The active spread of the new virus carries a lot of negative consequences. Not surprisingly, people are frantically looking for ways to avoid the disease. Does the bath help with coronavirus? Unfortunately no. If you take a steam bath in the bathhouse systematically, this will strengthen your immunity. No more.
How does a coronavirus feel in a bath?
To begin with, the new SARS-CoV-2 virus of the Coronavirus family has not been fully studied. Although some studies have already been conducted in China, the results have not yet received expert confirmation.
Previously reported that coronavirus is sensitive to high temperatures:
- at +56 degrees, dies in half an hour;
- at +70 degrees it completely collapses in 5 minutes.
Based on the fact that in a steam room the air temperature often exceeds 60 degrees, many conclude that the coronavirus dies in the bath. There is another justification: it is believed that at high body temperature, viruses inside are destroyed.
In part, these judgments are true:
- Inside the steam room 95% of bacteria and viruses do not survive. Coronavirus among them. However, most of the time you spend in the dressing room, which can be infested with harmful microorganisms. Especially if the bathhouse is public.
- In the steam room, the human body heats up to 39–40 degrees. An increase in temperature helps protective systems work more efficiently. The processes in the immune system are faster, the period of antibody production is reduced. However, fever does not kill the coronavirus inside the body. For this person would have to literally cook.
If the coronavirus enters the body, you can not eradicate it with any medicine or alternative methods. Let us turn to the biology of viruses: penetrating into immune cells, they invade DNA and become part of the genome. Only antibodies can destroy them. The development of such will require at least 5 days.
The benefits of a bath with coronavirus
Coronavirus is not afraid of the bath, but bypasses the people who regularly visit it. What is the use of this event?
- Steam, heat and sweating help cleanse the skin and mucous membranes. This is the first thing the coronavirus meets. If the local immunity of the membranes is in order, the probability of penetration of the pathogen into the body will significantly decrease.
- Bath and sauna increase blood flow, as a result of which the whole body begins to work more smoothly. Under the influence of high temperatures, the capillaries expand, blood rushes through the vessels. With a systematic visit to the bath, stagnation disappears. The delivery of nutrients to all corners of the body improves. Accelerated metabolic processes in cells. All this in general strengthens the immune system.
- Bath procedures temper. Under normal conditions, with hypothermia, the immune defense decreases - and the risk of contracting any virus increases significantly. In a hardened person, immunity is always “on guard” due to good thermoregulation of the body.
- The bath relieves stress and has a positive effect on the nervous system. She does not save from the coronavirus, but she struggles with emotions about a pandemic very effectively. Due to the expansion of peripheral vessels in the skin, subcutaneous tissue and muscles, blood drains from the brain. The activity of cortical structures decreases. There comes inhibition and relaxation. A person feels relaxed and peaceful.
Start by stepping into the steam room for 3-5 minutes. Select the bottom shelf. Lie down, raise your legs up and relax. Once out, douse in cool water or dive into the pool. When the condition is completely normal, you can steam again. The recommended total time spent in the steam room is 30–45 minutes.
Harmful baths with coronavirus
If you become infected with a coronavirus, visiting a bathhouse is more likely to do harm than good.
- During bathing procedures, the skin gives off 0.5–1.2 perspiration, which is 99% water. If the bathhouse is abused or visited during the period of illness, fluid loss can have a very negative effect. Not in vain with ARVI and flu, it is recommended to drink a lot. Violation of the water-salt balance entails malfunctions in the immune system.
- The heat in the steam room loads the blood vessels and heart. At the time of the fight against the virus, they are weakened. A visit to the bath can cause unpredictable consequences.
- At a temperature of 37 degrees, and even more so with fever, trips to the sauna and bath are strictly contraindicated (fever, as you know, one of the most common symptoms of coronavirus). Violation of this rule is fraught with heart attack.
Theoretically, bath procedures against coronavirus can be useful at the beginning of infection, when it is necessary to boost the immune system or destroy an unactivated virus on the skin. However, symptoms are not yet observed at this stage. And when they arose, it was too late. The body is engaged in a struggle, and additional stress in the form of a temperature load will weaken it at best.
Does the coronavirus die in the bath?
High air temperature in the steam room above 60 degrees contributes to the death of coronavirus in the room in 5-30 minutes. However, the human body heats up significantly less - up to 39–40 degrees. Obviously, this is not enough to destroy the virus.
How does a bath protect against coronavirus?
Camping in the bathhouse and sauna strengthen the immune system. It is useful to carry out prevention before the onset of symptoms of the disease. If there are no contraindications, you can steam from 1 to 4 times a week. Before the trip, you should learn the rules of improvement in the bath (sauna). The main one is a gradual increase in temperature load. Long trips are dangerous, especially for beginners.
Which is better - a bath or a sauna?
Both are suitable for the prevention of coronavirus. In the bath, the temperature is lower, but humidity is increased. The sauna is hotter, but the air is dry. Due to this, the heat is well tolerated. Choose an institution to your liking. By the nature and strength of the impact, the bath and the sauna are approximately the same.
So, the coronavirus cannot be expelled from the body by the bathhouse. If signs of the disease appear, going to the steam room is more likely to hurt. Infection must be treated under medical supervision. A steam bath is recommended for prevention. If you do this systematically and follow all the rules, immunity will work like clockwork, and the likelihood of developing viral pneumonia will decrease.