For years, people thought the only want to get a tight, toned body was through strict diet and exercise. While that is still the number one of obtaining a permanent condition, there is another method that can provide quick, temporary results: body wraps. This wraps are often touted for detoxing the body and helping to lose weight, but there is no scientific evidence to back up the claims of detoxing. However, they do remove water weight – for a time.
How Body Wraps Work
A body wrap is essentially a plastic or linen blanket which wraps around the body. The weight is lost through sweat, much like a sauna would function. However, the patient is often massaged, scrubbed, and treated to a number of other relaxing practices, depending upon the spa they visit.
After the patient is relaxed and ready for the blanket, it is wrapped around them and heated up to a high enough temperature to ensure they sweat through the entire session. This sweat serves two purposes. In addition to causing the patient to lose water weight, leading to a more toned look, the sweating also helps to cleanse the skin of dirt and grime that may be in the pores, leading to an overall more healthy appearance.
When the session ends, the patient’s temperature is lowered slowly to avoid any adverse effects from the heating. After this, they are rinsed and given a lotion treatment to ensure a healthily glow to the skin.
Are there any dangers associated with body wraps?
Some people have expressed concern over the methods used in body wraps, citing the fact that patients could enter hypovolemic shock, a state where low blood volume sends the body into a state of shutdown. A lack of water in the body also increases the concentrations of waste materials in the blood that would normally be flushed out by water, leading to feelings of illness and nausea.
However, many body wrap clinics guarantee the safety of their patients, citing the millions of procedures they have performed before. People undergoing body wrap treatment are kept hydrated throughout.
Types of Body Wraps
There are four main types of body wraps:
Moisturizing
This type of body wrap uses a number of lotions and other natural ingredients to restore moisture to the skin and help keep it trapped there.
Detox
According to SkinnyWrapKing.com, these wraps are sometimes mud based to help cleanse the pores and the skin of contaminants. They said, “Mud treatments have proven particularly effective for treating acne on various parts of the body, so ‘detox’ wraps are useful for people who suffer from back acne.”
Slimming
This is the most common type of wrap, used to flush away excess water weight and present the patient with a firmer, more toned appearance after the procedure is over.
Cellulite
Cellulite is composed of clumps of fat under the skin. This wrap, in addition to apply herbal remedies to the skin to combat the spread of cellulite, helps to smooth the rumpled appearance and provide a smooth surface.
There are a number of other wraps available, depending upon the specific salon. However, those with fragrances should be avoided as they can irritate sensitive skin. While there is skepticism based around body wraps, anecdotal evidence supports their use in particular cases. Before making up your mind, it might be a good idea to speak with a physician to ensure there are no risks associated with the specific wrap you are considering.
