We all need Vitamin SEA now and then. Actually, the more the merrier: We need a six-month sea vacation two times a year, don’t we?
An over-the-water bungalow in Bora Bora, a bamboo hut on a Bali beach, or a modest resort in Cuba. It doesn’t matter, really. All we need is endless silky warm seas, sandy beaches, tasty air, and lush scenery. These are some of the top ingredients of the ideal rejuvenating sea vacations. But why spending even a week on the seaside makes us feel so great? Why a visit to the sea coast can cure all ailments? What are the secrets?
Ionized air
When seawater evaporates, a significant part of the active substances passes into the air, increasing the degree of its ionization. The most useful for the body volatile compounds are: bromides, iodides and chlorides of sodium, potassium, magnesium and calcium. A high level of ionization is also created due to the presence of a significant amount of inert gases such as xenon, neon, helium, and krypton.
During evaporation, the sea air is saturated not only with useful minerals, but also with organic compounds that are products of the phytoplankton, zooplankton and bacterioplankton decomposition: free nitrogen, hydrogen, and carbon dioxide.
The most healing and beneficial property of sea air is an increased content of oxygen and ozone. Ozone activates the human body, improves metabolism, and promotes deeper breathing.
The content of the suspension of medicinal sea salts in the air especially increases during a storm, and reaches 2 mg / m3 of air.
The ionized air benefits
Asthma and allergy relieve
The sea air is especially effective for asthma attacks and allergic rhinitis. For this reason, doctors strongly recommend people with chronic asthma to go to the sea for medicinal purposes.
Lungs purifying
Sea air has an increased content of oxygen and ozone, hydro aerosols of sea salts with active iodine and bromine, and volatile phytochemicals from seaweed. It is free of dust and bacteria, which allows you to breathe deeply, purifying your lungs.
Better sleep
Have you noticed how much better you usually sleep during your seaside vacation? This is due to the fact that the air is saturated with particles of sea water, among which there are also healthy negative ions. Negative ions accelerate your ability to absorb oxygen, making your sleep much more restful and refreshing.
Daily walks along the seashore can bring much more benefit to our body than visiting a doctor and taking medications.
Walking barefoot on the sand is the best physical exercise invented by nature.
Walking barefoot
Taking off your shoes and walking barefoot on the sand is one of the most enjoyable moments when we arrive at the beach.
Do you know that barefoot peoples are unfamiliar with flat feet, ingrown nails, fungus on the feet, and bumps on the joints of the thumbs? Many centuries ago, people noticed an interesting fact: those who go barefoot a lot usually feel good and are noticeably healthier than others.
It’s because on the sole there are more than 70,000 nerve endings that form reflex zones that connect parts of the foot with certain internal organs, and with physiological systems. Each reflex point is responsible for its own organ, massage of which improves our wellbeing. It’s an important factor, which many, most likely, have heard about: receptors on the sole “tune” the entire body, from top to bottom. Reflexologists view the sole of the foot as a map of the human body.
Walking barefoot on the sand is the best physical exercise invented by nature. The foot joints can move freely, since shoes do not interfere with them, and the muscles have to work actively to adapt to the viscous surface.
The reflex effect on the muscles of the foot improves blood circulation and normalizes the work of the cardiovascular system. Walking on grass, small beach pebbles, sand, carpeting improves blood circulation and lymph drainage in the extremities, delivers pleasant sensations and promotes relaxation.
The ideal place for walking barefoot is a sea beach. Walking on this surface brings many benefits to your cardiovascular system and circulation, but sand is also one of the best natural scrubs available.
The health benefits of walking barefoot
When walking barefoot:
- soles, where active reflex points are located, are getting massaged
- the nervous system is strengthening
- harmful static electricity leaves the body
- flat feet are corrected
- the elasticity of blood vessels increases, which is the prevention of varicose veins
- feet begin to breathe and the diaper rash between the toes disappears
- in the heat, bare feet remove excess heat from the body and it becomes less hot; barefoot people in the heat are more energetic and cheerful compared to the shod ones.
- due to the escape of excess heat in the summer, the thermoregulation of the body develops, and in winter the legs are warmed better
And more: due to a variety of tactile influences, the nervous system is stimulated. Nerve impulses from the sole are transmitted to nerve cells throughout the body, which has a beneficial effect on the development of mental activity.
Sea water
Slipping into the crystal-clear, luminous blue and soul-warming seawater is a must criterion for the perfect sea vacation. It’s the quintessential point of any sea vacation.
If organics compounds are removed from blood, then it’ll become almost a copy of the slightly salted sea water with 0.9% of marine minerals. The major part of these minerals is common table salt, and therefore the tears are salty. But there are many other types of salts: calcium, potassium, magnesium, and others – everything, as in ordinary ocean water, only in a lesser concentration.
The salt composition of the blood is constant; it’s maintained and controlled in our bodies by special buffer systems. Surprisingly, the salt composition of the world’s oceans is also constant: the content fluctuations of individual salts do not exceed 1%.
The blood in our body harmonizes all vital processes, the work of organs and tissues, linking the body into a single whole. The progenitor of blood – the oceans of the world – performs the same functions in an organism called the planet Earth … Blood and ocean. They protect, nourish, warm, cleanse the body and the planet, organs and continents, billions of cells and billions of living beings. The life of the cells of our body and the life of all living beings on planet Earth is impossible without water and blood. Maybe because of these similarities, we are drawn to rush into the sea waves. Not only to cool off, but also to absorb through the skin what the body has lost on land.
Benefits of the seawater minerals for the beautiful mind and body
Sea water contains all the necessary micro elements that are absorbed through the skin.
- Sodium chloride: Sea salt is common sodium chloride. In percentage terms, it is contained in seawater as much as in the body of a healthy person. Therefore, swimming in the sea helps to maintain a normal acid-alkaline balance in our body and has a beneficial effect on the skin.
- Calcium is responsible for the strength of teeth and bones, the normal functioning of the immune system, and promoting good sleep. It ensures the absence of seizures, participates in blood clotting, and plays an important role in wound healing, preventing infections and strengthening connective tissues.
- Magnesium protects against allergies, nervousness, relieves puffiness, and participates in cellular metabolism and muscle relaxation.
- Bromine soothes the nervous system.
- Sulfur has a beneficial effect on the skin and fights fungal diseases.
- Iodine is essential for the thyroid gland (both for the prevention of pathologies and for maintaining its normal functioning), affects intellectual abilities, hormonal metabolism, lowers blood cholesterol levels, and rejuvenates skin cells. Sea water contains a lot of iodine, which is absolutely necessary for our body.
- Potassium is involved in the regulation of nutrition and cell cleansing.
- Chlorine is involved in the formation of gastric juice and blood plasma.
- Manganese is involved in bone formation and strengthens the immune system.
- Zinc is involved in the formation of immunity, maintaining the function of the gonads, and inhibits the growth of tumors.
- Iron is involved in the transport of oxygen and in the formation of red blood cells.
- Selenium prevents cancer.
- Copper prevents the development of anemia.
- Silicon gives elasticity to blood vessels and strengthens tissues.
Swimming and / or sea bathing
Swimming in the sea is not just fun, but also a wellness procedure.
Promoting weight loss
Swimming or just soaking in sea water requires energy, burns calories, and, consequently, promotes weight loss. During the sea bathing, the body is in direct contact with water – the effect of the waves is similar to an anti-cellulite massage, thus, all muscles are activated, as in Jacuzzi. Even better: when you are in the sea you are moving (meaning exercising) much more than in Jacuzzi because it’s the inseparable element of enjoying the sea.
Making s
Staying in seawater opens the pores of the skin, allowing the sea minerals to be absorbed into the body. At the same time, toxins are released from the body through the open pores, making the skin look healthier. Sea water also contains high amounts of magnesium, which is a very effective skin moisturizer. Research has shown that seawater actually improves skin hydration, which in turn reduces unpleasant symptoms such as redness and roughness of the skin.
Sea water cleanses skin cells well, nourishes them, gives elasticity to the skin, accelerates the process of tissue regeneration and evens out the skin. The sea salts also have a positive effect on the nails – they become stronger.
People with dryness, eczema, psoriasis and acne need regular baths with the addition of sea salt. But isn’t it much better to go to the sea?
Strengthening your hair
Have you ever noticed how soft your hair becomes when you step out of the sea? This is because seawater is a natural shampoo that gets rid of dandruff, grease, dirt and chemicals left behind by conditioners, hair sprays, gels, and other hair care products. It also thoroughly cleanses the scalp, leaving hair strong and thick.
Providing vascular gymnastics
Swimming in the sea enhances the healing effect. The major benefit of bathing is vascular gymnastics: the sea water temperature is, in any case, lower than the temperature of the body, due to which the narrowing and expansion of blood vessels occur.
Balancing thermoregulation
Sea water normalizes thermoregulation, increases vitality, has a hardening effect, and strengthens the body’s defenses. Anyone suffering from chronic ENT diseases and frequent colds should travel to the coast. It also improves blood circulation, increases the number of red blood cells and normalizes heart rate. Therefore, sea baths are prescribed for elderly people.
Endocrine system improving
Seawater gives a huge amount of healthy substances that normalize metabolic processes and have a beneficial effect on the endocrine system and hypothalamus. Iodine, which is rich in sea water, activates the brain, improves memory, and improves the functioning of the thyroid gland.
Strengthening
Swimming in salt sea water is very beneficial for the health of people with the weakened immune systems, anemia, and high blood sugar. Sea water has bactericidal properties, as it contains a variety of vitamins, mineral salts, amino acids and microorganisms. In its composition, seawater is very close to human blood plasma, and all these components are absorbed into the body while you swim in the sea. Sea water thus strengthens your immune system, making it more resistant to many types of infections.
Wound healing
Since the sea is rich in mineral salts (sodium and iodine), the positive effect of sea water on wound healing is undeniable.
Letting your troubles wash away
Sea has another positive effect on the human body – it removes stress and restores tranquility and peace of mind. Remember that feeling of sinking into sea water and letting your troubles wash away? You feel nothing but joy and relaxation. There are no negative emotions or bad memories in your head. You feel free, young and happy.
Improving blood circulation
Sea salts create favourable conditions for healthy blood circulation. Being in water, the body receives the same treatments as during lymphatic drainage massage. Thus, the muscles tense and relax regularly, the salt in the sea water adds a scrubbing effect, and the effects of stress and poor-quality nutrition gradually disappear.
Meditation
Not without a reason, the seaside is considered one of the best places for meditation practices. Fresh air, the sound of the sea, and soft sand or small pebbles contribute to deep immersion in your thoughts, concentration on important life issues and relaxation after conclusions. It’s the best stress-relieve therapy.
Landscape therapy
Landscape therapy is a treatment with the beauty of natural landscapes.
Many scientists, philosophers, and psychologists note the mysterious connections between the nature of the area and the mentality of people living in it. This psycho-ecological fact has always served as an orientation axis in choosing a place of residence.
It is impossible to overestimate the positive influence of the natural environment on our emotional state. Scenic natural landscapes have a complex effect through all our senses.
The sea has always had a tremendous effect on the man’s emotional and physical state. Because the sea — both wild and calm, dangerous and beautiful — is a made up of contradictions and mystery, a metaphor for love and trauma, among many other things. More than that, the sea makes a setting that is both intimately personal, and vastly universal.
A Miracle to Behold
(By Patricia A. Fleming)
Seagulls soar above her surf,
The sun reflects and gleams,
While people come from miles around
To stroll upon her beach.
Her blue horizon meets the sky,
The end cannot be seen
While her salty fragrance fills the air
And floats upon the breeze.
There are no words that truly tell
The splendor of her face
Or recreate that feeling,
Of such a warm and peaceful place.
The ocean is a lovely gift.
She’s God’s great Masterpiece.
A miracle we can behold
That gives us reason to believe.
Today, most of us are under constant pressure of urban living which inevitably leads to a decrease in stress resistance, social and relationship tension, depression, and psychosomatic disorders.
But Mother Nature gives us its generous and healing gift – its beauty. Postcard-worthy landscapes, stunning settings, turquoise waters, lush vegetation, and sublime beaches bristling with palms will make you feel relaxed and pampered. You’ll feel 10 years younger than 10 years ago.
As a result, sea vacations improve overall well-being, increase mental and physical performances, and normalize sleep and appetite. Clean sea air with almost complete absence of dust and microorganisms has a positive effect on chronic diseases of the upper respiratory tract and lungs, nervous system, cardiovascular system. Breathing in salty air clears the accumulated mucus, so walking along the beach helps with the nose and throat chronic diseases. The smells of the sea are good at relieving stress and signs of depression.
Sea vacations improve overall well-being increase mental and physical performances and normalize sleep and appetite.