The Ginger Bath: A Relaxing Stimulant
Spring weather beckons us outdoors to exercise, garden, play tennis. Improperly exercised, overworked muscles experience soreness due to aggravated tissue and lactic acid buildup. The ginger bath is a wonderful way to assist release of such impurities from the body by increasing circulation.
A powerful detoxifier
Relaxing and soothing to sore, achy muscles, the ginger bath is a welcome respite from a hard day’s work or the aches and pains associated with flu. Its powerful detoxifying and diaphoretic actions cause profuse sweating, beneficial in breaking a fever. (Diaphoretic means that the herb, when had hot, will stimulate excretion of fluids, and when taken cold, will inhibit their flow.) Its stimulating properties increase circulation, dispelling chills and warming the body. Those with tachycardia or other heart stress should approach ginger with respect as an overdose will produce increased palpitations.
If you’ve been standing on your feet all day, a ginger foot bath will soothe and relax the entire body through the reflexes in the feet. Prepare to go to bed after a ginger bath. If you’re planning to go out dancing, skip the ginger and add a cup or two of wood-aged apple cider vinegar to your bath instead!
How to prepare a ginger bath
The easiest way to prepare a ginger bath is to add a palmful of powdered ginger to the bath. The powdered ginger should be purchased from a health food store that guarantees they are supplying you with non-irradiated herbs. The powdered ginger found on supermarket shelves has been irradiated. If you prefer to use the fresh root, simmer several tablespoons fresh, unpeeled ginger root in 6-8 cups water for 30 minutes. Strain, and add to bath water.
Herbal hydrotherapy should be taken a minimum of 20 minutes. This usually necessitates frequent adjustment of water temperature. When ginger is added, however, its warming properties add herbal heat, keeping the water hot for the duration of the bath. Sipping a cool glass of water enables one to better withstand ginger’s diaphoretic effects.
Every bath experience is enhanced by soft music, a scented candle and spiritual reading material. Make your ginger bath the most healing and deeply relaxing conclusion to a stressful day.