Epsom salt baths provide therapeutic relief for muscular pain.
the verdict
SUPPORTED
the evidence backs this
refutedsupported
the weight of evidence
3 sources for · 0 against
A clinical trial demonstrates that Epsom salt baths effectively reduce pain and improve daily activity in individuals suffering from joint and muscular-related pain, supported by widespread traditional use.
Epsom salt
Bath salts or Epsom salt are things that people add to the water when they take a bath. Some bath salts have things to make the water smell good. Some bath salts have medicines in them. Epsom salt, or magnesium sulfate, is made of magnesium, oxygen and sulfur. It is named after the town in England where people first learned to use it.[1] Sometimes people call things that are not Epsom salt "bath salts" too, if they are meant to be thrown into a bath to make the water feel or smell good. History
People have put herbs and perfumes in their bathwater for a very long time. Epsom salts were discovered in Epsom in England, a spa town, in the 1600s. Doctor and botanist Nehemiah Grew studied the salts in the water and tried to patent the salt. He got into a fight with apothecaries about it.[2]
Health
There is anecdotal evidence that bath salts improve human health. This means that many people take salt baths and then say they feel better, but not in a scientific way.[1]
When bath salts mix with the water, they dissolve in the water. Then they give off ions of magnesium and sulfur. The idea is that the person will absorb magnesium through his or her skin.
Sulfuric acid, the most abundantly produced chemical in the United States, is manufactured by the contact process. Most (about 70%) of the sulfuric acid produced in the world is used in the fertilizer industry. Sulfuric acid can act as a strong acid, a dehydrating agent, and an oxidizing agent. Its applications use these properties. Sulfur is an essential element of life in sulfur-containing proteins. Applications
Sulfur has many practical applications. As a fungicide, sulfur is used to counteract apple scab in organically farmed apple production. Other crops that utilize sulfur fungicides include grapes, strawberries, and many vegetables. In general, sulfur is effective against mildew diseases and black spot. Sulfur can also be used as an organic insecticide. Sulfites are frequently used to bleach paper and preserve dried fruit. The vulcanization of rubber includes the use of sulfur as well. Cellophane and rayon are produced with carbon disulfide, a product of sulfur and methane. Sulfur compounds can also be found in detergents, acne treatments, and agrichemicals. Magnesium sulfate (epsom salt) has many uses, ranging from bath additives to exfoliants.
Background:
Osteoarthritis is significantly linked to aging and heavy physical occupational activity, which is a necessary part of many people’s daily lives, and Epsom salt baths are extremely popular among knee pain sufferers. The study aimed to compare the effectiveness of Epsom salt baths in preventing pain and improving activity of daily living among elderly people with knee osteoarthritis.
Material and Methods:
The randomized controlled trial design was adopted in this investigation, with a posttest-only control group. 64 adult patients with knee osteoarthritis were included in the trial via full enumeration sampling. Selected subjects were randomly assigned to experimental (n = 32) or control (n = 32) groups via statistics and sample size software. The experimental group received Epsom salt baths for seven days, whereas the control group received standard care. The incidence and severity of pain and improving activity of daily living on the seventh day of the intervention were used to determine the study’s results. The trial was registered with the Clinical Trials Registry-India (CTRI). Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT) were followed. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used for data analysis.
Results:
The findings revealed that the intervention was found to be effective in terms of reducing the incidence of pain and improving activity of daily living among subjects of the experimental group as compared to the control group (
P
< 0.001*). A significant difference was observed in terms of WOMAC score (
P
< .001*), KATZ score (
P
< .001*), and NPRS score (
P
< .001*).
Conclusion:
Knee osteoarthritis is a common condition faced by the elderly population. Epsom salt reduces pain and improves the activity of daily living. Nurse practitioners must recognize the importance of Epsom salt baths and can use them as a complementary treatment along with the standard treatment to reduce suffering.
Everything we examined (3)
This check searched the claim as stated. It did not run a separate search for evidence against it.