Celebrity trend: Salt therapy

Can something as simple as breathing salt-infused air really shrink your waistline and boost your well-being? A-listers think so! But are they right? FIRST health and wellness columnist Jorge Cruise weighs in

“I definitely felt different afterward. My breathing was clearer. I was relaxed.”

—Debra Messing

The buzz on the celebrity scene: Breathing in salt-saturated air works wonders to calm the mind, strengthen the immune system and optimize vitality.

Known as salt therapy or halotherapy, the practice dates back to ancient Greece, when Hippocrates regularly prescribed spending time in natural salt caves to address a wide variety of respiratory symptoms. Modern-day salt therapy is a bit less rustic, with fans lounging in warm, dimly lit manmade salt “caves” where the walls are made with bricks of salt, the floor is covered in finely ground salt and the air is mechanically pumped full of aerosolized salt particles.

Proponents rave that salt’s antiinf lammatory powers reduce irritation in the airways and mucus membranes to virtually eliminate coughing, sneezing, snoring and respiratory discomfort in just 30 minutes. And science backs up these claims: In clinical trials, salt therapy relieved breathing difficulties in 85 percent of asthma sufferers. Additional research suggests that the antiviral and antibacterial properties of salt help the body eliminate bacteria to cut the duration of a cold in half.

But there’s another reason salt therapy has grown so popular in Hollywood: It’s said to promote effortless weight loss by regulating levels

of the fat-promoting stress hormone cortisol. In one study at University Medical Center Groningen in the Netherlands, women who increased their blood-salt levels by “soaking” in a salty room experienced a 36 percent drop in levels of the hormone. That’s good news because research has shown that women with lower levels of cortisol lose up to 292 percent more abdominal fat than women who have higher levels of the stress hormone.

What’s more, natural-health experts contend that gently heating salt (as is done in salt therapy rooms) produces an abundance of negatively charged ions that bind to positively charged toxins in the body—and this makes it easier for the body to release those fat-promoting impurities. Another benefit: Studies conducted at the New York State Psychiatric Institute show that breathing in negatively charged ions boosts mood by 40 percent in patients with depression, plus Japanese researchers report that exposure to negative ions reduces anxiety. Fans of salt therapy credit this calming effect with helping to lower their blood pressure and improve their sleep quality. They also report that salt therapy helps reduce the frequency and severity of recurring headaches.

Despite the potential benefits, doctors recommend consulting with a health-care provider before trying salt therapy because in rare cases, aerosolized salt can trigger the airways to narrow, causing shortness of breath. Some women also report that they experience eye irritation from the salt particles in the air, so those who have sensitive eyes or tend to experience eye irritation in the ocean may want to proceed with caution. If you decide to try salt therapy, Google “salt cave” to find a location near you.