Mar Menor – A sea of health
The therapeutic properties of mud and clay have been known since antiquity. For centuries the Chinese used them in poultices to cure inflammation.
Hippocrates (460-337 BC), one of the fathers of western medicine, recommended this treatment, as did many other doctors of long, such
as Empedocles ( 490-430 BC), Galen, in the 2nd Century AD and Paracelsus, in the 16th Century, who all mentioned various popular remedies based on the use of clay and mud in their natural medicine treatises.
- The remedies of mud
These remedies provided the body with basic ions for its health, such as calcium, magnesium, silicon, iron or potassium.
The special climatic conditions of the Mar Menor, with a high percentage of sunshine hours per year and high salinity, have favoured the deposit of clay over the centuries, which is highly indicated for therapeutic treatment in various areas of the Mar Menor.
Analyses carried out by the University of Murcia (1995) , show that these sediments contain a high percentage of positive ions: calcium, magnesium, potassium and fluoride, in addition to negative ions: chlorine and sulphat, found in much higher levels than expected in waters with this degree of
salinity. Furthermore, the measurement of the grains of sand in the area reveals high percentages of fine and very fine sands ( mud and clay), that are the true artifices of the healing properties attributed to the mud. The pH is basic and ranges between 7,12 and 8,45.
- Therapeutic action
The foundation of mud´s therapeutic action is its great power of absorption, its mineralizing action , its capacity to neutralize acidity and its stimulating wound-healing effect. For this reason it is recommended for many types of skin pathologies. One layer of clay applied to the skin absorbs all the toxins of the peripheral connective tissue system and eliminates lymphatic toxins from the dermis.
It acts as a kind of blotting paper for the skin. Its high calorie conductivity also makes it appropriate as an anti-inflammatory element in cases of rheumatism, arthritis, gout and for rehabilitation following a broken bone. It is also recommended for throat infections.
It is advised to start the application of mud baths on a few small areas, leaving it on for about an hour at first. If there are no side effects, the time can be gradually extended and thicker layer applied. It is best to apply the mud in the sun and when it is hot, so that the layer of clay dries quickly and thoroughly. Between one application and the next, the affected limb should be washed with salt water.
Source: www.sanpedrodelpinatar.eu
the absence of a positive tradition of its having been used.
