epson salts

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Replies

  • JaneLane33
    JaneLane33 Posts: 80 Member
    They also work great for greening up a garden this time of year, on a side note. Especially good on hostas.
    Roses like it as well. You can either mix the epsom salt into the soil around the roses or mix it with water and then water the roses at their base
  • delicious_cocktail
    delicious_cocktail Posts: 5,797 Member
    They also work great for greening up a garden this time of year, on a side note. Especially good on hostas.
    Roses like it as well. You can either mix the epsom salt into the soil around the roses or mix it with water and then water the roses at their base

    back in my day when we salted the earth it stayed salted.
  • SunofaBeach14
    SunofaBeach14 Posts: 4,899 Member
    The human skin is very good at stopping things from absorbing through it. You can pretty much bath in gasoline and none of it will get inside you. Does the salt absorb through....uhh...orifices? Is it all a placebo?

    Yes, your body does absorb some of the magnesium and sulfur, which is how people get the benefits from soaking in it. Do you really think that people have been doing this for hundreds of years when soaking in anything would have the same placebo effect?

    And, skin is quite porous (at least the top skin layers are). If nothing was absorbed into the skin, nobody would have reactions to poison ivy or allergic reactions resulting in rashes.

    Honestly? Yes. Yes, I do think it's mostly the placebo effect with some relaxation from simply taking a hot bath. Ever heard of a sulphur bath? The Japanese are convinced that sulphur onsens will restore health. They've been using them for centuries. Do I believe that they actually work? No. These are folk remedies with little to no science to back them up. I do enjoy a good hot bath though. They're fantastic for post work out relaxation, and I particularly enjoy them after a long day's hike. But, they're not magical cure alls.

    http://saveyourself.ca/articles/epsom-salts.php
  • SoLongAndThanksForAllTheFish
    SoLongAndThanksForAllTheFish Posts: 831 Member
    The human skin is very good at stopping things from absorbing through it. You can pretty much bath in gasoline and none of it will get inside you. Does the salt absorb through....uhh...orifices? Is it all a placebo?

    . . . so do not log?

    I wonder if I can get drunk bathing in a giant mojito...:indifferent:

    I know you are joking, but you would absorb some from both breathing it in, and some through your skin, depending on how long you soaked and how strong a concentration of alcohol you used and the ventilation in the room...but your body probably would be able to handle the smaller amounts absorbed this way faster than you absorb it to prevent accumulation...again depending on concentration and time and ventilation...

    Yes you can absorb some magnesium from a magnesium sulfate bath through your skin too.
  • _Terrapin_
    _Terrapin_ Posts: 4,301 Member
    Folks, Texas Tea?

    http://www.unclejedcountry.com/bio/main.html

    The only Ebsen you really know.
  • mike_ny
    mike_ny Posts: 351 Member
    I think the big technical issue here is absorption into the skin versus through the skin. Things don't get absorbed through the skin unless there are micro-cuts or the substance in question is burning its way through.

    Plenty of things get absorbed into the skin, mostly just the outer layer which is full of pores, hair follicle shafts, loose dead and dying skin cells, and hosting colonies with millions of bacteria, along with fungus, mites, etc... There are also lots of capillaries close to the surface, which mosquitoes make great use of poking holes into that could be a pathway for absorption, so don't slather mercury or nerve toxins or even gasoline all over, even though breathing fumes or vapors is still the main way they can gain entry.

    Besides the obvious transmission of warmth, bathing in epson salt may help sooth muscles by making the skin soften and be less constricting, or just due to the general relaxing effect, or perhaps in surface pest control allowing your body to divert more resources to those aching muscles and joints. The truth is nobody knows why or how it works, but it does seem to work well for most people, regardless. It's a low cost, low risk (other than falls in the tub), safe (no toxicity limit), easy thing to do. At best case, it cures your ills. At worst case, you still get a bath.

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