The term "balneology or balneotherapy" (from the latin word balneo meaning bath) is generally applied to everything relating to spa treatment, including the drinking of waters and the use of hot baths and natural vapor baths, as well as of the various kinds of mud and sand used for hot applications.

Balneology refers to the medical use of these spas, as opposed to recreational use. Common minerals found in spa waters are sodium, magnesium, calcium, and iron, as well as arsenic, lithium, potassium, manganese, bromine, and iodine. All these may be contained in the peat that is commonly used in preparation of spa waters. Resorts may also add minerals or essential oils to naturally-occurring hot springs.

Though balneology commonly refers to mineral baths, the term may also apply to water treatments using regular hot or cold tap water.

A 2009 review of all published clinical evidence concluded that, while available data suggest that balneology may be truly associated with improvement in several rheumatological diseases, existing research is not sufficiently strong to draw firm conclusions. ¹

Balneology, as a field of medicine is not very well known nor understood yet, but continues to be an exciting area of research for people who would like more reason to cozy up in some hot springs. The effectiveness of balneotherapy in curing disease or improving health remains unclear, but that has not stopped people from enjoying their thermal baths and hot springs for thousands of years. A large part of the virtues of hot springs are owed to the properties of water itself, along with the heat.

Although contemporary medicine has been slow to establish any scientific basis for the benefits of soaking in mineral-rich hot springs water, it's soothing beneficial effects cannot be denied. A tranquil hot springs soak is widely recognized as providing relief from the pain of stressed muscles and tired joints. The complex effects of hot springs minerals on the skin glands and blood vessels are just a few of the benefits found in these ancient springs.

"If you're going to bathe in a natural hot mineral spring, never put your head under water," explains Dr. Andrew Weil, an American medical doctor and naturopath, as well as a teacher and writer on holistic health, "A free-swimming amoeba called naegleria that lives in many hot springs can enter the body through the nose and can cause primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM), a very serious, potentially deadly infection of the brain."

Not all hot springs have a good source for drinking water as many are primarily used for soaking. Still, methinks, even these are beneficial when visited just for the hot water soak. For a list of places to go for soaking, see the Hot Springs page.