Mental health has been a hot topic for some time now. Where do spas fit in? Let’s take a look at how spas benefit mental health.

People have been talking about mental health and wellbeing as a wellness trend for a few years now. And in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s become more important than ever to recognize and promote spa treatments as a means of addressing issues associated with mental health. 

Chronic pain, stress, and mental health disorders are common, and there are cross relationships between these conditions.

Many studies suggest a considerable association between chronic pain and depression. “In addition to depression, anxiety, and substance use disorders, individuals with chronic pain are at risk of other mental health problems.”  

Stress, meanwhile, is also linked to mental health disorders, as well as to negative physiological health outcomes, including heart disease, diabetes, and infectious diseases. Research conducted at Carnegie Mellon University found that chronic psychological stress is connected to loss of ability to regulate the inflammatory response, which may promote the development and progression of disease.

It stands to reason that if one can find relief from any one condition, there’s a good chance this will positively impact related conditions.

We know that spa treatments, including massage, thermal bathing, and sauna can have significant positive impacts on stress and pain. Let’s take a look at the research related to their direct impact on mental health and wellbeing.

Massage

Massage dates back to at least 3000 BCE in India, where it is said to have been used as an Ayurvedic treatment and believed to restore the body’s natural and physical balance, allowing for natural healing. And the American Massage Therapy Association (AMTA) states that massage therapy as an occupation dates back to the 1700s, where forerunners of today’s massage therapists were called rubbers. “Rubbers were experts in treating orthopedic problems with manual rubbing and friction.” 

Also according to the AMTA, massage therapy has multiple mental health benefits. Research has found that massage therapy can reduce anxiety associated with a number of conditions, including cancer, chronic pain and psychiatric disorders. Massage therapy is also correlated with reduced anxiety before and after surgery.

More findings include: 

• Massage therapy can reduce symptoms of depression for individuals with HIV.
• Back massage given during chemotherapy was associated with significantly reduced anxiety and acute fatigue.
• Military veterans reported significant reductions in anxiety, worry, depression and physical pain after massage, as well as lower levels of tension and irritability.
• Massage for nurses during work hours is associated with reduced stress and related symptoms, including headaches, shoulder tension, insomnia, fatigue and muscle and joint pain.

A review of studies also found that massage was associated with significant decreases in levels of the stress hormone cortisol, averaging 31%, and with increases of the neurotransmitters serotonin (28%) and dopamine (31%), both of which contribute to feelings of happiness and wellbeing. The authors wrote, “These studies combined suggest the stress-alleviating effects (decreased cortisol) and the activating effects (increased serotonin and dopamine) of massage therapy on a variety of medical conditions and stressful experiences.”

Finally, study subjects who underwent Swedish massage twice a week experienced decreases in cortisol levels and increases in oxytocin levels. Researchers also found slight evidence of increased white blood cell counts.

Sauna

Saunas have been around for thousands of years. The exact origin is unknown, but today these hot houses are generally associated with Northern Europe, particularly Finland, where there are an estimated 2 million saunas for a population of 5.3 million people.

According to the US News & World Report, an Alternative Medicine Review found that sauna therapy can help ease mild depression and fatigue and has been linked to improved emotional balance in those with anorexia nervosa.

Another study noted that sauna bathing has numerous health benefits including the promotion of mental well-being and relaxation, and also found that sauna bathing was strongly associated with a reduced risk of psychotic disorders. The authors wrote, “These new findings add to emerging evidence that frequent sauna therapy could reduce the risk of several acute and chronic health conditions.”

More findings: 

• Frequent sauna bathing can reduce the risk of dementia in men. Men who went to the sauna four to seven times a week were 66% less likely to be diagnosed with dementia, and 65% less likely to be diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, than those taking a sauna once a week.
• Sauna use elicits a multitude of beneficial health effects, including improved sleep and mood-boosting benefits. “Researchers treated patients with major depressive disorder with heat so that their core body temperature reached temperatures equivalent to those experienced with sauna use. Following just one treatment session, subjects experienced elevations in mood that lasted for several weeks.” 

The act of just sitting in the sauna may also contribute to mental health benefits due to its potential to be used as time for meditation and relaxation.

Thermal bathing

People have been taking the spring and sea waters for healing purposes for millennia. The practice is said to date back to at least the times of the ancient Greeks, who considered bathing a treatment against diseases. The Romans, influenced by the Greeks, built thermal baths at mineral and thermal springs where wounded soldiers – and everyone else – would go for rest and recuperation.

Taking the warm waters in a spring or spa bath may have a range of mental health benefits. These have been shown to include decreases in self-reported levels of depression and anxiety, and improved sleep.

More findings: 

• Balneotherapy (BT) (bathing in mineral springs) is beneficial for stress and fatigue reduction in comparison with music therapy or no therapy. Study authors concluded that geothermal water baths have a potential as an efficient approach to diminish stress caused by working or living conditions. 
• Spa bathing is associated with reduced levels of salivary stress markers, cortisol and chromogranin, an effect that was more pronounced in people with higher levels of stress.  
• Immersion bathing was associated with better outcomes for fatigue, stress, and pain, as well as significantly better general health, and mental health scores compared with showering.
• Hot springs bathing has a positive impact on chronic pain and musculoskeletal conditions, which will have a positive impact on mood and stress levels. 
• Bathing in geothermal mineral water was associated with improvements in anxiety, depression, sleep quality, and stress. Review authors stated that this has implications for the use of BT as a valid complementary therapy for people with mental health conditions.
• Hot baths may improve depression as much as physical exercise. Afternoon baths just twice a week produced a moderate but persistent lift to mood, the size of which was similar to that seen with physical exercise, which is a recommended therapy for mild or moderate depression. 

As the conversation around mental health continues, knowing how we can contribute will help us move it forward.

We’ve released a list of the spa & wellness trends we’ll be watching next year. Click here to download the Handbook: Seven wellness trends for 2022

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New research has found that aromatherapy, specifically the scent of rose, enhances learning during sleep, even outside of a laboratory setting. 

A new aromatherapy study has found that the scent of rose enhances learning during sleep. And it can be used in an everyday setting.

The study was conducted by researchers at the University of Freiburg – Medical Center, the Freiburg Institute for Frontier Areas of Psychology and Mental Health (IGPP) and the Faculty of Biology at the University of Freiburg.

Fragrances can be used in a “targeted way”

“We showed that the supportive effect of fragrances works very reliably in everyday life and can be used in a targeted way,” said study leader PD Dr. Jürgen Kornmeier, head of the Perception and Cognition Research Group at the Freiburg-based IGPP and scientist at the Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy at the University of Freiburg – Medical Center in Germany.

For the study, several experiments were conducted with 54 students from two 6th grade classes from a school in southern Germany. The students were given English vocabulary to learn and took an exam a week later. 

The children were split into four groups:

• Group 1, the control, was not exposed to any odor cues.
• Group 2 was told to put rose scented incense sticks on their desks while learning at home and during the vocabulary test.
• Group 3 was told to put rose scented incense sticks on their desks while learning at home and nearby during each night before the test but not during the test.
• Group 4 was exposed to the rose scented sticks while learning at home, every night before the test, and during the test.

Use during sleep is the critical factor

According to Medical News Today, Groups 3 and 4 performed significantly better on the test than Groups 1 and 2. Particularly interesting is that Group 2, which experienced the aroma during learning and testing, did not benefit, and that Group 4 did perform slightly better than Group 3, but the difference was not statistically significant. These findings suggest that exposure during sleep is the critical factor.

“The students showed a significant increase in learning success by about 30% if the incense sticks were used during both the learning and sleeping phases,” Franziska Neumann, first author of the study, said in a statement.

Another key finding is that the fragrance also works when it is present all night. Previous studies had suggested that in order to enhance sleep learning, the fragrance had to be only present during a particularly sensitive sleeping phase. And since an electroencephalogram (EEG) measuring brain activity is required to determine if and when a subject has achieved this phase, the findings weren’t suitable for everyday use. The new research suggests otherwise. 

“Our study shows that we can make learning during sleep easier,” said Kornmeier. The results suggest that this technique could be useful for people in real-life situations hoping to enhance sleep learning.

Rosemary also has been found to enhance learning

Previous research also found that the scent of rosemary may enhance learning as well. A study found that students working in a room with the aroma of rosemary essential oil achieved 5% to 7% better results in memory tests.

Findings like these can help people in the spa and wellness industry target retail sales. Products with scents of rose and rosemary, for example, can be packaged to appeal to guests who want to enhance learning and memory. 

The study was published in the Nature Group’s Open Access journal Scientific Reports on 27 January 2020.

We’ve released our spa and wellness trends to watch for 2020. Sign up for Spa Executive’s newsletter and download the free report! CLICK HERE >>

Spa Executive magazine is published by Book4Time, the world’s most innovative spa, salon, wellness, and activity management software. Learn more at Book4Time.com.

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The Wellness Tourism Association (WTA) has introduced definitions and begun setting industry standards for what makes a wellness tourism destination.

by Anne Dimon

We all acknowledge that the word “wellness” means different things to different people. Ask 10 people what “wellness” means to them and you are likely to get 10 different answers.

Year after year, surveys from the Global Wellness Institute tell us wellness is the fastest growing division of the global tourism industry. As more consumers look to work elements of wellness into their travels, or plan vacation time with a specific focus on wellness, we are seeing an increasing number of hotels and resorts looking to get a share of the market by introducing wellness-focused amenities, programs and even multi-day guided retreats. Destination Management Organizations (DMO) and tourism boards are also launching their own wellness initiatives. But for the good of the consumer and the sustainable future of the industry, when it comes to vocabulary we need clarity and consistence.

To help create that clarity and consistency within the wellness tourism industry, the Wellness Tourism Association (WTA) – now with 100 Members and Partners from 21 countries –  has created definitions, and promotes standards that are applicable to the industry and understood by the public.

Incorporated in the US as a not-for-profit in January of 2018, the Wellness Tourism Association launched with the mission to unite the industry, and to become one community working together to shape and support the sustainable future of wellness tourism for the global good. One of the goals was to bring definitions and standards to the industry.

First of all, the WTA has produced the first glossary of industry definitions.

Glossary of industry definitions

Wellness Tourism

A specific division of the global tourism industry that is defined by the common goal of marketing natural assets and activities primarily focused on serving the wellness-minded consumer.

Wellness Travel

Travel that allows the traveler to maintain, enhance or kick-start a healthy lifestyle, and support or increase one’s sense of wellbeing.

Wellness Traveler

An individual who makes “wellness” the primary purpose of a trip.

Wellness Vacation/Holiday
Wellness Vacation / Holiday is Wellness Travel powered by a wellness-focused intention. Wellness Vacations/Holidays are typically self-directed with the traveler setting his or her own timetable and schedule. They may also include a Wellness Retreat.

Wellness Retreat – In today’s world, this term actually has two definitions:

Wellness Retreat – Programme
#1 A guided, intention-driven, multi-day program with a set or semi-set schedule, and hosted by one or more facilitators. The program may include learning and lifestyle workshops such as meditation and healthy eating, as well as fitness activities such as yoga, nature walks and hiking.

Wellness Retreat – Facility
#2 A smaller facility with accommodations and hospitality services and where the primary purpose is to provide programs and experience for the Wellness Traveler. The facility may have fewer wellness activities, services and facilities than a Wellness Resort.

Industry standards

When it comes to developing standards, our criteria for the various categories of membership forms the basis for industry standards.  For instance:

Wellness Resort
Any facility with accommodations and a range of hospitality services where the primary purpose is to provide programs and experiences for the Wellness Traveler. The Wellness Resort is comprised of four primary elements: accommodations, a variety of wellness activities, healthy dining options and wellness-related facilities.

Wellness Retreat (facility standard as per above)
Any smaller facility with accommodations plus other hospitality related amenities, and where the primary purpose is wellness. Such companies offering qualifying wellness programs on a seasonal basis will also fall under the category of Wellness Retreat.

Medical Wellness
A company with the primary business of medical (the care of patients, and services that respond to specific medical conditions or issues) will be considered for membership if they also offer multi-day retreats / programs and/or packages that are deemed to be more proactive/preventative than reactive. For instance, retreats/programs for sleep, stress management, medical testing for the early detection and prevention or certain medical conditions, and others.

Assets and attributes of a Wellness Destination

In July, 2019, the WTA issued a news release suggesting nine assets and attributes that a geographic destination should possess if the DMO or tourism board is looking to position and promote a specific region of the world as a Wellness Destination.

The list of nine is as follows:

• A safe/secure environment in both perception and reality
• A clean and sanitary infrastructure for both locals and visitors
• A quality-of-life for locals who benefit from tourism dollars – e.g. the creation of jobs within the industry and the creation of a market for locally made produce/products/services
• Natural assets such as hot springs/mountains/bodies of water/forests/resources for thalassotherapy or other natural assets within the confines of the destination and easily accessible to visitors
• Since Wellness Tourism and Wellness Travel encompass wellness for the planet, the destination must have substantial sustainability policies and practices in place
• The availability and accessibility of a wide range of wellness-professionals and practitioners, including those who offer holistic and alternative modalities
• A selection of hotel restaurants and independent restaurants offering healthful cuisine prepared by chefs committed to clean eating and who work in partnership with local growers
• Availability of a range of fitness-based activities and tours – e.g. yoga, hiking, cycling, fitness classes, kayaking, stand-up paddle boarding
• A physical environment that is somewhat removed from the noise that has become “daily life” in the 21st century

WTA Chairman, Andrew Gibson, says “Wellness Tourism has the fastest visitor year on year growth of any form of tourism. The Wellness Tourism Association provides clarity and direction for anyone who wants to identify with this exciting sector within the tourism industry. There is a great opportunity to ensure that wellness tourism is sustainable, ethical and adds value to both the traveler and the destination.”

Anne Dimon is the President of the Wellness Tourism Association (www.wellnesstourismassociation.org) and Founder/Editor of www.traveltowellness.com

Check out the spa & wellness trends we’re keeping our eye on in 2020. Sign up for Spa Executive’s newsletter and download the free report! CLICK HERE >>

Spa Executive magazine is published by Book4Time, the world’s most innovative spa, salon, wellness, and activity management software. Learn more at Book4Time.com.

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Riding in on the tails of the cannabis trend, psychedelic assisted therapy is a wellness trend to watch in 2020.

People have been calling cannabis a “gateway drug” for as long as we can remember, and in the case of wellness, it looks like they’re right.

In the past few years, cannabis has gone through various states of decriminalization around the world and the cannabis compound cannabidiol (CBD) has pretty much taken over spa, wellness, skincare, and more. Now  we’re seeing an uptick in attention around hallucinogenic substances like psilocybin, DMT, LSD, and Ibogaine.

Researchers are becoming increasingly interested in psychedelics

As a group, psychedelic drugs are a class that triggers psychedelic experiences, causing changes in thought and visual audio perception, and altered state of consciousness. And researchers are becoming increasingly interested in their potential applications as treatments for mental health conditions such as depression, schizophrenia, and dementia. This is psychedelic assisted therapy.*

Psilocybin, found in more than 200 species of mushrooms

Psilocybin, for example, is the psychedelic compound found in more than 200 species of mushrooms, known as “magic mushrooms.” The Global Wellness Institute actually tagged these as a trend to watch as far back as 2018, stating:

“Brain resetting” magic mushrooms will start to emerge from underground: more people will microdose them as creativity and brain boosters (a Silicon Valley “start-up” practice now spreading around the world). And, yes, magic mushroom retreats (like MycoMeditations) will keep popping up in places where legal (whether Jamaica or the Netherlands), where the “trip” gets combined with increasingly luxe wellness experiences. And we’ll see movement on the legalization front, making this magic mushroom “moment” reminiscent of the early days of the cannabis-as-wellness trend.”

Microdosing (taking minute quantities, that can measure about one tenth of a full dose, of a drug) psychedelics is said to have become a fairly well established trend among Silicon Valley tech people and among other communities. It’s said to be linked to improved mood, increased energy and focus, reduced anxiety, and enhanced creativity. (We are not recommending you try this at home.)

Johns Hopkins Center for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research

Lysergic Acid Diethylamide (LSD) and Psilocybin are among the substances being studied at Johns Hopkins University’s Center for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research, which was recently established with $17 million in private donations. The Center will be the first of its kind in the United States, while the Centre for Psychedelic Research at Imperial College London, which opened in 2019, is said to be the first in the world.

DMT, the spirit molecule

Another compound piquing the interest of researchers is DMT (N,N-Dimethyltryptamine), the chemical substance known as “the spirit molecule,” used in ayahuasca, a South American entheogenic plant brew made with the Banisteriopsis caapi vine. The vine is commonly found in the Amazon Basin. There’s evidence that both psilocybin and DMT have been used as spiritual medicines for thousands of years.

Researchers at Johns Hopkins are also studying Ibogaine, a naturally occurring psychoactive substance found in plants in both central and coastal Africa, as a potential treatment for drug addiction.

Ibogaine as a treatment for addiction

And Toronto-based start up MindMed is undertaking clinical trials of medicines based on psychedelics. According to a media release the neuro-pharmaceutical company discovers, develops and deploys psychedelic- inspired medicines to improve health, promote wellness and alleviate suffering. MindMed is developing two categories of medicines based on psychedelic substances: Hallucinogenic therapies and non-hallucinogenic therapies, and the company’s immediate priority is “to address the opioid crisis by developing a non-hallucinogenic version of the psychedelic compound ibogaine.” MindMed raised $6.2 million in investments over the summer of 2019.

Expect to hear more about psychedelic compounds and psychedelic assisted therapy in the coming months and years.

*Psychedelic assisted therapy is conducted under the guidance of experts and psychedelic substances of any sort should not be taken recreationally. 

Want to see more spa & wellness trends we’re keeping our eye on in 2020? Sign up for Spa Executive’s newsletter and download the free report! CLICK HERE >>

Spa Executive magazine is published by Book4Time, the world’s most innovative spa, salon, wellness, and activity management software. Learn more at Book4Time.com.

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Psychedelics, psychobiotics, and smart clothes are just a few of our predicted spa & wellness trends for 2020

As we near the end of 2019, it’s time to look ahead and make our predictions for the spa and wellness trends we’ll be seeing everywhere in the coming year.

In 2019 we saw, as predicted last year, the rise of weed-infused edibles (in areas where it’s legal, and even where it’s not), an increasing backlash against weight loss culture, and a growing acceptance of bodies of all shapes and sizes.

What’s going to be big over the next 12 months? Read on for six of the buzziest spa and wellness trends for 2020.

Psychedelic assisted therapy

People have always called cannabis a “gateway drug,” and in the case of wellness it looks like they’re right. In the past few years, the plant’s use has gone through various states of decriminalization around the world and the cannabis compound cannabidiol (CBD) took over spa, wellness, skincare, and more. Now we’re seeing an uptick in attention around hallucinogenic substances like psilocybin, the psychedelic compound found in more than 200 species of mushrooms, and DMT (N,N-Dimethyltryptamine) the chemical substance known as the “spirit molecule,” often used in ayahuasca, a South American entheogenic plant brew made with the Banisteriopsis caapi vine, which is commonly found in the Amazon Basin. There’s evidence that both have been used as spiritual medicines for thousands of years, and both have recently been the subject of increased  interest from the public, and from researchers looking into their potential applications as treatments for mental health conditions, including depression, schizophrenia, and dementia. Johns Hopkins University recently announced the launch of the Center for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research, established with $17 million in private donations. The Center will be the first of its kind in the United States, while the Centre for Psychedelic Research at Imperial College London, which opened earlier this year, is said to be the first in the world. Expect to hear more about psychedelic compounds and psychedelic assisted therapy in the coming months and years.

For more spa & wellness trends for 2020, sign up for Spa Executive’s newsletter and download the full report! CLICK HERE >>

Spa Executive magazine is published by Book4Time, the world’s most innovative spa, salon, wellness, and activity management software. Learn more at Book4Time.com.

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You’ve heard of probiotics and prebiotics, and may already be taking them. Have you heard of psychobiotics? These bacteria that may have a mental health benefit when ingested should be of interest for those in the spas and wellness sector with any focus on mental health and wellness.

“No area of psychiatry is as hot today…”

The idea that the trillions of bacteria in our guts (a.k.a. our gut microbiota) could have a drastic affect on our mental health is not a new one, but until recently it was still considered somewhat fringe. Now it’s gaining in popularity and credibility with a growing body of research, though more is still required for the scientific community to come to any kind of consensus. Canada’s National Post recently stated “No area of psychiatry is as hot, or controversial today as the idea of manipulating the gut to alter the mind.”

The Post article also states that gastro-intestinal problems are common in people with anxiety and depression. And it has been demonstrated that certain probiotics are associated with improved mood. This is where psychobiotics come in.

Gut problems can lead to anguish, psychosis and anxiety

One proponent of the gut-brain connection and psychobiotics is Scott Anderson, co author of the The Psychobiotic Revolution: Mood, Food, and the New Science of the Gut-Brain Connection, with Ted Dinan and Jon Cryan of the APC Microbiome Institute at University College Cork. While allowing that not every mental health issue is gut related, Anderson stated in a recent Psychology Today article that many of our mental issues start in the gut and that “we’ve known for centuries that gut problems can lead to mental anguish, psychosis, and anxiety.”

Anderson calls these microbes “the royal guards of immunity,” stating that they fight and destroy pathogens before those pathogens can make it to the immune system. However, he writes, “if you don’t feed your guardian microbes properly, they won’t be able to mount an effective counterattack. If pathogens are able to gain a foothold, they can disturb the lining of your gut. That lining is one cell thick, a ridiculously thin barrier against troublemakers. Pathogens can burrow and dig into this lining, allowing toxins or bacteria to leak into your bloodstream. Your heart obligingly pumps those potential poisons to every organ in your body, including your brain.”

Areas of interest include fermented foods and fecal transplants

This area of study has led to heightened interest in pro and pre biotics, fermented foods, and fecal pills and transplants. The transplants, which involve transplanting feces from one body into another, have a near 100% success rate in curing antibiotic-resistant superbug Clostridium difficile and are currently being tested in people with depression and bipolar disorder by researchers at the University of Calgary. The hope, according to the National Post, is that enhancing good gut microbes may be a viable treatment for drugs resistant depression. This research, Valerie Taylor, chief of psychiatry at the University of Calgary, told the Post, may change our entire concept of mental illness. “We now think mental illness is essentially a brain illness, and it may be that it isn’t,” Taylor said.

The mechanism behind the connection isn’t clear, but Taylor told the Post that it’s possibly due to stress causing inflammation, which is connected to gut dysbiosis, which has been linked with altered brain function.

Psychobiotic food pyramid

In a more practical, day to day application, Scott Anderson has also developed a “psychobiotic food pyramid,” a new version of the famous diagrams published around the world as healthy eating guidelines, with foods one should be eating most on the bottom and least at the top.

Anderson’s pyramid prioritizes high fiber vegetables, whole grains, and nuts and olive oil. Fish and seafood and fermented foods should be consumed often, he says, followed by poultry, eggs and dairy. Sugar and red meat should be limited to once a week or less.

World’s first psychobiotic food supplement

Meanwhile, the “world’s first psychobiotic food supplement” recently went on the market in the UK.

While the scientific community appears to be cautiously excited about these new developments, we’ll likely be seeing an increase in attention to this area in spa and wellness.

Spa Executive magazine is published by Book4Time, the world’s most innovative spa, salon, wellness, and activity management software. Learn more at Book4Time.com.

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Professor Marc Cohen is Professor of Health Sciences in the School of Health and Biomedical Sciences at RMIT University in Melbourne. He is also a Board Member of the Global Wellness Summit, and Past-President of the Australasian Integrative Medicine Association (AIMA).

Professor Cohen will be speaking at the Global Wellness Summit, which takes place from October 9-11 at the Breakers, Palm Beach, Florida. And in January of 2018, he and Wim “The Iceman” Hof (famous for his ability to withstand extreme cold) will attempt to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro in world-record time with Cohen’s two sons, age 14 and 16.

We spoke to Marc Cohen about the role of wellness in spas, the need for peer-reviewed wellness research, and the trends he believes are currently shaping the spa and wellness industries.

How did you get involved in spa and wellness?

I was interested in how I could help people, particularly myself, become really well. I studied Western medicine, then Chinese medicine, physiology, and psychology. Then I studied biomedical engineering, nutrition, yoga, and lifestyle change, all with a view of learning how to be as happy and healthy as possible. I spent 20 years getting university degrees. For the last 20 years I’ve been working as an academic.

What trends are you keeping your eye on in the spa and wellness world?

The trend I’m doing a lot of research with at the moment is the move away from just seeking out comfort — you know, going on a holiday just sitting by the pool and drinking cocktails. It’s the trend to push the limits of human performance and to find comfort in uncomfortable situations, where you’ll see extreme sports, triathlons, and Tough Mudder events. Wim Hof, who I’m working with at the moment, promotes breathing exercises to cold exposure in an ice bath.

There’s an old tradition of that — in Scandinavian, Russian, Japanese culture — of going from the sauna to an ice bath or frozen river, putting your body through extremes of temperature. Having your body adapt to those extremes can make you more resilient the rest of the time. I see that as a strong trend within spas.

The idea is also there in yoga, where you go to the edge of your limit of stretch, and it’s not comfortable, but you stay in that position and you breathe and relax and become comfortable with that discomfort. Or, if you’re having a deep tissue massage, you’re pressing to a point until it hurts, and you just breathe and find comfort with that pain.

It’s finding that limit of your endurance and realizing that if you can be comfortable with your discomfort, you’re going to be stronger because of it, and more fulfilled and healthier, and be able to enjoy the rest of your life at a greater level because you’ve trained yourself to be comfortable in these uncomfortable situations.

What could the spa and wellness industry improve upon?

The health retreat and spa industries don’t have a lot of data from controlled trials and peer reviewed research. In most countries, health retreat experiences are not tax deductible, they’re not subsidized by health insurance or the government. People pay out of their pocket and don’t get referrals from doctors. They’re seen as an indulgence rather than as an essential health treatment.

I would like to see that change. I’m interested in bridging that gap between the wellness world, the spa world, and the medical world. And the way to do that is with data, with scientific research, and with evidence. So that’s what I’m seeking to establish.

What are you excited about?

I’m super excited about the Kilimanjaro climb. I’m doing training at the moment. I’ve just spent the morning in my swimming pool at 10 degrees, exposed myself to cold and doing breathing practices.

And in citizen science, I’m excited about the potential for people to use the super computers we’re all carrying around in our pockets to collect high-level biometric data that can then be used for research. Our smartphones and wearable devices, they’re now dirt cheap and the sophistication is increasing at an incredible rate.

When I was working as a doctor, the cardiac and oxygen monitoring equipment in the coronary care unit cost tens of thousands of dollars and it was very restricted. Now you can get all that monitoring in essentially a throw away consumer device that’s under $100, and the amount of data you can collect is incredible.

I’m looking to tap into that resource, to use the powers of smartphones and wearable devices to explore people’s lifestyles even further.

Spa Executive magazine is published by Book4Time, the world’s most innovative spa, salon, wellness, and activity management software. Learn more at Book4Time.com

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We already have evidence that social media and internet addiction may have a detrimental effects on mental health. Now, if you’re in need of more backing to show merit to the spa and wellness industry’s push for digital detox, you’re in luck.

A recent study out of the McCombs School of Business at The University of Texas at Austin has found that just being in the same room as your smart phone significantly reduces cognitive capacity. In other words, smart phones make you dumb – and you don’t even have to be using one for that to happen. (Just as you suspected, right?)

According to a media release, McCombs Assistant Professor Adrian Ward and co-authors conducted two experiments with nearly 800 smartphone users.

In one, participants were told to turn their phones to silent and randomly assigned to place the phones either on the desk face down, in their pocket or personal bag, or in another room, They then took a series of tests designed to measure available cognitive capacity — which is our ability to retain and process information.

The results? Researchers found that participants with their phones on the desk performed significantly worse that those with their phones in another room, and slightly worse than those with their phones in a pocket or bag.

In another experiment, participants took the same tests as the first group, but were first asked to gauge their own smartphone dependence. This group was randomly assigned to keep their phones either in sight on the desk face up, in a pocket or bag, or in another room. Some were also instructed to turn off their phones.

This time, the most smart-phone dependent participants performed worse than less-dependent ones, but only when they kept their smartphones on the desk or in their pocket or bag.

All this, they say, suggests that having a smartphone within sight or within easy reach reduces a person’s ability to focus and perform tasks.

“It’s not that participants were distracted because they were getting notifications on their phones,” said Ward. “The mere presence of their smartphone was enough to reduce their cognitive capacity.”

Read more here.

It’s not the first study to suggest smart phones and misuse of technology area making us dumber.

• A Kent State study found that cell phone use/texting was negatively related to GPA and positively related to anxiety.
• A 2011 study published in the journal Science, suggested that reliance on Google is inhibiting our capacity to store and access information.
• A study in the Journal of Experimental Psychology found that simply receiving a cell phone notification significantly disrupted performance on an attention-demanding task, even when participants did not directly interact with a mobile device during the task.

Regarding other effects on the brain and mental health:

According to a study at Leeds University, internet addicts are significantly more likely to suffer from depression than non addicts.

Research has found heavy social media use to be correlated with depression and low self esteem.

A University of Derby study found higher scores of narcissism and levels of neuroticism were linked to smartphone addiction.

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Cannabis — marijuana, dope, hashish, weed, grass, etc.– is one of the most controversial substances on Earth, but it hasn’t always been that way.

Smoked, ingested, and applied topically, for millennia the flowering plant has been used as an anti-inflammatory, an analgesic, an anesthetic, an anti-emetic, and a mood enhancer, among other things. And the ailments cannabis has been used to treat include gout, glaucoma, parasites, earache, rheumatism, leprosy, and, perhaps amusingly, “absentmindedness” — some, no doubt, with higher degrees of success than others.

The mythological Chinese Emperor Fuxi (or Fu Hsi) is credited with making the earliest reference to the herb as a popular medicine around 2900 BCE, while the earliest reference to the same in Greek and Latin literature dates to Herodotus’ description of the ancient Scythians’ hemp vapor baths in the fifth century BCE.

To say that there have never been detractors would be a lie. Though weed was apparently used medicinally across the Arab world in Roman times, the Arab physician Ibn Wahshiyya is said to have considered hashish a “lethal poison.” Still, Barney Warf, a University of Kansas geography professor and author of High Points: An Historical Geography of Cannabis reportedly states that “The idea that this is an evil drug is a very recent construction.”

These days, while some may be shocked and dismayed at the world going reefer mad for the devil’s weed, cannabis is enjoying a loosening of laws and a cultural mainstreaming. It’s been legalized for both recreational and medicinal use in several states, including Alaska, California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington, with more pending. In Canada it’s legal to possess medicinal cannabis, while the federal government plans to have an established plan for legalization by July 2018, and we see varying degrees of tolerance in a locations from Amsterdam (of course) to Peru to South Africa.

With all its purported healing powers, it’s only natural that the spa, wellness, and skincare industries would be integrating cannabis into products and treatments.

Note there are two main chemical ingredients we talk about when we talk about cannabis: THC and CBD. THC has psychoactive properties, while CBD is non psychoactive. Both are attracting attention for their potential healing properties but it’s the non-psychoactive CBD that people are getting really excited about as it shows promise as a medicine for many ailments — without the buzz. Among the most exciting of these developments is as a treatment for epilepsy. CBD is also gaining popularity as a skincare ingredient.

To be clear, hemp in beauty products is nothing new;The Body Shop, Dr. Bronner’s, and Hempz have been doing it for years. Nor is getting stoned and getting a massage. But as these products become better understood and more widely available, their usage profile is rising (sky high).

See Lord Jones, a Los Angeles based company selling topicals and edibles containing either CBD, THC – or both – in lovely, regal cigar-box style packaging, one example of the welcome contemporary departure from the moldy tie dye aesthetics that have plagued the pot industry for so long. (See also Beboe, which sells vaporizers and pastilles in equally pleasing packaging.)

Lord Jones recently partnered with L.A celebrity fitness hub Equinox to produce a series of events, integrating cannabis infused topicals into classes. And Lord Jones CEO Cindy Capobianco tells me they’re currently working on a program with The Spa at Equinox to incorporate a Pure CBD Topical into the massage practice.

Over in Longmont Colorado, Nature’s Root claims to be the first hemp-based spa in the world. The company’s own body care products include a therapeutic, organically grown, industrial hemp oil extract line of massage oils, lotions and sore muscle salves.

And in Denver, LoDo Massage Studio has become famous for offering a “Mile High Massage” using Apothecanna’s Pain Crème, which is infused with THC and CBD (and Arnica, Peppermint and Juniper).

Lord Jones’ Capobianco believes the cannabis industry will continue to grow, and the plant will gain more traction as a bona-fide healing agent.

“This is just the beginning as far as we are concerned,” she says. “We run a non profit collective in California and have hundreds of patients who utilize our topicals for a variety of reasons ranging from skin conditions to muscle and joint pain to headache. We have patients who have leg and foot cramps, arthritis sufferers, and last but not least endometriosis and menstrual cramp sufferers.”

She continues, “Cannabis has so many dimensions. It is natural medicine. It is an anti-depressant and mood stabilizer. It is a coveted intoxicant. It is a health and wellness miracle and a sacrament to be shared among friends. Expect high-end offerings to come in all of these forms.”

Lord Jones 1:1 Pain and Wellness Formula Body Lotion
Each 100ml/3.4oz bottle contains 20mg of CBD and 20mg THC

“Soothing, rich luxurious lotion designed to be penetrating and readily absorbed. Lord Jones signature fragrance, fresh with notes of sage, mint and green citrus. Formulated with Frescolat, a natural agent that creates a cooling sensation upon contact . Non-psychoactive when used as directed.”

Nature’s Root Vital Hemp Oil Capsules

25 or 50 mg capsules

“Our capsules contain a high grade CO2 industrial hemp oil extract, delivering a whole plant extraction, providing the power of a broad spectrum of cannabinoids. A pure, true product, we ensure that each capsule contains less than 0.3% THC, so you can rest assured they are completely non-psychoactive.”

Apothecanna’s Extra Strength Relieving Creme

“Double strength moisturizing body cream with anti-inflammatory plant extracts. Cooling and invigorating, perfect for use on sore muscles, swollen joints and distressed skin. Use with full body massage or apply directly where it hurts.”

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