pathology:

• sedentary lifestyle;
• consequences of microtraumas and spinal injuries;
• overstrain of the muscular frame due to heavy prolonged static load or sudden dynamic hyperextension of the intervertebral joints with disc damage;
• overweight;
• emotional stress and depression;
• flat feet;
• bad habits.

Find out what exercises you can do to correct your posture in childhood.

Read how an orthopedic corset helps with back problems and how to choose it correctly.

Already from adolescence, you should pay attention to the back and neck: observe hygiene standards when sitting at the table, maintain posture when walking, do not slouch, strengthen the muscular corset of the back, eat properly and nutritiously (see Principles of Nutrition). One of the methods of prevention for osteochondrosis is medicinal baths, which can be performed 1-2 times a week. Also, such procedures are recommended during the remission phase of the disease to prevent complications.

If the disease is acute, with signs of radiculopathy (see Radiculitis) and severe inflammation and swelling of the nerve root, then a hot bath for osteochondrosis is contraindicated. Heat can dilate blood vessels, thereby increasing their permeability and increasing swelling along the nerve. This further intensifies the pain syndrome, significantly worsens the patient’s condition and prolongs the main therapy.

Osteochondrosis and warm baths

A warm bath (temperature from 37 to 39ºC) has an excellent therapeutic and preventive effect. It is recommended to take such procedures for 10 to 15 minutes; this time is quite enough to relieve muscle tension and pain. In addition, taking a warm bath helps calm the nervous system and improve sleep. A gradual increase in water temperature is quite acceptable. After this procedure, you should dry yourself thoroughly, then, covered with a warm blanket, lie down for a while.

How to properly take therapeutic baths for osteochondrosis and for prevention

You can organize a physiotherapeutic procedure such as a therapeutic bath for osteochondrosis at home. To do this, you must adhere to the basic principles common to any type of bath procedures:

• water no more than 38˚С;
• The duration of the procedure is no more than a quarter of an hour;
• immersion to chest level, the heart area should be above the water;
• after the treatment, complete rest is necessary;
• the skin gets wet;
• after a bath, go out into a well-warmed room; the patient should not be exposed to water.

Medicinal impurities are often added to the water, which complement the effect of complete relaxation with warm water. When the water temperature is above 40˚C, which is still higher than body temperature, the situation with osteochondrosis can be aggravated; such a bath is called a hot bath; you should still think about whether it is worth taking.

Cold and cool baths

Taking cold baths when the water temperature reaches 25ºC is recommended for no more than 2 minutes. The time of procedures with cool baths can be extended to 5 minutes. This helps to harden the body, has a beneficial effect on metabolism and has a tonic effect.

That is why it is very important that the procedures are selected in accordance with the person’s health status. Particular attention should be paid to the selection of bath components, since some of them can cause an allergic reaction.

Important! Before deciding on the choice of bath temperature, you should be aware that during an exacerbation of osteochondrosis, long-term water procedures can significantly increase pain.

Use of salt baths

Salt baths have a very good effect on the treatment of osteochondrosis. In addition, such procedures help improve blood supply and normalize the metabolic process in the body.

To prepare a salt bath, you will need from 3 to 5 kg of sea and table salt (for one treatment and prophylactic procedure). To make the salt dissolve faster, pour it into a gauze bag, then hang it over the bathtub so that a stream of hot water hits it directly. The duration of such a procedure, if the water temperature can be compared with fresh milk, should be no more than 15 minutes.

For people with serious illnesses that are in the acute stage, baths using salts can be dangerous. That is why in such cases doctors advise against such procedures.

Many people are interested in the question of whether salts, which are widely represented in the assortment of a regular perfume store, can have a therapeutic and prophylactic effect. In fact, such salts have practically no medicinal properties. But they can be useful as a cosmetic and sedative.

Herbal baths

Bath sessions using a collection of herbs are recommended for people with insomnia, after a long and stressful day at work, as well as for those who need good rest and healthy healing sleep. Herbs used include chamomile, calendula, spruce branches or pine extract, spruce cones, burdock branches, and calamus is often added. It is prepared at the rate of 200 grams of dry raw material mixture per serving.

This procedure will improve the supply of oxygen to tissues, strengthen blood vessels, and remove toxins and waste. The most important thing: it will calm the nervous system, normalize and restore peripheral innervation, and reduce the excitability of the central nervous system. This helps improve sleep.

Important! Therapeutic baths help improve immunity and increase the body's resistance to infections.

Herbal baths at home

For osteochondrosis, bath procedures using medicinal herbs are very effective. Preparing such a fragrant bath is quite simple. Such procedures are excellent for not only relieving fatigue and tension from the muscles (which is necessary for patients with osteochondrosis), but also cleansing the skin. Herbal baths have a calming effect on the nervous system, effectively reduce pain and normalize metabolism.

As already mentioned, the method of preparing a herbal bath is not complicated. For one such procedure you will need 1-2 handfuls of medicinal herbs. Pour 1-5 liters of hot water and let it brew for at least an hour. Pour the infusion filtered through a sieve into the bath, then fill it with water.

The types of medicinal herbs that can be used for taking a bath are quite diverse. Despite the fact that their use is considered absolutely harmless, do not forget about precautions and carefully read the method of preparation on the packaging.

Bath with chamomile. To prepare a chamomile bath you will need about 300 g of dried flowers. It is necessary to fill it with 5 liters of water and bring to a boil. For the best effect, leave the decoction for a couple of hours so that it infuses, then pour it into the bath. A bath with chamomile infusion perfectly relieves pain and spasms.

Bath with horse chestnut. In order to prepare such a bath, you will need about a kilogram of fruit. Horse chestnut should be brought to a crushed state, then add water and cook for 30 minutes. Pour the strained solution into the bath and fill it with water at the desired temperature. Taking chestnut baths is recommended for people with impaired peripheral circulation, as well as those suffering from rheumatism.

Bath with juniper. To prepare a juniper bath, 200 g of dry pine needles are enough. Fill it with 1 liter of water, and boiling will take about 30 minutes.

Bark bath. Perfect for preparing such a bath: spruce, pine, aspen, oak or willow bark. Grind 1 kg of dry bark, then add 3 liters of water and boil. Bath procedures using bark decoction are very effective for people with rheumatic diseases, as well as neuralgia.

Cereal baths. In order to prepare such a bath, you will need about 1 kg of cereal flowers. Boiling will take at least 30 minutes, after which the broth should be strained. Cereal baths are very good for relieving pain.

Bath with calamus root. Required:

• 200-250 g of root;
• 2-3 liters of water.

To be effective, just boil and let sit for about 30 minutes. For this procedure, it is better to fill the bathtub with warm water.

Sage bath. To prepare a sage bath, 200 g of dried flowers is enough. There is no need to boil; pour in 5 liters of hot water and let it brew for 1.5-2 hours. The bathtub with the strained infusion should be filled with warm water.

Baths with pine needles and its extracts. A collection of pine cones, twigs and needles should be boiled for 30 minutes. To make the infusion as effective as possible, leave the container tightly closed for 10-12 hours. You can determine the degree of its readiness by its rich brown color. For one procedure you will need about 1 kg of pine needles.

A pine bath will be even more beneficial if you add sea or table salt for osteochondrosis. In addition, they are also recommended for people suffering from arthritis and nervous disorders.

Visiting baths and saunas for osteochondrosis

People with diseases of the musculoskeletal system, including osteochondrosis, are recommended to periodically visit the bathhouse (sauna). The fact is that heating with hot steam has a beneficial effect on increasing the flow of oxygen and providing access to nutrients, which, in turn, is necessary in the treatment of joints, spine and ligaments. To enhance the effect, massage is very good.

A bathhouse or sauna perfectly relieves fatigue; heating with steam for osteochondrosis relaxes all the muscles of the body and removes toxins from the body. In order to enhance the therapeutic effect, when visiting a bathhouse (sauna), you should consider some tips. First of all, keep in mind that a bath (sauna) is not recommended after a recent meal. In addition, it is worth noting that heating with hot steam while intoxicated can lead to problems with the cardiovascular system, since in this case the bathhouse (sauna) puts a serious strain on the heart.

A bathhouse for osteochondrosis will be much more effective if you use a birch broom for massage. This broom is rich in nutrients, vitamins, essential oils and resins, which are so beneficial for the body.

Swim but don't dive

Swimming is one of the most useful types of physical activity for spondyloarthrosis and osteochondrosis. During it, the back muscles relax, reducing the risk of their spasm, which is often the cause of pain. On the other hand, the back muscles are strengthened, which provides better support to the spine.

During active swimming, blood circulation also increases, which means that the intervertebral discs and cartilage tissue of the spinal joints receive more oxygen and nutrients. Thanks to this, restoration processes are activated in them and destructive ones recede.

However, swimming in the sea requires caution. You can only swim in warm water, otherwise you can become hypothermic, and this negatively affects the condition of the muscles and nerves of the back.

Article on the topic

Wellness holiday: you can heal and lose weight in the mountains

You should not jump into the water from all kinds of towers and bridges - this often leads to microtraumas of the spine, which are dangerous even for those who have not had any problems before.

You should also refrain from visiting water parks: having fun down the slide once, you can spend the rest of your vacation lying in bed with another exacerbation.