Not many people in North America know (never mind, appreciate) about amazing health benefits of balneological resorts, which are very often called “spa resorts”. But “American” meaning of these words is a little bit different and usually associated with beauty salons. Balneotherapy refers to the medicinal use of water treatment, not to recreational use. Actually, the word “spa” is a Latin abbreviation for: S = salud, P = per, A = aqua, or “Health through Water.”

The term "balneotherapy" is generally applied to health treatment, including:

• drinking of mineral waters
• mineral water hot and natural vapor baths
• hydro massage through moving mineral water
• hot mud applications
• swimming in warm mineral water pools and other

Many mineral waters are rich in particular minerals (silica, sulfur, selenium, radium) which can be absorbed through the skin.

Drinking cure is an essential balneotherapeutic method.

• It firstly improves the digestion and cure different digestive disorders, diseases of kidneys, gall-bladder, pancreatic gland and intestines.
• Drinking mineral water activates metabolism which is essential for those suffering from diabetes, gout, arthritis and high pressure.
• It enhances immunity system.
• A weight loss and body purifying are among the most important health benefits of drinking cure.

Mineral water is taken repeatedly in controlled doses straight from the spring. A doctor specifies the amount and frequency as well as the spring type. Three weeks is the optimal duration of the drinking cure, and the recommended repeating is in a six-month interval.

The belief in the curative power of mineral waters goes back to prehistoric times, but balneotherapy is especially widespread in Europe and Japan.

You can check in the Internet what people say about mineral water cure and how dramatically that treatment improved their health.