Share:
Regular warm-up baths are effective against depression
About every eighth adult suffers from a depressive disorder in the course of his life. The options for treating depression are almost as diverse as the causes of mental suffering. At the University of Freiburg it was examined how well overheating baths help against depression.
Different treatment options
Depression has become a common disease in recent years. For the treatment of the disease, various options are available. Often sufferers go into psychotherapy. From naturopathic therapy approaches with herbal active ingredients or acupuncture to surgical procedures with the implantation of electrodes in the brain has already successfully tested a variety of different treatments. Now researchers in Freiburg want to continue to investigate how well overheating baths help against depression.
A scientific study has shown that overheating baths can help with depression. They ensure improved sleep and reduced feelings of depression. (Image: nuzza11 / fotolia.com) Heat therapy in naturopathy
Heat therapy is widely used in natural medicine. Especially with muscular tension, diseases of the musculoskeletal system such as neck pain or chronic low back pain it is used.
But raising your body temperature will improve your sleep quality over the next few nights and help against depression. Researchers at the University Center for Natural Healing at the University Hospital Freiburg under the direction of Prof. Dr. med. Roman Huber in a recent pilot study show.
Overheating baths help against depression
As the university reported in a statement, the test subjects gave after four warm-up baths with 40 degrees Celsius water temperature improved sleep and lower feelings of depression on record. The scientists are now looking for other subjects to be able to compare in a follow-up study, the effectiveness of Überwärmungsbädern with the effects of exercise therapy.
The latter treatment option has long been recognized. Research in recent years has shown that exercise helps against depression and works in a similar way to antidepressants.
Therapy ensures better sleep quality
"Our initial results suggest that overheating baths lead to better sleep quality due to the higher body temperature," says Prof. Huber. If the body temperature rose by an average of 2.43 degrees Celsius immediately after the bath, it was on average 1.06 degrees Celsius above the starting temperature even after a subsequent rest period.
In the survey, the subjects showed both an improved condition and a significant decrease in sleep disorders. The physicians believe that increased body temperature modifies the activities of the nervous system, which often leads to nocturnal pondering and circling thoughts in depressed patients. (Ad)