To treat many skin diseases, dermatologists prescribe salt baths. To carry out the procedures, it is not necessary to go to a sanatorium or medical resort. You can relieve the acute condition of eczema, psoriasis or atopic dermatitis at home. In addition, salt baths are also recommended for healthy people who want to increase skin turgor, make it more moisturized and velvety, and get rid of cellulite and mild inflammatory manifestations.
Read on to find out how salt baths work to clear your skin, which salt is best to use, and what medical experts recommend.
| Timofey Karmatskikh Graduate of the Chelyabinsk State Medical Academy with a degree in neurology. Specialist of visceral practices of the highest category. | |
| Anna Mishchenko Graduate of Dnepropetrovsk State Medical Academy Cosmetologist, beauty expert | |
| Svetlana Bazina Founder of cosmetics Cosmetologist and massage therapist with 25 years of experience Prize-winner of the cosmetologists competition “The Art of Beauty 2009” |
Bath salt: benefits for skin
Timofey Karmatskikh compares a salt bath to the womb: “We are all made of water. And this is not just water, but structured water, and also salty. The salt concentration in all fluids in the human body - blood, lymph, tears and, of course, amniotic fluid - is 0.9%. When you lie in a bathtub with a salt concentration of about 1%, it is as if you are in an escape capsule. It doesn’t matter what and where your pain is - a rash, psoriasis, cuts, foot fungus - a salt bath will help with any problem.”
Salt baths have a beneficial effect on the skin:
- cleanse pores
- even out the color
- give elasticity and firmness
- moisturize
- relieve irritation and redness
- relieve swelling
- reduce the appearance of cellulite
- remove harmful substances and toxins from the skin
It's all about the substances contained in salt - minerals and active components. Svetlana Bazina lists the main ones: “Potassium and magnesium promote the penetration of substances into the cell that stimulate metabolism and remove toxins and waste. Calcium strengthens the cell membrane. Bromine soothes and relieves allergic reactions. Magnesium helps speed up metabolism.” For beautiful skin, Svetlana recommends the so-called “Cleopatra Bath” - three liters of milk and three tablespoons of sea salt for one bath.
To achieve maximum healing effects, combine salt with medicinal plants. For example, a salt bath with chamomile and calendula has a powerful aseptic effect, has a regenerating and calming ability. Lavender acts in the same way, and cornflower flowers are indicated for allergic reactions, rashes, neurodermatitis and other complex skin diseases.
The Epsom.pro store offers both pure bath salts and mixtures with medicinal herbs. Find the remedy that's right for you with the help of your healthcare professional.
What bath salts to use in treatment
The most common is Dead Sea bath salt for skin. It is indicated for eczema, psoriasis, neurodermatitis, various dermatitis and even mild burns. Patients note a decrease in itching, redness, peeling and irritation of the skin.
Cosmetologist Anna Mishchenko offers the following bath recipe to nourish the skin: “Dissolve 3 kg of Dead Sea salt in 2 liters of warm water and pour into the bath. This salt solution will nourish the skin with beneficial microelements.”
Nowadays Epsom salt, which consists of 99% magnesium sulfate, is becoming increasingly popular. This determines its therapeutic effect:
- Removing heavy metals from the body, which can cause severe acne.
- Cell regeneration and skin renewal due to more active production of glutathione, an antioxidant whose production is promoted by magnesium.
- Detoxification due to magnesium, which during the bath penetrates into the deep layers of the epidermis and increases the effectiveness of psoriasis treatment
Another helper in the fight for skin health is pink Himalayan salt. It includes 84 microelements, including the natural antiseptic iodine, iron, sodium, fluorine and polyhalite - aqueous sulfate of potassium, calcium and magnesium. Pink salt maintains hormonal balance and normal blood sugar levels, protects the skin from dehydration, and increases the effectiveness of treatment of dermatitis of various etiologies. After bathing with it, wounds heal faster, the skin is cleared of acne and rejuvenated.
Indications and contraindications
Any procedure has its own indications and contraindications. Let's take a closer look at them.
Indications for hand baths:
- Dryness, redness of the skin, mild inflammation;
- Excessive sweating;
- Brittle and peeling nails;
- Blueness of the skin with poor blood circulation in the extremities;
- Dark spots;
- Yellowness of nails;
- Flabby, dull, tired skin;
- Swelling;
- Fungal diseases, eczema, psoriasis, dermatitis, allergies - therapeutic procedures are indicated;
- Arthritis, arthrosis of joints;
- Fungal diseases.
Contraindications:
- Skin diseases;
- Disruption of the cardiovascular system;
- Kidney problems;
- Tendency to allergic reactions - you need to carefully select ingredients.
How to take a salt bath
Anna Mishchenko talks about the need to follow the basic rules of taking a bath with salt. The water should not be too hot - this dries the skin too much. The duration of the procedure is about 20 minutes, after the bath you need to rest for at least an hour.
What else you need to know:
- The last meal before the procedure is 1.5–2 hours.
- Take a shower before taking a bath.
- The water temperature in the treatment bath is 35–37 degrees.
- You can arrange baths every other day or two days in a row with a break on the third.
- When taking a bath, the heart area should be above the water level. Several times during the procedure you can plunge your head into the water.
- After taking a bath, do not rinse, just pat your body dry with a towel.
You will see a reduction in itching and redness in irritated skin after the first procedure. If the skin is generally healthy, a noticeable improvement in its condition will occur after 5–7 procedures.
Softening hand baths
To soften the skin, ingredients available to everyone are used.
Starch
1 tsp. Mix starch with 1 glass of water, then add to a bowl with 750 ml of warm water. Take the hand bath for 15 minutes, then wash your hands and treat them with nourishing cream.
Soda
Mix 1 tsp. soda, 1 tsp. ammonia, 1 tbsp. l. liquid soap, 4 glasses of warm water. Immerse the brushes for 15 minutes, then wipe and apply cream.
Oatmeal
Boil oatmeal in water and cool slightly. Place your hands in the oatmeal and hold until the mixture has cooled completely. Then rinse and apply cream.
How to choose the right healthy salt
If you are just starting to use salt baths to treat and cleanse your skin, consult your doctor or cosmetologist. A professional will help you choose the most effective remedy for your health.
Unless you have serious skin problems, alternate baths with Epsom salt, sea salt and pink Himalayan salt, or use a mixture of the three salts in one treatment. They will saturate your skin with all the beneficial substances and help it become more elastic, youthful and radiant from the inside.
In any case, choose high quality natural salt, which is confirmed by certificates. For example, Salt Of The Earth bath salts are certified for quality and safety. They are distinguished by a high - food grade - degree of purification, so they can be used for children's baths, starting from infancy. All documents are presented on the website.
Salt baths for hands
Doctors recommend using bath salts for those people who have problems with blood vessels and joints. In this case, sea salt is used (kitchen salt is not as effective). Salt baths for hands also provide a rejuvenating and smoothing effect and affect:
- exfoliation of dead epidermal cells;
- eliminating age spots and evening out skin tone;
- healing of microcracks, acceleration of regeneration;
- improving blood circulation.
For a salt bath, dilute 3 tbsp. l. salt in 1 liter of water. You can add aromatic oils, lemon juice, chamomile or calendula. The procedure is carried out over a course of 10 days. Take a hand bath for about 10 minutes daily. After which the hands are washed and smeared with cream.
How to complement salt baths
An integrated approach to self-care will ensure wonderful well-being and well-groomed appearance of the skin. Use natural salts for your favorite treatments and do not forget about a healthy diet.
Salt compresses . Do them before any cosmetic procedure. Soak a towel in hot salt water and apply to décolleté, neck and face for 2-3 minutes to prepare skin. When working with clients, Svetlana Bazina uses a salt compress as the first stage, even before removing makeup from the face. The compress improves blood circulation and promotes swelling of the stratum corneum to facilitate cleaning, so the active components of medicinal cosmetics are absorbed much better.
Face masks . Salt irritates the skin and causes accelerated division of epidermal cells, which leads to rapid relief from pimples and acne, reduction of wrinkles and whitening of age spots. Depending on the purpose, salt can be mixed with sour cream, clay, honey, olive oil. By the way, you can also wash your face with salted water.
Salt baths for feet and hands . They help fight dry skin, pimples, and brittle nails. Accelerate the healing of cracked heels, soften plantar calluses and disinfect the skin, reducing the risk of developing fungus. The course includes 10 daily procedures. After the bath, wipe your skin with a soft towel without first rinsing with clean water and apply cream.
Nutrition for healthy skin . In the book “Cosmetic Dermatology,” American MD Leslie Baumann advises eating more spinach, carrots and mangoes for oily skin. Nuts, flax seeds and seafood will help reduce acne. To moisturize dry skin, eat more avocados, beans and eggs. Soy and green leafy vegetables promote skin rejuvenation. And in all cases, it is worth replacing regular vegetable oil with coconut oil - when frying in coconut oil, much fewer carcinogens are formed.
Paraffin hand baths
Beauty salons often make paraffin baths for hands to combat dryness. A special device is used for this, but a similar procedure can be carried out at home. Pour 2 kg of paraffin into a large bowl, place it in a water bath and wait until the contents melt.
Paraffin hand baths are extremely beneficial for the skin:
- effectively restore the water balance of the epidermis;
- improve blood circulation;
- normalize metabolism;
- remove peeling;
- soften dry hand skin;
- have a healing effect on microcracks;
- during frosts and winds they help protect the skin from negative effects.
In order for a paraffin bath for hands to give maximum effect, you need to prepare your brushes in advance. For this, lotion, scrub and nourishing cream are used. After this, your hands are immersed in melted paraffin for 5 seconds. It is necessary to make about 7 dives with an interval of 10 seconds. As a result, a thick layer of paraffin should form on your hands.
Polyethylene gloves and mittens are put on top. After 25 minutes, hands are freed from the mask, treated with a damp cloth and a rich cream is applied. It is enough to perform a similar procedure 2 times a month.
Let's sum it up
- When treating skin diseases, complement therapeutic methods with a course of salt baths to cleanse the skin. Don't forget to consult your doctor.
- Use Epsom, sea or pink Himalayan salt - in separate courses, alternately within a course or as a single mixture.
- Choose certified food grade salt to avoid negative effects and get maximum benefits.
- The duration of the procedure is 20 minutes. The optimal temperature is 35–37 degrees; if you feel well, the water temperature can be increased to 40 degrees.
- The usual course of therapeutic salt baths consists of 12–15 procedures, which are carried out every other day.
- Take a holistic approach to skin health. Combine salt baths to cleanse the skin with salt compresses and masks. Eat right, avoid allergens.
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