Improve the Old Gray Matter with a Hot Tub
Without a doubt, every single person would like to keep their brain healthy and sharp as they age. You may very well have already done a few things today to help boost your brain health, like taking vitamins, eating some superfoods, or sleeping in a little so you got plenty of rest. Here’s one more thing you can do to improve the old gray matter … kick back in your hot tub for a relaxing soak!
No joke, one of the many health benefits of regular hot tub soaks is that they can improve brain health.
The Undeniable Magic of Hydrotherapy
You already know the relief and enjoyment you get by soaking in your warm, bubbly hot tub. Turns out, as the water heats your core temperature, increases your circulation, and carries a boost of oxygen throughout your body, it helps your brain, too. In fact, this study of women with fibromyalgia found hydrotherapy not only eased physical symptoms but improved participants’ cognitive function, too.
Dr. Bruce Becker from the University of Washington discovered even more good news. In this video, he shares how hydrotherapy has helped his patients with dementia, severe neurological issues, stroke, and other cognitive diseases.
Boost Your Healthy Lifestyle
The jury’s still out on how exactly warm water hydrotherapy provides such impressive results for brain health. It has been proposed that the oxygen boost hot tubs supply to the brain is responsible. However, don’t forget about the indirect benefits, too. Using a spa improves your health and lifestyle in many ways, and as a by-product, it helps your brain from that angle, too.
For instance, chronic stress causes long-term changes in the brain, kills brain cells, hurts your memory, and slows cognitive functions. The good news is that using a hot tub helps you manage stress. First, it’s the ideal place to take refuge when life gets crazy to let your worries fade away. Second, using a hot tub increases endorphin release and decreases cortisol production.
Here’s another example. Using a hot tub can help you sleep better. Just think of the effect that a lack of sleep has on your brain. There are the obvious ways that it slows cognitive function, like making you forgetful and sluggish when you’re overly tired. But also, tau, a protein associated with Alzheimer’s, builds-up when the brain is sleep-deprived. Getting enough sleep is vital for the brain in many ways — and your hot tub can help. If you need more sleep, try using your hot tub 90 minutes before bed. Not only will it relax you and put you in the right frame of mind to sleep, but it will help regulate your circadian rhythm.
Relaxation may be your primary reason for slipping away to the hot tub in your backyard oasis, but as it turns out, your brain and whole body get the benefit. Would you like to experience the life-changing, health-boosting power of owning a hot tub? Contact us! We’ll help you create an oasis of your own.
