The Complete Spa Book for Massage Therapists

1. The Complete Spa Book for Massage Therapists THALASSOTHERAPY: THEORY LESSON L-7.0

2. SPA THOUGHT “The cure for anything is salt water: sweat, tears or the sea.” Isak Dinesen

3. THALASSOTHERAPY :the therapeutic use of sea water or sea products to enhance beauty and well-being

4. ROOT OF THE WORD from the Greek “thalassa” (sea) + “therapeia”

5. THALASSOTHERAPY & MASSAGE THERAPISTS • Spa therapists administer: • seawater baths • seaweed body wraps • other applications • Need to know how treatments work • in order to explain effects to clients • to explain how massage & thalassotherapy work together

6. ORIGINS & DEVELOPMENT OF THALASSOTHERAPY • Oceans > 70% of the Earth’s surface • Seawater has similarities to the watery content of our own bodies • Water in human blood plasma is chemically similar to seawater • Life on Earth originated in the oceans

7. RENÉ QUINTON • French biologist • In 1904, published: Seawater: Organic Medium, a classic in thalassotherapy • Using seawater, achieved dramatic results • almost completely transfused dogs with diluted seawater; they thrived

8. RENÉ QUINTON’S“LAW OF MARINE CONSTANCY” “Animal life, having originally appeared in cellular form in the seas, tends to maintain, for its best cellular functioning throughout zoological species, its fundamental cells in a marine environment similar to its origin.”

9. RICHARD RUSSELL • English physician, published A Dissertation Concerning the Use of Sea Water in the Diseases of the Glands in 1750 • Instituted a “water cure” • drinking small amounts of sea water • bathing in the ocean • established sea therapy center in Brighton • helped start tradition of English seaside holiday

10. MODERN DEVELOPMENTS IN THALASSOTHERAPY • 1899: Dr. Louis Bagot founds first thalassotherapy center in Roscoff, France • 1964: Louison Bobet, French cyclist, opens modern thalassotherapy center • Thalasso centers now dot the globe • France has dozens of centers • U.S. has a couple, most notably Gurney’s Inn

11. TRUE THALASSOTHERAPY FACILITY REQUIREMENTS • Seawater warmed to approximately 98°F • Pure water pumped directly from the sea • Must be located on or very near shore • Must be supervised by a physician • Use seawater & sea products exclusively

12. ALGAE • Seaweeds are a type of multicellular algae • Several types (phyla) of algae used in spas • red • green • blue-green (now classified as cyanobacteria) • brown • Provide 70% to 80% of the world’s oxygen • Source of nutrition & crucial elements

13. ALGAE SIZE AND LOCATION • From microscopic to colossal in size • Limited depth range (from surface to 879 feet) • 1,000s of types; ≈ 12 used in spas • From coast of France, Brittany/Normandy • Not typically applied fresh, but processed • Nutrient material separated & micronized • Powder reconstituted, blended w/ oils, etc.

14. ANCIENT ALGAE – CYANOBACTERIA • Formerly called blue-green algae • Really more like bacteria than plants • Used in spa treatments • The oldest known fossil on Earth • 3.5 billion years old • This ancient life form is applied to the skin and absorbed through the pores.

15. PHOTOSYNTHESIS • Sunlight chemically transformed into energy • Algae, plants, & bacteria can photosynthesize • Chlorophyll – green pigment used by most plants to absorb energy from the sun • Algae use a wide variety of pigments • Almost all organisms depend on photosynthesis

16. THE CARBON CYCLE the endless cycle of plants and algae converting carbon dioxide into oxygen through photosynthesis, only to have this oxygen inhaled by animals, who then exhale carbon dioxide yet again

17. EFFECTS & BENEFITS OF THALASSOTHERAPY • Most important benefit = remineralization • Soil & environment depleted of minerals • Need to supplement with sea minerals • Seawater/algae have high mineral density • Seawater contains 3.5% salt • Balances & replenishes electrolytes

18. MINERALS • Help support normal metabolism • W/out minerals, no vitamin absorption, no muscle movement, & no nerve impulses • Major minerals • body needs more than 100 mg per day • Trace minerals • body needs less than 100 mg per day

19. THERAPEUTIC COMPONENTS IN SEAWATER • Phytoplankton – plant part of plankton • Zooplankton – animal part of plankton • loaded w/ nutrients & energy • antibacterial, & anti-viral substances • Polysaccharides – moisturize • Phytohormones – nourish & moisturize • Plus proteins, amino acids, & vitamins

20. CONDITIONS TREATED BY THALASSOTHERAPY • Stress • Depression • Obesity • Cellulite • Rheumatism • Peripheral circulatory problems • Recovery from surgery or illness

21. THALASSOTHERAPY CONTRAINDICATIONS • Claustrophobia • Sensitivities to essential oils & additives • “Iodine allergy” not a contraindication

22. SEAWEED APPLICATIONS • Performed most by massage therapists: • body wraps • baths • cellulite services

23. SEAWEED APPLICATIONS • Sea salt scrub a type of thalassotherapy • Drinking seawater has therapeutic benefits • Seaweed used in weight-loss programs • fucoxanthin – pigment found in brown algae

24. SALT CONTENT OF THE SEAVS. HUMAN BODIES • When life evolved, seawater salt % lower • 0.9% then vs. 3.5% salinity level today • Over time, seas became saltier • fresh water washed salts in soils & rocks to sea • water evaporated, leaving salts behind • Our bodies still have original lower salt level

25. SUMMARY • You now know: • roots of thalassotherapy • how therapists apply thalassotherapy in spas • properties of algae & seawater • effects and benefits of thalassotherapy • contraindications of thalassotherapy • seaweed applications