The idea of “taking the waters” in all its modalities has encompassed an integral part of health and well-being, from ancient times to today’s post-modern revival of urban bathing, thermal resorts and water-based treatments. We are in a new era of salutem per aquam—or health by water! But what if we thought about hydrotherapy using a much wider lens than just a list of therapies and their benefits? By taking inspiration from hydrotherapy’s rich past, considering the needs of today and envisioning the future, we can connect this offering to other megatrends in our industry: the quest for longevity and social wellness. Here’s a closer look.
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The idea of “taking the waters” in all its modalities has encompassed an integral part of health and well-being, from ancient times to today’s post-modern revival of urban bathing, thermal resorts and water-based treatments. We are in a new era of salutem per aquam—or health by water! But what if we thought about hydrotherapy using a much wider lens than just a list of therapies and their benefits? By taking inspiration from hydrotherapy’s rich past, considering the needs of today and envisioning the future, we can connect this offering to other megatrends in our industry: the quest for longevity and social wellness. Here’s a closer look.
Revisiting Hydrotherapy
According to the Textbook on Natural Medicine (5th edition, 2020), “Hydrotherapy methods are very diverse, can be applied in many different forms of water, such as solid, liquid or vapor. The thermal, mechanical and chemical effects of water can be used individually or in combination to stimulate the skin organ, through which the body's systems are affected through a reflex mechanism.”
Hydrotherapy is the translation of a lot of science. It is based on several important bioengineering principles that permit the design and development of aquatic exercise devices, techniques and programs.
Hydrotherapy applies the general physical properties of water, including:
- Hydrothermal (conduction, radiation, convection, heat evaporation),
- Hydrodynamics (float, mechanical impact, hydrostatic pressure),
- Hydrochemistry (aeration of carbon dioxide, minerals, chemicals).
Many definitions of hydrotherapy reference it in terms of a form of therapy or rehabilitation in the allopathic or clinical context. Traditionally, it has been seen as a protocol to “fix” or mitigate an existing health problem. Balneotherapy, for example, is the “treatment of disease by bathing in mineral springs.”
Water therapy uses include varying temperatures, water pressure levels and flow according to treatment outcomes—always with the intention of impacting both physical and mental symptoms and issues. These include:
- Injury recovery for muscles and tendons.
- Support of immune function and detoxification, allowing the lymphatic system to eliminate waste more efficiently. This can also be delivered through different technologies in showers that apply water pressure to massage and apply lymphatic drainage techniques.
- Relief from stress and pain symptoms by increasing the release of endorphins, aka natural anxiety busters, in the body.
- Pool-based workouts for those who require the support of water immersion and would otherwise be unable to exercise outside a swimming pool.
Applied to the spa and wellness context, hydrotherapy provides an important center of wellness activities that promote healing, support disease prevention and provide great enjoyment and well-being.
Related: Tips to Practicing Water-Conscious Hydrotherapy
A Unifying Element in Social Wellness
According to the latest data, society is fast approaching a time when an average of 25% of the population will be living alone. This is unwelcome news for the single most important factor for well-being: social wellness!
It is also an opportunity to rethink and innovate spas’ wet areas to encourage human connection. In fact, spas can play a major role in mitigating the loneliness epidemic with hydrotherapy group spaces that invite health and emotional well-being through social wellness. Spas can introduce people to the benefits of hydrotherapy in its many programmatic and group guest treatment experiences, offering abundant opportunities for nudging people into social wellness.
Think the experience of aufguss, accompanied with music or other “event” sauna elements, and thermal pools that inspire spontaneous conversations around the whirlpools or massage jets. Enter the world of social wellness in spa, and one of its primary drivers is experiences with water, in all its forms.
Aquatic exercise is a low impact form of physical activity, which typically takes place in a pool using special equipment.
Saunas, cryo chambers, snow rooms and showers can be both wet and dry heat saunas, or cold rooms all using various water therapy technologies, which involve sitting in a room set to a specific temperature with either humid or dry air.
Water circuit therapy or contrast hydrotherapy involves going through a few different forms of hydrotherapy, one after the other, generally alternating between warm and cold water to promote circulation, support healthy metabolic function and help ease pain symptoms.
Immersion therapies and experiences are those that involve a person immersing themselves in different pools or natural bodies of water. They include hot tubs with jet massages, thermal pools, whirlpool baths and Kneipp treatment protocols.
The Fountain of Youth—and Health
If the spa is a place where people go to receive treatment in pursuit of wellness, thanks to its fundamental principles embodied in “health by water,” then wellness has been transformed into a contemporary and multidimensional approach to better health and longevity. This involves a full faceted lifestyle where the emphasis is quality of life, or health span. Today, we know that while most people want to live a long life, they want to with a high degree of well-being.
After all, most of the human body is water, with ranges between 45% to 75% and settling on an average of 60% depending on sex, age and hydration levels, according to Medical News Today. This is proof-positive of the symbiotic relationship that we have with water.
Studies point to new applications of hydrotherapy as favorable in the anti-aging mechanism or better tolerance to stress levels. Hydrotherapy can be a positive stimulus for the enzymatic antioxidant activity of the elderly, inducing better and higher quality of life.
According to spa historian, Professor JP De Vierville, in “North America, Kneipp therapies formed the foundations for modern naturopathy,” and they are “used in prevention or to help with overall personal wellness to increase happiness levels … or even help with fatigue, memory and attention.”
Research from the University of Washington in quantum biology is showing that structured water helps drive electric and frequency information throughout our body, pointing to even more compelling implications for the benefits of hydrotherapy and water’s healing properties.
Rethinking Your Hydrotherapy Offering
In the quest for elevated guest experiences in the spa space—ones that deliver more fun, delight and evidence-based benefits to the wellness seeker—think about combining two megatrends to deliver fresh perspectives on hydrotherapy. This can inspire new guest journeys, mind/body technologies, protocols and fresh ways to communicate programming to both service providers and their guests.
Combine needs for connectivity with the desire to curate lifestyle choices that support not just living longer but living better.
Alina M. Hernandez, award-winning wellness innovator, and Gharieni Group Advisory Board Member, has decades of experience integrating evidence-based wellness with the wisdom of the ancient spiritual traditions. She is a Mayo Clinic-certified health and wellness coach, co-chair of the GWI’s Mental Wellness and Touchless Wellness initiatives and serves on the Touchless Wellness Association’s advisory board.
