General Benefits of Bathing
The warmth of the water subtly massages tired muscles and stimulates blood circulation. This speeds up delivery of healing nutrients to the tissues while helping remove lactic acid and other wastes that can contribute to soreness. A hot bath can even help you burn a few extra calories by temporarily boosting your metabolism just a bit. But avoid prolonged soaks in very hot baths—while the heat feels good, it can promote inflammation.

Hot and Cold
A technique that’s been practiced around the world for eons is contrast hydrotherapy. Alternating between hot and cold water causes blood vessels to alternately dilate and constrict. This creates a sort of pumping action that increases circulation and is said to reduce congestion and inflammation, help digestion, and stimulate activity of the organs. Natural healers believe it also boosts immune function.

To try contrast hydrotherapy at home, you’ll need a large basin to act as the second bath, or you can simply sit in a warm tub and use a handheld shower nozzle to douse yourself now and then with cold water. Always start with hot water and finish with cold.

End the Itching
If itching is your problem, a bath—with certain ingredients added—may be just what the doctor ordered. Here are some soothers to put in the tub.

Baking soda - Baking soda is a wonderful remedy for itchy skin. If your child has the chicken pox, add a 1/2 cup of baking soda to a shallow bath or 1 full cup to a deep bath to soothe the itch.

Oatmeal - For relief from poison ivy, skin rashes, or an itchy sunburn, add a few tablespoons of colloidal oatmeal (sold in drugstores) to a lukewarm bath. If you don’t have colloidal oatmeal on hand, simply place a cup or so of plain old oatmeal in a discarded nylon stocking, tie the top, and float it in the bathwater while you soak. Be extra careful getting in and out of your oatmeal bath—oatmeal makes the tub very slippery.

Vinegar - Vinegar tames itching by acidifying the skin. To relieve an itchy sunburn or psoriasis, take a cool bath; add about 2 cups of vinegar to the bathwater before you get in.

Aches and Sprains
For minor sprains, an Epsom-salt bath can provide rapid relief. Epsom salt draws fluid out of the body and helps shrink swollen tissues. Add 2 cups Epsom salt to a warm bath, and soak. As it draws fluid through the skin, Epsom salt also draws out lactic acid, the buildup of which can contribute to muscle aches. After a vigorous exercise session, add a cup or two of the salt to a hot bath and enjoy a relaxing soak.

Basin Baths You don’t have to immerse your whole body in the tub to reap the benefits of a bath. A footbath or sitz bath can provide a fast, simple solution to everything from headaches to hemorrhoids. For fever, congestion, or headache, add a bit of mustard powder along with warm water to a basin and soak your feet. This draws blood to the feet, which boosts circulation and also eases pressure on the blood vessels in your head. For hemorrhoid pain and itching, fill a basin with warm water and a handful of Epsom salt and have a seat. For a soothing foot soak, add two drops of peppermint oil along with four drops of rosemary oil.

Essential Oils
A wonderful way to enhance a bath’s medicinal value is to add essential oils, available at natural food stores. Each oil has its own healing profile.

Eucalyptus oil promotes alertness and breaks up congestion.
Geranium oil reduces anxiety.
Lavender fights depression.
Rosemary is said to stimulate memory.

Combinations of essential oils can be especially beneficial.

If you’re prone to allergies, test your reaction to essential oils before using them. Dab a small amount of diluted essential oil on the inside of your arm. If you don’t have a reaction within 12 hours, you’re good to go.

Arthritis-away bath
To ease arthritis pain, try a combination of 4 drops of juniper oil and 2 drops each of lavender oil, cypress oil, and rosemary oil, along with a 1/2-cup of Epsom salt. For a simpler soak, use 3 drops of lavender oil and 3 drops of cypress oil.

Deep-sleep soak
Trouble sleeping? Use 2 to 4 tablespoons of sea salt, 4 drops of lavender oil, 3 drops marjoram oil, and 3 drops lemon oil. Other oils that help promote sleep include lime-tree flower, Roman chamomile, frankincense, neroli, and rose.

Tension-taming bath
Soak away your stress by adding 5 drops of lavender oil, 3 drops of ylang-ylang oil, 2 drops of bergamot oil, and a 1/2-cup of Epsom salt to a warm bath.

Herbal Substitutes
If you have dried herbs on hand instead of essential oils, you can use those. Add chamomile—along with other calming herbs such as lavender and valerian—to bathwater for a nerve-soothing soak. To disperse dried herbs in the water, wrap them in a piece of cheesecloth and hold it under the faucet while you fill the tub.


Source: 1,801 Home Remedies