History Of Salt Therapy

History of Salt Therapy

The use of salt as a health remedy has been around since the Greeks, when Hippocrates recommended salt inhalation as a respiratory treatment.   

In 1843, Polish physician Felix Boczkowski discovered that men working in the salt mines at Wieliczka suffered fewer respiratory problems than the general population.  He published his findings in "About the Breathing of Salt Dust," the first of many studies on the effects of breathing salt air. 

A therapeutic spa was established within the salt cave. 

Salt Therapy taken in a Ukrainian salt cave.

In the 20th century, Eastern European physicians and engineers learned to simulate the conditions inside salt caves.  In modern halotherapy ("halo" is Greek for salt) a generator to blows tiny microparticles of salt into a room.  Salt therapy is studied, recognized and used in many European hospitals to treat various respiratory ailments.  Although it has yet to be clinically researched in a controlled and extensive way in the United States, many wellness centers are now incorporating Salt Therapy into their practices.