Sun Aug 13 2023
Best 5 Benefits of Hot Bath That You Should Know in 2023
Have you come across the terms, “sauna,” or “sauna bathing”? Then you must know how therapeutic it can be for your both body and mind.
Fun fact: A sauna is a traditional activity carried out for thousands of years in Finland.
Studies are showing that not only are saunas used for pleasure, but there are benefits to hot baths.
Yes, it can be difficult to visit the sauna often (since it can be expensive). But there is a way around it. And that is where bathtubs come into the picture.
Bathtubs are a “small” sauna in your own home, which can be accessed at any time. Having the best bathtub (we prefer a soaking tub, and we will discuss the reasons shortly) can help you “simulate” the hot bath of the sauna.
We will discuss the benefits of a hot bath in detail, and why a soaking tub is the best fit for taking a hot bath.
Sauna Bathing or Hot Bath – What Is It?
Many people may say the hot bath is just a bath, where you just sit and relax in a lukewarm bath. Yes, they are right but the sauna is much more than that.
It is actually a therapeutic process and there is a name for that also, which is heat therapy. The therapy, as the name suggests, is involved the user(s) being exposed to a high-heat environment for a fixed period of time.
The usual sauna is involved in two elements which are: dry air and high temperature. In order to increase the temperature and humidity of the sauna, water is thrown onto the high-heat rocks (usually the heating source for the sauna).
The regular temperature of the source can vary from 80oC to even 100oC.
As you can see from the temperature reading, it is possible to mimic the temperature at our home, thanks to a good water heater.
Now, you might wonder what is the good temperature for taking a hot bath.
Well, that depends. Each person’s water temperature tolerance can vary. It is not necessary to reach that particular temperature (80oC), some might feel uncomfortable, and may even affect their health, but some may feel “right at home.”
But in general, the right temperature for anyone is slightly above the normal average body temperature i.e. 32oC.
So, it is recommended to have a water temperature anywhere between 32oC to 50oC for a good sauna-like experience in your bathtub.
The 5 Benefits of a Hot Bath
1. Blood Pressure Modulation
One of the first benefits of a hot bath is blood pressure modulation. Several epidemiology studies state that taking a hot bath often has a positive effect on your overall blood pressure.
This benefit is correlated to another benefit, which is to lower stress. Now, a little bit of science class.
There is a formula in physics, which states that stress is a force acting upon a specific area.
If you correlate each formula, you can see that stress is equal to pressure and twice of area. Meaning, if the pressure is increased so does the stress, and vice versa.
So, lowering your stress can help you to lower your pressure, and taking a hot bath can help you to reduce stress, which in turn helps to lower your blood pressure.
This helps to keep your heart healthy and perform tasks without any difficulties. Also, it lowers the probability of getting cardiovascular disease (CVD).
2. Remedy to Your Skin
When you are taking a hot bath, your skin is directly in contact with the hot water. Individuals who have skin-related problems or allergies are advised to take a bath in hot water for a brief amount of time.
Skin-related issues, such as irritating skin, cracking skin, patchy skin, and acne-prone skin are some of the issues that can be treated with a hot bath.
Naturally, only taking a hot bath alone may not help to completely eradicate the issue, but it does well when it comes to soothing pain.
Note that some may experience irritation when hot water comes into contact with the affected area on the skin. In those cases, it is recommended to have some therapeutic oils mixed with the bath to soothe pain and counteract the irritation from hot water.
3. Pulmonary Disease
As said above, taking a hot bath can help with several cardiovascular diseases (CVD), and it also has a positive impact on the nonvascular condition. There are studies that suggest that hot baths can help treat pulmonary issues, such as improving the overall lung condition.
When you are taking a hot bath, your muscles are relaxed and the windpipe (nostrils) expands. When your windpipe expands, the blockage in your nostrils gets pushed out (mostly mucus) and makes the nostril dirt-free.
It also helps to intake good amounts of oxygen, which, in turn, expands the lungs. This helps to increase the vital volume capacity of the lungs and maintain a good oxygen flow in the blood.
If you are having trouble breathing, often, taking a hot bath in your bathtub can help you breathe easier!
Apart from that, a hot bath, in general, increases your body temperature, which helps the immune system to fight against viruses and foreign pathogens to help you return to a normal state.
4. Other Health Benefits
Taking a hot bath has a positive impact on other health-related issues. Studies have found that taking a hot bath improves the pain and symptoms of some musculoskeletal issues. This includes rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis.
A hot bath has a positive influence on migraines and severe headaches, as well as root canal treatments. Studies found that people with chronic headaches were subjected to sauna bathing for a fixed period of time. After that fixed period of time, it was said that the headache symptoms were substantially reduced, and it also greatly improved the headache intensity.
5. Great Way to Lose Weight
Lastly, if you are on a journey of cutting some weight, then a hot bath can be a great way to lose weight. Now, let us consider a situation where you work out at your gym for two hours, and you come home exhausted and take a nice shower. Yes, that can be good, but do you want your weight loss journey to be more effective? Then instead of taking a shower at night, try to have a hot bath.
A hot bath helps to open up the clogged pores in your skin and makes you sweat a lot. This helps to burn more calories and in turn, burn the excess fat in your body.
Also, a nice hot bath can help to get a good night's sleep. After all the hardships at work, it is recommended that you have a nice sleep. It helps the body to relax and helps to secrete melatonin, which helps you fall asleep easily.
FAQs
First, there are a notable number of benefits to taking a hot bath, and they are as follows:
- Blood pressure modulation
- Good for your skin-related issues
- Good for pulmonary disease
- Great for musculoskeletal
- Great for losing weight
Generally, a bath should last anywhere between 15-20 minutes, but a therapeutic hot bath can last up to 30 minutes. Not a minute more than that. Prolonged exposure to hot baths can affect your overall health and may worsen your health condition.
One of the main health benefits of a hot bath is that it helps reduce weight. A hot bath helps to open up clogged pores in your skin and makes you sweat. This can help to burn more calories, and, in turn, burn the excess fat in your body.
Final Thoughts
Which is the best bathtub for a hot bath? The main objective here is to soak for a long time by submerging yourself up to your shoulders.
So, considering that it is better to get a soaking tub instead of a normal tub. The soaking tub has more depth compared to other bathtubs, and this helps you to really submerge yourself up to your shoulders without issues.
If you are interested in getting one for your home, then you are in the right place. We, at Maguns home products, provide best-in-class soaking tubs for our customers. You can access the collection here.
This article hopes to provide you with enough information on the benefits of hot baths. If you have tried it once, you should see the benefits with your own eyes!