What is hydrotherapy?
Hydrotherapy is the combined effect of heat, massage and buoyancy. Warm water dilates blood vessels, increasing blood flow to sore or damaged tissues, allowing oxygen and nutrients to help overworked muscles recover faster. Massage, provided by the spa’s jet system, relaxes tense muscles and relieves pressure on surrounding nerves. Massage also improves circulation and accelerates the body’s natural healing process. Buoyancy reduces your body’s weight by 90%. This relieves pressure on strained joints and muscles. Hydrotherapy is widely recognized as an effective method of alleviating the tension commonly associated with stress.
Hydrotherapy is the combined effect of heat, massage and buoyancy. Warm water dilates blood vessels, increasing blood flow to sore or damaged tissues, allowing oxygen and nutrients to help overworked muscles recover faster. Massage, provided by the hot tub’s jet system, relaxes tense muscles and relieves pressure on surrounding nerves. Massage also improves circulation and accelerates the body’s natural healing process. Buoyancy reduces your body’s weight by 90%. This relieves pressure on strained joints and muscles. Hydrotherapy is widely recognized as an effective method of alleviating the tension commonly associated with stress.
Hydrotherapy, formerly called hydropathy, is probably the oldest form of medical treatment. It involves the use of water for soothing pains and treating diseases. Hydrotherapy is used to treat arthritis, burns, spasticity, ankylosing spondylitis, musculoskeletal disorders, spinal cord injuries and stroke patients with paralysis. It is also used to treat orthopedic and neurological conditions in dogs and horses and to improve fitness. Immersion in water – and doing exercises in water – has always been a popular therapy. Thousands of years of treatments have built an enormous amount of expertise but the alleged benefits had little supporting evidence from science until approximately 30 years ago. A 2006 survey of research in Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases discusses the vast amount of high-quality studies showing the effectiveness of hydrotherapy. A new field of research focuses on the cost-effectiveness of hydrotherapy vs. other forms of treatment.
