Modern wellness therapies making waves in 2020
Tanks you float around in pitch darkness and freezing cold chambers at -150° C might not sound like much fun, but a range of new technologies are hitting the market which have some pretty amazing health benefits.
Below we share a few of our favourite modern wellness technologies available now to help the mind and body.
Float Tanks
Also known as sensory deprivation tanks, the float tank experience involves floating in a dark tank filled with salty water for 60 - 90 minutes. As well as being pitch black, the tanks are also completely silent - the idea being that by remove all sensory inputs to the body it allows us to fully empty the mind. Users report an almost euphoric calmness which can last for days afterwards.
Another benefit is the salt itself which is used in the tank: Epsom salts infuse your body with the much-needed calming dose of magnesium, while being anti-inflammatory and detoxifying.
Cryo-chamber
Popularly dubbed as Cold Therapy, Cryotherapy is a technique where the body is exposed to extremely cold temperatures for a few minutes. Its most popular form involves sitting in a cryotherapy booth for 3 - 5 minutes. You can opt for whole-body cryotherapy, or it can be administered to just one area. Localised cryotherapy can also be administered in a number of ways including coolant sprays, ice packs, ice massage, ice baths, and probes administered into the tissue. The cryotherapy booth drop to -150° C and bring numerous health benefits including migraine relief, helping mood disorders, muscle recovery and inflammation reduction and so much more.
Red Light Therapy (RLT)
Red light and infrared therapy promote several health benefits, including relief from arthritis, regrowing hair on a bald scalp, anxiety and depression, treat skin issues and accelerate wound healing. This technology uses red low-level light wavelengths to produce a biochemical effect that strengthens the mitochondria in the cells. By using RLT to increase the function of the mitochondria, a cell can function more efficiently, including damage repair and rejuvenation.
The other benefit of this technology, unlike the others in this article, is that it can be easily and cheaply administered at home with low-cost home red light devices and bulbs available today.
Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy involves breathing pure oxygen in a pressurised room where the air pressure is increased to three times higher than normal air pressure. This increases the amount of oxygen your blood can carry, which can temporarily raise levels of blood gases and tissue function to promote healing and fight infection. It is a well-established treatment for decompression sickness, serious infections, severe anaemia, brain abscess carbon monoxide poisoning, skin or infection.
