Heat therapy: Benefits Other Than Pain Relief

More and more people are resorting to heat therapy for pain relief. Heat therapy carries many benefits and has minimal side effects, making it safe for you and your family.

Although pain relief by itself is enough reason for you to use heat therapy, there are many other advantages that you can get from it. Unfortunately, very few people know how heat can help promote health.

What are the benefits of heat therapy?

Heat therapy is a potent physical remedy. It acts to relieve pain and promote health by exerting the following effects:

• Heat therapy improves circulation in the involved area. Blood vessels dilate when subjected to heat, in turn promoting blood flow.
• It promotes your capacity to get rid of toxins the natural way. Because blood flow is increased, toxins are pulled out of injured tissues more effectively.
• Heat increases oxygen delivery to tissues. When you apply a hot compress on a swollen part of your body, you are helping increase the oxygen supply to that area. Increase in oxygen means better tissue repair. This also gets rid of carbon dioxide, lowering the acid level in tissues.
• A hot pack helps promote the natural healing process of your body. Better healing means less toxins that may cause pain and swelling.

How does heat therapy help decrease pain?

There are many ways that heat therapy can help you if you need considerable pain relief. A few of these mechanisms are listed below:

• Heat therapy helps increase the caliber of blood vessels in your muscles. This greatly increases tissue ventilation, lowering lactic acid and other substances that can cause muscle aches.
• The hot temperature stimulates the same nerve endings that pain stimuli also stimulate. If you use heat therapy on a painful area, the pain signals are muted to help transmit the temperature signals to your brain.
• Heat relieves stiff joints by increasing lubrication. The synovial fluid in your joints, which acts as a lubricant, is partly dependent on the amount of blood that reaches your joints. When you use heat therapy on a stiff joint, blood flow is increased, promoting synovial fluid production.

How is heat transmitted to affected areas of the body?

Heat is produced and transmitted to the body through different mechanisms. Most heat therapy modalities transfer heat to painful areas of your body via the following means:

• Conduction (transfer of heat from a solid medium to your body)
• Radiation (heat produced from a distant source)
• Convection (heat transfer from liquid)
• A combination of the above

In what conditions is heat therapy contraindicated? Find out by reading heat therapy dos and don’ts.

Do you disagree with the above information? Let your voice be heard; share your comments below!