Amata City: Salt Cave Treatment Offers Promise of Respiratory Relief

Salt Cave Treatment Offers Promise of Respiratory Relief

UPDATE : 2 February 2010

Maneeya Dhammataree

Residents of a busy metropolis like Bangkok, a city renowned for its traffic jams and air pollution, may be prone to breathing difficulties, or other related conditions linked with the respiratory system.

But now an unusual form of relief is at hand thanks to the services offered by Salt Cave Bangkok, an enterprise offering halotherapy (also known as salt therapy) at its premises on Sukhumvit 39.

Help at hand
Since there aren't any subterranean salt mines or caves located in the capital, Salt Cave Bangkok replicates the conditions found in such natural locations by providing an effective treatment using a constant dry salt aerosol stream within what it describes as a salt chamber.

Halotherapy is derived from speleotherapy (also known as cave therapy), which was originally practiced by European priests during medieval times in the belief it could help to cure people suffering with chronic lung diseases.

The principle involved a patient breathing in air filled with salt mineral particles. This was typically carried out in natural salt caves, where stalagmites and stalactites were grounded in order to generate the beneficial particles required by the patient.

The form of treatment gained some scientific support in 1843 through a paper authored by Dr Feliks Boczkowski, a physician based at a salt mine in Poland.

Boczkowski reported in his research that miners appeared to be immune from serious lung diseases. Towards the end of World War Two (1939-1945), the healing powers of salt particles also came to light when a group of people in Germany recorded improvements in their health after taking cover in a salt cave during a bombing raid.

A serene setting
Featuring white décor and furnishings, Salt Cave Bangkok offers a serene place to escape the cacophony that is central Bangkok.

Before beginning a 45-minute session inside the chamber, you are first given a glass of water. According to members of staff at Salt Cave Bangkok, drinking a glass of water before and after a session is not only beneficial in terms of easing any dryness in the throat, it also stimulates detoxification during the salt therapy treatment.

Before any treatment gets underway, you'll first be asked about your general health and have your blood pressure checked. This is important since the treatment is not suitable for some people, such as those who are fighting cancer, those who suffer with high blood pressure or thalassemis (a form of anemia).

Since the therapy works in a controlled area, the consistency, size and intensity of the salt that is released via the aerosol, together with the conditions inside the chamber, are keys to the treatment's efficiency.

The Halotherapeutic chamber itself takes the form of a room, featuring a floor, ceiling and four walls coated with locally produced rock salt. Rock salt is renowned for providing beneficial conditions that ensure a hygienic and bacteria-free environment. The chamber has also been designed to maintain the temperature at 25°C and 50% humidity, along with an intense negative electrical charge.

Just lie back and relax
To enjoy the benefits of the treatment, you first need to just lie back in a reclining chair inside the chamber. All that is required of patients is that they relax, while falling asleep is an even better option.

The equipment then begins to spray the dry salt aerosol that is at the core of this original form of treatment. As you breath in, your lungs and windpipe immediately begin to undergo a form of detoxification. Harmful bacteria can easily be expelled by means of coughing or spitting out any residues contained in phlegm. This treatment will ensure that by the end of the session the whole of your respiratory system is completely cleansed.

As well as easing conditions such as asthma, chronic bronchitis, the sinuses, or a dry or wet cough, salt therapy can also get rid of bacteria and mold within the patient's plasma. It can also strengthen the immune system, according to its proponents. It should be noted, however, that, in general, someone seeking a significant improvement in their health ought to undertake no less than 10 sessions within a 30-day period.

While on a personal level, I do not suffer from any significant respiratory conditions, it nevertheless was an extremely refreshing sensation.

Salt Cave Bangkok opens daily from 9 am to 9 pm, during which it provides 12 session per day (one per hour).

A single session costs 600 baht (US$18), five sessions 2,500 baht, while you pay just 4,500 baht for a 10-session package.

For further information, please call Tel: +66 (0)2 662 5519.

Transport connections:
Salt Cave Bangkok is located on the second floor of Manor 39 on Sukhumvit 39.

Train: Sukhumvit 39 is located close by Phrom Phong BTS skytrain station.