Sanus per Aqua is Latin for Healing through Water. Originally, spas were not only built, but founded on the concept of using water as a healing medium.
Between trends, technology, and the bottom line, that most essential part of the spa, beauty, and wellness experience: clean, healthified water to bathe in, shower in, steam with, and ingest — was compromised by using unfiltered tap water.
In doing so, we have strayed from that integral part of the wellness experience and have lost the foundation of natural health and healing.
What are your guests experiencing in terms of the water available in your business? Are they coming into contact with toxic chlorine, said to be a carcinogen?
Are they consuming water, coffee, or tea made with tap water containing PFAS, microplastics ("forever" chemicals), pharmaceuticals, fluoride, heavy metals such as lead, arsenic … or worse?
Chemicals, both organic or inorganic from tap water, can enter the body through ingestion, inhalation, and transdermal absorption.
The skin becomes permeable and highly absorptive during a shower in warm water or a steam session. Now realize that the lungs inhale more water during a 10-minute shower or steam session than the body ingests drinking eight glasses of water (and all its contaminants).
Chloroform, a byproduct of chlorine, is inhaled and absorbed transdermally during a steam, a warm shower or bath, or even through a steamed towel on the face during a spa treatment.
This can be a lot to absorb (pun intended) and it helps to understand molecular weight, which dictates how easily chemicals in water cross human skin.
Molecules weighing less than 500 Daltons (unified atomic mass unit) pass through the skin barrier easily. Larger molecules face severe blockages.
This size rule controls how water contaminants enter the human body.
Refer to the list above and you can see why there is concern. Chlorine, used to "disinfect" tap water, is most prevalent — and, in water, strips away the skin's natural protective oils and disrupts the outer skin barrier. This causes dryness, redness, and a tight or itchy feeling.
Regular exposure can lead to flaking, contact dermatitis rashes, and worse: flare-ups of chronic skin conditions such as eczema. Inhalation can cause issues with one's respiratory system, especially if immune compromised.
So, what is the answer for spas, salons, and other businesses that rely so heavily on water?
First, check your county/ local water report. And do read the fine print: many will have various disclaimers about the local water and contaminants, specifically in reference to those with immune-compromised situations.
Second, check your water report against healthy recommended levels of various chemicals:
- The Environmental Working Group (EWG) is a great consumer advocacy organization.
- The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is an independent agency of the U.S. federal goverment that is supposed to assist in ensuring clean water and clean air are maintained.
Third, if you have concerns about your water, get it tested. The local county is responsible for your water just past the meter, and you are responsible for point of entry to your business — which is everything past the meter, including pipes going into the business.
WaterCheck is a recommended independent company that tests water on a variety of levels.
Your water may be perfectly fine, but it never hurts to double check. After all, we want to provide the best experience for our guests before, during, and after their services.
For more information on optimum systems for water filtration for spa and wellness resorts, please contact pH Prescription for a complimentary consultation, and receive a 5% discount with coupon code AMSPA5.
Alison Howland has developed and launched spas and wellness resorts in 14 countries. She is a regular contributor to wellness and spa industry publications, an advisory board member to several wellness and spa organizations, and an internationally published writer and speaker.