History of Salt Therapy

Halotherapy, otherwise known as ‘Salt Therapy,’ comes from the Greek word ‘Halos’ which means salt. Although there is a resurgence in Salt Cave Spa treatments, the concept is not new.

In the 12^th Century, the practice of visiting salt caves for therapeutic reasons was common in Eastern Europe.

In 1843, a Polish physician, Feliks Boczkowski noticed that salt miner workers did not experience respiratory issues or lung disease comparative to other miners.

Almost a hundred years later, a German named Karl Hermann Spanngel noticed his patients’ health improved after hiding out in the salt caves  while avoiding heavy bombing during WW11.

Over time Eastern salt mines or caves became popular tourist destinations with people from all over the world visiting to inhale the salty air, ease lung problems and improve health and wellbeing.

News of the benefits of salt therapy spread across Eastern Europe where many locations offer these giant salt rooms today from Poland to Germany to the UK. It’s also becoming popular in the US.

In many countries across Europe, it is par for the course for Salt Therapy to be prescribed by doctors before medication. Prescriptions are given from between five to ten sessions, often subsidised and free for the user.

Salt rooms are universally accessible and can be found in clinics, hospitals, work-places, schools and nursery schools.

Salt Therapy NI note, the treatment has already been approved by NHS England under its Continuing Health Care Plan.

Under the scheme, individuals are awarded a personal health budget to spend on alternative  therapies to improve health, well being and quality of life, reducing the need for medication and hospital visits or stays.