CREATE A PRIVATE EVENING FOR TWO AT YOUR OWN PERSONAL SPA

Besides the Romance, Epsom Salt Might Even Help Improve Your Health

(February 2010) –- Forget the flowers and the chocolate. Here’s a more creative and less expensive idea for Valentine’s Day: create a private evening for two at your own personal spa using Epsom Salt. It's a great way to pamper your loved one – especially these days, when spa trips and expensive bath beads might be unaffordable. And besides the romance, Epsom Salt might even help improve your health.

Epsom Salt – actually magnesium sulfate – is easy to use and easy to find in your local pharmacy or supermarket and it costs about the same as a cup of coffee. Here are a few short ways to create a facial, an exfoliating skin treatment or a relaxing bath in the comfort of your own home. Below that are some of the health benefits of soaking in Epsom Salt.

• Glowing skin exfoliating treatment: Mix 2 cups of Epsom Salt with 1/4 cup of petroleum jelly and a few drops of lavender essential oil. Use the mixture to gently scrub away dry skin patches.
• Microdermabrasion Facial: Mix 1/2 TSP of Epsom Salt into cleansing cream for a deep-pore cleansing. Massage on skin. Rinse with cool water. Pat dry.
• Bathtime Bliss: Add two cups of Epsom Salt to the water in a standard-sized bathtub; soak for at least 12 minutes, three times weekly. For an extra treat, add a few drops of eucalyptus oil for a refreshing scent.
• Pedicure Perfection: Dissolve a half cup of Epsom Salt into two quarts of warm water. Pour the water into a container and soak your bare feet for fifteen to twenty minutes. For an extra treat, add a few drops of eucalyptus oil for a refreshing scent. Massage the entire foot with Epsom Salt concentrating on the heels and ankles to remove any dry, rough spots. Then, rinse your feet off with clean tap water and dry them thoroughly.
• Homemade bath crystals: Mix two cups of Epsom Salt with a few drops of fragrance to create a custom bath crystal. Add a few drops of food coloring or 1/2 TSP of glycerin if you like. Store in an air-tight container.

Health Benefits
The National Academy of Sciences estimates the average American female gets just 70 percent of the magnesium required for good health. Magnesium, the main component of Epsom Salt, is easily absorbed through the skin, which means bathing in Epsom Salt can help:

• Reduce inflammation.
• Improve heart and circulatory health.
• Flush toxins and heavy metals from the cells, relieving muscle pain and aching joints and helping the body to eliminate harmful substances.
• Improve the body’s ability to use insulin.
• Improve nerve function by regulating electrolytes. Also, calcium is the main conductor for electrical current in the body, and magnesium is necessary to maintain proper calcium levels in the blood.
• Reduce stress. Excess adrenaline and stress are believed to drain magnesium, a natural stress reliever, from the body. Magnesium is necessary for the body to bind adequate amounts of serotonin, a mood-elevating chemical within the brain that creates a feeling of well being and relaxation.

About Epsom salt
Epsom salt – actually magnesium sulfate – has been used therapeutically for hundreds of years, and it’s gaining a new generation of fans looking for a safe, economical alternative in a sea of expensive, over-the-counter remedies. Epsom salt is one of the most versatile household products, with uses ranging from creating at-home spa treatments to soothing achy muscles to helping start or improve gardens. It’s easy to use, easy to find in your local pharmacy or grocery store and it costs about the same per use as a cup of coffee.

To learn more, please visit www.epsomsaltcouncil.org, or contact Peter Smolowitz, (704)916-6163, psmolowitz@mower.com.