Seawater has long been used in the treatment of disease. In 350 AD, Greek physician Hippocrates prescribed the internal and external use of seawater to preserve and restore good health. Frenchman Dr La Bonnardire coined the phrase thalassotherapy (thalassa is the Greek word for sea) in the late 19th century. Specifically, it is the use of ocean water and its various elements, such as sand, mud, seaweed and algae, to revive the body and spirit.
Theories about its roots differ, with one explanation owing to a 17th-century English doctor by the name of Floyer who developed a profound interest in the medicinal uses of seawater. Some put its current popularity down to French cyclist Louison Bobet, who used ocean therapies to recover from an injury in the 1960s and consequently promoted their use.
Today the word "thalasso" is tossed around about as often as a beach ball in the summer sand. Several criteria must be met, however, before the term authentically applies. For a start, never consider anything bottled and sold off the shelf as thalassotherapy - no matter what it might say on the label.
A spa that offers thalasso treatments must be in a clean seaside environment where fresh ocean water is pumped into the centre daily. A permanent medical supervisor must be on staff, accompanied by a team of professional aesthetes specialising in spa therapies. There should be a steam room and sauna, as well as plenty of room dedicated to relaxation and exercise.
It goes without saying that the ocean can have a naturally calming effect, but what is really happening in terms of physical health? In composition, seawater is very similar to blood. Its contents are a soupy mix of living micro-organisms, vitamins, proteins, mineral salts and tiny algae that contain oligo-elements such as copper, zinc, iodine and selenium. All in all, there are more than 90 different elements in seawater that are essential to the human body. Through the process of osmosis, these components penetrate through the skin to nourish the body.
With or without marine constituents, water therapies have proved potent medicine for centuries. In combination, heat and water are one of the oldest known methods of pain relief, particularly for muscle strains, sprains, backaches and fatigue. When applied to the body, heat alone can stimulate metabolic activity, increase the blood supply due to the dilation of vessels, relax the muscles and activate natural recuperative processes.
"Hydrotherapy" is the term for the general therapeutic use of water. The practice of massaging the body in any way with it is called "balneotherapy". The American National Institute of Health recently published a report on the effects of balneotherapy on patients with rheumatoid and osteo arthritis.
While scientific evidence was weak due to the project's methodology, researchers agreed that the positive pain-soothing findings in the study could not be ignored. Indeed, literature from the American Arthritis Foundation states: "Soaking in water allows muscles to become relaxed, which enables one to perform a range of motion exercises and to carry out daily tasks with less pain and strain."
In 1960, the French Medical Academy defined thalasso-therapy as the use of seawater, seaweed, mud or other sea resources alone, or in conjunction with the marine climate, "for the purpose of medical treatment or treatment with a medicinal effect". Today, French doctors write insured prescriptions for thalassotherapy, as it has been shown to yield positive effects for people suffering from arthritis, asthma, stress, insomnia, inflammation, atopic dermatitis, menopause and those recovering from surgery.
New mothers experiencing muscle pain, weariness and circulation problems may benefit from seawater therapies, although treatments must not take place for at least three months after giving birth. Thalasso has also proved to be an effective treatment for increasing mobility of the joints.
Treatments range from immersing oneself in burbling, body-temperature marine water, complete with hydro-jets targeting sore muscles, to being swathed from shoulder to toe in a warm thick paste consisting of algae, mud or pulverised seaweed.
Also included are underwater massage and other forms of balneotherapy, facials, aquatic exercise and the inhalation of ionised ocean mist, otherwise known as brumisation. Simply taking a solitary walk next to quiet morning waves is considered an essential ingredient of thalassotherapy.