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Well... can a hot tub make your skin feel like new? Actually - yes!
However, there is a little more to it than that. You have to be careful and often you walk a fine line between the benefits and the dangers when it comes to your skin. If you aren’t careful, you could end up with dry skin or even something called hot tub folliculitis. More on that later.
First, let’s take a look at some of the benefits hot tubs can have to our skin if we use them regularly as a part of our daily health routines.
The Benefits of a Hot Tub Session
There are many great things that hot tubs can do for us - especially our skin. By understanding these benefits, we will be able to truly grasp why a regular soak can do wonders for your body and, of course, your skin.
- Improves Circulation – No one ever doubts that a nice soak in spa will help your circulation. Heck, it is one of the reasons why it is so popular especially among athletes. This improved circulation won’t just help your muscles, however, it is also very good for your skin.
- Opens Your Pores – How often do you hear about how receptive your skin is to both treatment and healing when your skin is warm and your pores are open? Exactly. Regular soaks in a hot tub will help open up your pores so your skin not only looks its best, but feels great as well.
- Reduces Stress – We all know what a little stress can do to our completions. Studies have shown that regular hot tub soaks will reduce and even eliminate our stress, meaning that the positive effects of no stress should be obvious.
- Cleans and Disinfects – Your skin takes a beating every day as it protects the rest of your internal organs. A dip in a hot tub will not only make you feel better, but it will also clean any dirt and grime that has accumulated on you throughout the day.
As you can see, there are many reasons why a good soak in a hot tub can be just what your skin needed to look and feel its best. But, like anything, too much of a good thing can be bad.
Dangers to Watch Out For
As much as hot tubs can be good for your skin, they can be bad for it too. Take a look at some of these negative side effects and what you should do about them. By mitigating these, you can make sure your skin gets all the benefits of the hot tub while not having to experience any of these obvious drawbacks.
Burns
Remember, the water in a hot tub is hot. Sometimes it can even be too hot. While most hot tubs are only able to heat so much these days, that doesn’t mean that it won’t be too much for your skin. Watch your skin and if you notice areas that hurt or look too red, then it may be time to get out before you are burned.
Dry Skin
This is one of the most common problems you will find if you use a hot tub very often. Hot water will dry out your skin, especially if you stay in the water for too long. The warm water will strip away your body’s natural oils making your skin feel dry. In more extreme cases it can even crack and hurt as well. After you soak in your hot tub, make sure you take a quick shower to remove the excess chlorine from your body and then try applying a moisturizer to your skin if it feels dry.
Hot Tub Folliculitis
Sometimes you will find patches of red, irritated skin after regular soaks. While this could just be dry skin or even a small burn, it could also be hot tub folliculitis. Basically, this is inflammation of the hair follicles caused by a bacteria known as pseudomonas aeruginosa. This bacterium is commonly found in pools and hot tubs. In most cases the only treatment needed is to stay out of the hot tub for a few days, but more extreme cases will need medical care from a professional.
Best Course of Action
In most cases, regular use of a hot tub will only help your skin. However, if you have experienced any of these negative side effects, you will need to do something about them straight away. First, try limiting your time in your hot tub. You can still take regular soaks, just reduce the time you are in there by five or even ten minutes.
If that isn’t enough, you could try washing off the excess chlorine after you soak in your hot tub and then applying a moisturizer. Really, we recommend doing this no matter who you are. By cleaning off the chlorine and moisturizing your skin after it has had a good soak, you give your skin all it needs to look its very best each and every day.
For more help and advice on the best way to use your hot tub, give us a call or email us.