Balneotherapy

{{Short description|Method of treating diseases by bathing}} {{Use dmy dates|date=January 2024}} {{Infobox interventions |Name=Balneotherapy |Image= Roman Baths in Bath Spa, England - July 2006.jpg |Caption= Roman Baths in Bath Spa, England<br />July 2006 |ICD10= |ICD9unlinked= |MeshID=D001452 |OPS301= |OtherCodes= }} {{Alternative medical systems | image = 200px | caption = Bath in Zetaquira – Boyacá – Colombia | traditional }} '''Balneotherapy''' ({{langx|la|balneum}} "bath") is a pseudoscientific method of treating diseases by bathing, a traditional medicine technique usually practiced at spas.<ref name="ShorterOxfordEnglishDictionary">{{cite book |year=2007 |edition=6th |title=Shorter Oxford English Dictionary |editor=Angus Stevenson |chapter=Definition of balneo therapy |volume=1: A-M |publisher=Oxford University Press|location=Oxford |page=180 |isbn=978-0-19-920687-2}}</ref> Since ancient times, humans have used hot springs, public baths and thermal medicine for therapeutic effects.<ref name="melillo">{{cite journal |last1=Melillo |first1=L. |title=Thermalism in the ancient world |journal=Med Secoli |date=1995 |volume=7 |issue=3 |pages=461–483 |pmid=11623482}}</ref> While it is considered distinct from hydrotherapy,{{sfn|Chisholm|1911}} there are some overlaps in practice and in underlying principles. Balneotherapy may involve hot or cold water, massage through moving water, relaxation, or stimulation. Many mineral waters at spas are rich in particular minerals such as silica, sulfur, selenium, and radium.

==Definition and characteristics== [[File:Bad Pöstyén.jpg|thumb|250px|The statue of "A man breaking a walking crutch" in the spa town Piešťany (Slovakia) – an eloquent symbol of balneotherapy]]

"Balneotherapy" is the practice of immersing a subject in mineral water or mineral-laden mud; it is part of the traditional medicine of many cultures and originated in hot springs, cold water springs, or other sources of such water, like the Dead Sea.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Matz|first1=H|last2=Orion|first2=E|last3=Wolf|first3=R|title=Balneotherapy in dermatology.|journal=Dermatologic Therapy|date=2003|volume=16|issue=2|pages=132–40|pmid=12919115|doi=10.1046/j.1529-8019.2003.01622.x|s2cid=27602504|doi-access=free}}</ref>

==Presumed effect on diseases== [[File:Badevorrichtung15.jpg|thumb|200px|Treatment bath at a spa in Hot Springs, Arkansas, United States]] Balneotherapy may be recommended for various illnesses, including arthritis,<ref>{{cite journal|author=Sukenik S|title=Balneotherapy at the Dead Sea area for knee osteoarthritis|journal=IMAJ|volume=1|issue=2|pages=83–85|year=1999|pmid=10731301|last2=Flusser|first2=D|last3=Codish|first3=S|last4=Abu-Shakra|first4=M}}</ref> skin conditions and fibromyalgia.<ref>{{cite journal|author=Deniz Evcik|title=The effects of balneotherapy on fibromyalgia patients|journal=Rheumatology International|volume=22|issue=2|pages=56–59|date=June 2002|doi=10.1007/s00296-002-0189-8|pmid=12070676|last2=Kizilay|first2=B|last3=Gökçen |first3=E|s2cid=40868870}}</ref> Balneotherapy should be discussed in advance with a physician before beginning treatment since several conditions, like heart disease and pregnancy, can result in a serious adverse effect.

Scientific studies into the effectiveness of balneotherapy do not show that balneotherapy is effective for treating rheumatoid arthritis.<ref name="Verhagen2015">{{Cite journal|last1=Verhagen|first1=Arianne P.|last2=Bierma-Zeinstra|first2=Sita M. A.|last3=Boers|first3=Maarten|last4=Cardoso|first4=Jefferson R.|last5=Lambeck|first5=Johan|last6=de Bie|first6=Rob|last7=de Vet|first7=Henrica C. W.|date=2015-04-11|title=Balneotherapy (or spa therapy) for rheumatoid arthritis|journal=The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews|volume=2015 |issue=4|article-number=CD000518|doi=10.1002/14651858.CD000518.pub2|issn=1469-493X|pmid=25862243|pmc=7045434}}</ref> There is also no evidence indicating a more effective type of bath,<ref name="Verhagen2015" /> or that bathing is more effective than exercise, relaxation therapy, or mudpacks.<ref name="Verhagen2015" /> Most of the studies on balneotherapy have methodological flaws and are not reliable.<ref>{{cite journal|author=Verhagen AP|title=Taking baths: the efficacy of balneotherapy in patients with arthritis. A systematic review|journal=J Rheumatol|volume=24|issue=10|pages=1964–71|date=October 1997|pmid=9330940|last2=De Vet|first2=HC|last3=De Bie|first3=RA|last4=Kessels|first4=AG|last5=Boers|first5=M|last6=Knipschild|first6=PG}}</ref><ref name="Verhagen2015" /> A 2009 review of all published clinical evidence concluded that existing research is not sufficiently strong to draw firm conclusions about the efficacy of balneotherapy.<ref>{{cite journal|author=Falagas ME|title=The therapeutic effect of balneotherapy: Evaluation of the evidence from randomized controlled trials|journal=International Journal of Clinical Practice|year=2009|pmid=19570124|doi=10.1111/j.1742-1241.2009.02062.x|volume=63|pages=1068–84|issue=7|s2cid=26008531|display-authors=etal|doi-access=free}}</ref>

"Balneophototherapy" combines salt bathing (balneotherapy) and exposure to ultraviolet B-light (UVB) as a potential treatment for severe, chronic plaque psoriasis. A Cochrane review found low-quality evidence that salt bathing combined with UVB may relieve psoriasis severity compared to UVB treatment only.<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Peinemann F, Harari M, Peternel S, Chan T, Chan D, Labeit AM, Gambichler T | title = Indoor salt water baths followed by artificial ultraviolet B light for chronic plaque psoriasis | journal = The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews | volume = 2020 | issue = 5 | article-number = CD011941 | date = May 2020 | pmid = 32368795 | doi = 10.1002/14651858.CD011941.pub2| pmc = 7199317}}</ref>

A 2018 systematic review concluded that "balneotherapy and spa therapy may be considered useful interventions for managing stress conditions".<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Antonelli |first1=Michele |last2=Donelli |first2=Davide |title=Effects of balneotherapy and spa therapy on levels of cortisol as a stress biomarker: a systematic review |journal=International Journal of Biometeorology |date=2018 |volume=62 |issue=6 |pages=913–924 |doi=10.1007/s00484-018-1504-8 |pmid=29455296 |bibcode=2018IJBm...62..913A }}</ref>

==Crenotherapy== The '''crenotherapy''' (from the Greek ''krene'', "source"{{sfn|Crotti|Solimene|2018|p=125}}) is closely related to the balneotherapy: # Some sources equate it with balneotherapy, with the term "crenotherapy" most used in France and "balneotherapy" in Germany;{{sfn|Teixeira|Gomes|2021|p=558}} # Some researchers suggest that crenotherapy is a branch of hydrotherapy that deals with mineral waters, divide it into internal and external, with balneotherapy being part of the external branch of the crenotherapy.{{sfn|Crotti|Solimene|2018|pp=125–126}}

Generally, crenotherapy is associated with the use of natural mineral waters as a medicine, including the trace levels of substances.{{sfn|Teixeira|Gomes|2021|p=558}} Drinking of mineral water is sometimes called '''hydropinotherapy''' (from the Greek ''hydro'', "water" and ''pino'', "drink").{{sfn|Crotti|Solimene|2018|p=126}}

==References== {{Reflist}}

== Sources == * {{Cite EB1911|wstitle=Balneotherapeutics|volume=3|pages=284–285}} * {{cite book |last1=Crotti |first1=C. |last2=Solimene |first2=U. |title=Rehabilitation Medicine for Elderly Patients |chapter=Thermal Rehabilitation of Geriatric Patients |publisher=Springer International Publishing |publication-place=Cham |date=2018 |isbn=978-3-319-57405-9 |doi=10.1007/978-3-319-57406-6_15 |url=http://link.springer.com/10.1007/978-3-319-57406-6_15 |access-date=2025-09-01 | chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JBk0DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA125}} * {{cite book |last1=Teixeira |first1=Frederico J. |last2=Gomes |first2=Celso S. F. |title=Minerals latu sensu and Human Health |chapter=Natural Mineral Water Used in Health Resort Medicine |publisher=Springer International Publishing |publication-place=Cham |date=2021 |isbn=978-3-030-65705-5 |doi=10.1007/978-3-030-65706-2_14 |url=https://link.springer.com/10.1007/978-3-030-65706-2_14 |access-date=2025-09-01|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gz8vEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA557}}

==Further reading== * Nathaniel Altman, ''Healing springs: the ultimate guide to taking the waters : from hidden springs to the world's greatest spas.'' Inner Traditions / Bear & Company, 2000. {{ISBN|0-89281-836-0}} * James Crook, [https://data.nbmg.unr.edu/public/Geothermal/GreyLiterature/Crook_MineralWtrTherapeuticUses_1899.pdf ''The Mineral Waters of the United States and their Therapeutic Uses''], Lea Brothers & Co., New York and Philadelphia, 1899. * Dian Dincin Buchman, ''The complete book of water healing.'' 2nd ed., McGraw-Hill Professional, 2001. {{ISBN|0-658-01378-5}} * Jane Crebbin-Bailey, John W. Harcup, John Harrington, [https://books.google.com/books?id=R5SujYWnwfgC ''The Spa Book: The Official Guide to Spa Therapy'']. Publisher: Cengage Learning EMEA, 2005. {{ISBN|1-86152-917-1}} * Esti Dvorjetski, ''Leisure, pleasure, and healing: spa culture and medicine in ancient eastern Mediterranean.'', E. J. Brill, 2007 (illustrated). {{ISBN|90-04-15681-X}} * Carola Koenig, ''Specialized Hydro-, Balneo-and Medicinal Bath Therapy.'' Publisher: iUniverse, 2005. {{ISBN|0-595-36508-6}} * Anne Williams, ''Spa bodywork: a guide for massage therapists.'' Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2006. {{ISBN|0-7817-5578-6}}

Category:Balneotherapy Category:Bathing Category:Naturopathy