Struggling with depression? New study suggests hot water is the antidote
October 27, 2018 – It’s common knowledge to those of us who work in the hot tub industry that hot water is good for you and, in many cases, will help alleviate or manage chronic health conditions and reduce the need for medication. A new study recently completed in Germany points to one more positive effect of hot water soaking: battling depression. And, it could be more beneficial against depression than exercise!
Researchers at the University of Freiberg recently finished up a study using 45 subjects, all who suffered from depression. The 45 were split into two separate groups. One group had to do aerobic exercise for 40-45 minutes, while the second group was tasked with soaking daily in 104-degree water for40-45 minutes.
Once the study concluded, everyone went through a test to determine where they fell on a widely used depression scale. The results? While the group doing regular exercise dropped their depression scale reading three points, those who soaked dropped an average of six points!
Why? The positive results seem to target our body’s circadian rhythm. The circadian rhythm of our bodies serves as its internal clock. The researchers believe that regular hot water soaking made improvements on the subjects’ circadian rhythm.
Many people with depression tend to also have insomnia. We’ve known for a very long time that soaking about 45 minutes to an hour before bed will raise your core body temperature. As your body cools and the temperature re-regulates, most find they have more restful nights sleep and fall into REM sleep faster. It also releases endorphins, your body’s “feel good” chemical. Guess what that also does? Helps with depression!
Obviously, we’re not advocating skipping the gym and only hitting the hot tub, as both help combat depression. (Did you know that approximately 40 million American suffer from some type of depression or anxiety disorder??) With that many folks out there needing assistance to manage or conquer this condition, it stands to reason just about every one who can have a hot tub should get one!
