Hot tub cures my cold.. the gout?

A few weeks ago I set off for the Mount Hood region of Oregon, where a bunch of old college friends and I had rented a cabin for a relaxing weekend reunion. Unfortunately for me, a week of mild congestion and an itchy throat had turned into a full-blown head cold by the time we rolled into our woodland retreat. I spent most of the weekend struggling to breathe, as I lay, depleted, on the couch, missing out on a raging game of Boggle.

Luckily, there was a hot tub on the property. After soaking in it for a while, and soaking up the beauty of the forest at nighttime as well, I was feeling much better. I was feeling so much better, in fact, that I went back inside and started doing some yoga (which, as you may know, requires a great deal of breathing through one’s nose). My fellow hot tub soakers all joined in and soon we were enjoying a raging ad-hoc yoga class.

I shouldn’t have been surprised by the healing power of hot (or even warm) water; a hot steamy bath is generally known to be helpful in relieving chest and nasal congestion. In fact, it’s been known for centuries that soaking in hot water has a therapeutic effect. According to the official tourism site of Bath, England, legend has it that Prince Bladud was cured of leprosy after bathing in the hot springs there in 863 BC.

In AD 43 the Romans founded the town of ‘Aquae Sulis’ (supposedly meaning the waters of Sulis) and built a bathing complex around the springs. A temple to Asclepius found near one of the baths suggests that the Romans too recognized its healing properties. Later, the baths drew several royal figures; among them was Queen Anne, who reportedly visited in 1688 hoping to be cured of her gout.

Well, I can’t personally comment on hot water immersion’s efficacy in curing gout, but I can say that it works wonders for a cold and for loosening stiff, unused muscles. There are myriad other benefits as well, and those too shall soon be explored.