16 Herbal Hydrotherapy (Balneotherapy) – Warm baths dilate blood vessels in the skin, thus improving the circulation. – Full-submersion baths exert considerable pressure on the body. Therapeutic baths should therefore be limited to a duration of 10 to 20 minutes, followed by a resting period of at least 30 minutes. – Patients with high blood pressure or heart failure should not take full baths unless directed by a physician. Individuals with mild varicose leg veins can take warm baths, but should spray cold water onto the legs at the end of the bath. When making baths for elderly patients, the tub should be filled only three-fourths full. This is compensated for by slightly raising the water temperature. – Contraindications for full baths: Acute or extensive skin disease, large areas of damaged skin, severe febrile or infectious disease, WHO stage III hyper-tension (organ damage), NYHA stage III/IV heart failure, and deep vein thrombosis. Partial-submersion baths can be used to treat problems limited to a specific area of the body. – The effects of herbal bath additives are transmitted by stimulation of receptors on the skin and/or by reflex mechanisms. – Essential oils are inhaled with vapors from the bathwater. The oils travel to the respiratory tract and olfactory nerve, thereby exerting direct effects on the limbic system and stimulating the senses (aromatherapy). – Pure essential oils require the addition of an emulsifying agent to improve their dispersion in water. This prevents high local concentrations of the oil and related skin irritation. – Fatty oils (soybean oil, evening primrose oil) used for supportive treatment of dry skin diseases do not require an emulsifying agent. The oil should form a protective film on the skin surface after leaving the bathtub. – Colds and flu – To improve the circulation – Nervousness and sleep disorders – Rheumatic complaints – Inflammatory skin diseases – Herbal baths effectively stimulate the circulation. Since the blood flow to the extremities can be impaired during the early stages of catarrhal disorders, hydrotherapy can play an important role in their treatment. When a cold develops, local nonspecific immune defense mechanisms are weakened, and the blood supply to the mucous membranes of the mouth, nose and throat decreases also, owing to a reflex mechanism. – The deep-heating effect is a key therapeutic element of baths for cold and flu. The warm water dilates the peripheral vessels and, by way of reflex transmission, increases the blood flow to the mucous membranes of the mouth, nose, and throat. – Spruce and pine needle oil as well as eucalyptus and thyme oil enhance the peripheral blood flow when absorbed transdermally. The oil particles inhaled in steam from the bathwater take direct action in the respiratory passages, where they effectively decrease nasal congestion, liquefy viscous bronchial secretions, and improve expectoration. – Herbal cold and flu baths are recommended for supportive treatment of acute or chronic catarrhal disorders. – Constitutional hypotension is a relatively common disorder associated with a variety of circulatory problems, the most common of which are hypoperfusion of the hands and feet and general vegetative dysregulation. The etiology is unknown. – Nervous heart without an identifiable organic cause is also common.
16.1 Fundamentals of Hydrotherapy
Physiological Effects of Medicinal Baths
Action: The therapeutic action of medicinal baths is a result of the physiological effects of water temperature (36–38 °C) and water pressure.
Contraindications
Specific Effects of Herb Baths
Action and effects of herbal extracts
Emulsifying agents
Range of Uses
Typical indications for herbal baths
16.2 Colds and Flu
Clinical Considerations
General considerations: See Section 5.2, Colds and Flu, p. 150.
Hydrotherapy measures
Clinical value of hydrotherapy
Herbal Remedies and Range of Uses
Aromatic Herbs
Drugs used: Thyme oil (Thymi aetheroleum, see p. 120); eucalyptus oil (Eucalypti aetheroleum, see p. 61); pine needle oil (Pini aetheroleum, see p. 104); spruce needle oil (Piceae aetheroleum).
Action: Bacteriostatic, bactericidal, virustatic, expectorant, bronchospasmolytic, hyperemic.
Contraindications: The above contraindications for full baths apply. Herbal cold and flu baths are not recommended for infants or small children under 3 years of age.
Administration: Full baths are administered in the early stages of cold development.
Clinical value: The recommended baths are safe and effective adjunctive treatment measures, provided no contraindications apply.
Cf. Section 5.2, Colds and Flu, p. 150 ff.
16.3 Circulatory Disorders
Clinical Considerations
General considerations
Hydrotherapy measures: Full baths supplemented with the herbal additives listed below, provided no contraindications apply.
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