Some Health Benefits Of Epsom Salt Baths

 

Epsom Salt Baths Improve Health

 

by Kristin

Food Renegade,    21 January 2013


How do Epsom salt baths improve health?

According to the Epsom Salt Industry Council, correcting magnesium deficiency leads to:

• Improved heart and circulatory health, reducing irregular heartbeats, preventing hardening of the arteries, reducing blood clots and lowering blood pressure.
• Improved ability for the body to use insulin, reducing the incidence or severity of diabetes.
• Flushed toxins and heavy metals from the cells, easing muscle pain and helping the body to eliminate harmful substances.
• Improved nerve function by electrolyte regulation. Also, calcium is the main conductor for electrical current in the body, and magnesium is necessary to maintain proper calcium levels in the blood.
• Relieved stress. Excess adrenaline and stress are believed to drain magnesium, a natural stress reliever, from the body. Magnesium is necessary for the body to bind adequate amounts of serotonin, a mood-elevating chemical within the brain that creates a feeling of well being and relaxation.
• Reduced inflammation to relieve pain and muscle cramps.
• Improved oxygen use.
• Improved absorption of nutrients.
• Prevention or easing of migraine headaches.

(source)

Furthermore, the sulfate in Epsom salts:

• Improves absorption of nutrients by starting the cascade of digestive enzymes released from the pancreas.
• Helps form the mucin proteins which line the gut walls. Mucin stops the intestine’s content from ‘sticking’ and blocks the transport of toxins from the gut to the bloodstream. Patients who have a leaky gut (like those with IBS) have low blood plasma sulfate levels.
• Helps with the formation of brain tissue. Pregnant ladies, pay attention! When en utero, neurons are created on chains of sulfated carbohydrate. Reduces sulfation may lead to fault neural connections and dysfunction later in life!
• Plays a key role in detoxifying drugs and environmental contaminants from your body.

How to take an Epsom Salt bath.

If you want truly therapeutic levels of magnesium, this study found consistent, significant improvement in magnesium levels after participants soaked for at least 15 minutes in a 1% solution of Epsom salts. For a typical bath tub, that’d be about a pound of Epsom salt per bath! Participants complained that the 1% solution was too “soapy” feeling.

Since my goal is comfort as well as therapy, I opt for less Epsom salts and a longer soak.

 

To make an Epsom salt bath:

Dissolve 2 cups of Epsom salts in a bathtub full of warm or hot water. Soak for at least 20 minutes before you attend to any personal hygiene like washing your hair or shaving.
Take this soothing Epsom salt bath about 3 times per week.


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