Pomorie Lye Heals the Skin and Joints
Dr Antoaneta Grozeva answers your questions
Hello. I would like a professional answer to the following questions: which conditions is lye treatment used for? What does the treatment itself involve? How many times a year should it be carried out? Are there any contraindications? In which sanatoriums and medical facilities is it applied?
Penka Atanasova – Plovdiv
“Lye is applied either in its natural form or diluted, in various concentrations and quantities,” explains Dr Antoaneta Grozeva – a specialist in physiotherapy, balneology and rehabilitation, senior assistant at the Medical College in Burgas, for Doctor newspaper. She has been working for more than 32 years in Pomorie, using Pomorie liman mud and lye as her main therapeutic factors. She has over 30 scientific publications on mud therapy and numerous appearances at Bulgarian and international forums in the field of balneology, and is a founding member of the Bulgarian Association for Balneotourism.
In practice, lye compresses are the most widely used method. They are applied mainly for conditions of the musculoskeletal system; for rheumatic conditions (gonarthrosis, coxarthrosis, spondylarthrosis, rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, infectious arthritis); for trauma and orthopaedic conditions (soft tissue and bone injuries, sprains, joint dislocations, fractures); and for neurological conditions (neuralgia, neuritis, plexitis, disc disorders).
Dr Grozeva adds that for this purpose lye is used in its natural form after being warmed in a water bath. Natural lye is also used to treat slow-healing wounds and skin conditions: psoriasis, neurodermatitis, eczema, hair loss and others.
In diluted aqueous solutions, lye is applied through:
♦ mouth rinses for gum conditions
♦ inhalations for conditions of the upper respiratory tract
♦ drinking, for conditions of the stomach, intestines, biliary tract, kidneys and urinary tract
♦ irrigations for gynaecological conditions
“Lye is the end product of salt production in Pomorie,” the specialist explains further. “It is obtained from the brine of Pomorie Lake after the water has evaporated in the salt pans and the salt has crystallised. It remains above the salt layer as a thick, oil-like liquid with a yellowish-brown colour. It contains all the components of sea water and brine, but in a higher concentration, and its composition is close to that of the mud solution, which is why it has an effect similar to mud. It contains calcium, sodium, magnesium, chlorine, bromine, sulphates, hydrocarbonates, many trace elements, organic substances and more. When lye is heated artificially, without solar warming, changes occur in the colloid-dispersion system and the ionic-colloidal bonds are destroyed. In addition, the thermolabile biologically active substances are destroyed – products of the lake’s plankton and of the substances released during the mud-forming processes. For this reason, this complex ionic-colloidal solution must not be heated above 65°C. And to remain active, it should be warmed in a water bath. The action of lye has been studied in depth by S. Konsulov and S. Bachev. In a person who is unwell, lye has a multifaceted effect: it is anti-inflammatory, enhances regenerative processes, stimulates the body’s immunobiological reactions and more.”
In answer to our reader’s question, Dr Antoaneta Grozeva says that lye therapy has found wide application in many health facilities across the country: diagnostic and treatment centres, hospitals, rehabilitation facilities, as well as at home. Narechenski Bani, Hisar, Starozagorski Bani and many other balneotherapy centres offer lye treatments. As for contraindications, Dr Grozeva replied that the doctor on site assesses whether a particular patient has any contraindications and decides on the course of treatment accordingly.
Many of our pharmacies and medical supply shops sell ready-soaked lye compresses for individual use.
“Most people are probably familiar with the beneficial and therapeutic properties of lye,” Dr Violetka Ikonomova, head of the Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Department at Tokuda Hospital, said in an interview with Doctor newspaper some time ago. “It is a highly mineralised marine solution with an abundance of salts and minerals, which is extremely beneficial. By making these lye compresses, a person introduces a large quantity of minerals and salts into the body in ready-made form. The therapeutic effect of these substances has long been proven.”
Dr Ikonomova also explained that lye is applied warm in the form of lye compresses, with specialists relying on the warming of the area, the dilation of the blood vessels, the introduction of the minerals and salts into the body and, as a result, their effect.
“A person can make such compresses at home themselves,” Dr Ikonomova adds. “Many of our pharmacies and medical supply shops even sell ready-soaked lye compresses for individual use. And they are very convenient. This was introduced fairly recently; in the past, lye was sold by the litre in containers. Now there are ready-made compresses in small sachets, complete with instructions for use. Of course, they are suitable for smaller affected areas. If we are talking about the spine, for example, they cannot cover the whole affected area, but they can be combined. They are, however, ideal for home use.”
Source: zdrave.to, 07.11.2016, interview with Dr Antoaneta Grozeva – specialist in physiotherapy.
