Does halotherapy reduce stress?

People in Eastern Europe have long recognised the benefits of salt therapy. As early as 1800s, doctors noticed that the miners working in the salt mines hardly ever got sick, with one of these doctors opening up a successful treatment centre in a disused salt mine. These days, salt therapy has also gained popularity in our part of the world.

In the garden of Thermae Grimbergen, we had a custom-made salt room built. Its walls and ceiling are clad in salt, even the floor is covered in salt crystals (which stimulate the pressure points in your bare feet!) and during the halotherapy session, medicinal salt is also dispersed in the room.

This salt therapy may improve the condition of your skin, lung function and immunity, but it could also reduce stress! That is because it regulates your breathing. This automatically makes you feel more relaxed and as a result, you sleep better. What’s more, your body may also produce more serotonin in the salt room, a hormone known to promote a sense of wellbeing.

Also, a salt room is generally a quiet space, or there may be some calming music playing softly in the background, and there is gentle mood lighting. This creates a low-stimulus environment, which, of course, means fewer stressors. So, while halotherapy’s stress-lowering effects may not yet have been scientifically proven, we are convinced that it does have a stress-relieving effect!

Would you like to try this unique treatment method? We organise two halotherapy sessions a day, which are free to our wellness guests. You do need to sign up at the centre on the day itself (for more info, just ask at reception). Make sure to wear a bathrobe in the salt room and please respect the silence. Electronic devices are, of course, not allowed in this room, like elsewhere in our public baths.