The Many Benefits of Hot Springs

Surrounded by rocky formations, cool cacti and palm trees with wind gently sweeping through their fronds, I carefully dipped my big toe into the thermal water below me. The scenery is always different. Maybe I'm mountainside in an abandoned, mossy spring in Iceland or enjoying the atmosphere just outside Yellowstone National Park, but that "first dip" feeling is always a welcome one.

Recently, I was happily engulfed in a natural warm bath courtesy of a 125-year-old desert oasis at the luxurious Castle Hot Springs just outside of Wickenburg, Arizona. Always eager to melt away in the next geothermal pool, this spot had been on my list since it was rebuilt in the mid-2010s.

My time in these scenic springs got me thinking. I've always appreciated the mental health benefits of getting as close to nature as possible, but were there any physical benefits associated with these mineral-rich pools?

For the answers, I reached out to an internist and an esthetician.

Image via Wendy Rose Gould