Hydrotherapy at home

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http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/health-fitness/health/Hydrotherapy-at-home/articleshow/4933252.cms 

Water in its many forms helps to increase your health and vitality, and speed healing from injuries and 

 

 

 

 

 

Hydrotherapy at home (Getty Images)

 

illnesses. Water is an elixir of life. Natural minerals in these healing waters have long been known to promote health due to their restorative and detoxifying properties. Hydrotherapy is one of the easiest therapies to emulate at home. It involves immersion in warm or cool water or an invigorating contrast of the two. Water can be used in different temperatures and forms like liquid, vapour and solid (ice cubes). Generally, heat quiets and soothes the body, slowing down the activity of internal organs. Cold, in contrast, stimulates and invigorates, increasing internal activity. These properties of hot and cold water are used to treat various ailments. 

Dr Amir Chand Gupta, nature cure physician, National Institute of Naturopathy, Pune talks on how one can enjoy the benefits of hydrotherapy in one’s home. “Our body is composed of 70-80 per cent of water. Water can be used in any form as a basic requirement. Medically or hygienically, we eliminate around three litres of water in a day. Hence, that much amount of water has to be replaced in the liquid form. In hydrotherapy, we use water at different temperatures for different diseases. This is externally -- hot, cold and neutral,” he says. 

Hydrotherapy in your home Cold sponging: to full body for 5-10 minutes reduces the temperatures during fever. 

Cold eye pack/ eye wash: Dipping cotton cloth in ice-cold water and covering the eyes for 10 minutes helps reduce conjunctivitis, burning of eyes and headaches. 

Hot and cold fomentation: Using hot water over joints and muscles will help relieve pain, swellings, numbness, and congestions. Likewise, ice also can be used for treating bleeding, cervical and lumbar pain, local swellings and rheumatic arthritic pain. It also can be used to remove heart burn, acidity, gastritis, etc. 

Throat pack: Using a hot water-dipped cotton cloth over the throat region for 20 minutes helps relieve throat pain due to common cold, tonsilitis, laryngitis, pharyngitis. Facial steam: Rhinitis, common cold, congestion of nose, sinusitis, and bronchial asthma can be treated by facial steam. Mixing of herbs like tulsi leaves, eucalyptus oil will act as an immediate remedy. 

Hot foot bath/arm bath: Dipping of legs and arms in hot water for 10-15 minutes helps remedy insomnia, congestive headache, migraine, rheumato-arthritic pain of ankles and feet. A cold foot bath can be given in the same manner for dysmenorrhoea (painful menstruation) and sun stroke. 

Hot and cold affusion: Affusion means pouring of water for a particular period of time over a particular part of the body. A powerful spray of neutral temperate water can be administered for removing the spasm of muscles in a paralytic condition. A cold shower is beneficial for high BP patients, stressful conditions, insomnia and sun stroke. 

Water drinking is an internal bath. Cold water drinking is highly beneficial for acidity, gastritis, and stomach ulcers. Hot water drinking helps one remove indigestion and reduce excess body weight. 

(Individuals with paralysis, frostbite, or other conditions should take treatments under the guidance of a trained hydrotherapist. As these individuals cannot accurately sense temperature changes in the water, they run the risk of being seriously burned. Diabetics and people with hypertension should also consult their healthcare professionals.) 

(Inputs from Dr Gideon Paul, consultant, Nature Cure Hospital, Mumbai and Dr C Karthick Raja, department of hydrotherapy and modern medicine, Shree Ramakrishna Medical College of Naturopathy and Yogic Sciences, Kanyakumari)