Hammam Spa Pregnancy Guidelines
Hammam Treatment: What To Consider When Pregnant
Our new Birmingham Este Spa & Hammam treatments are available for people who are pregnant. It is absolutely possible to have a hammam experience while being pregnant. However, there are a few things to consider to ensure you are keeping yourself and your baby bump comfortable and safe. The benefits of having a soothing and relaxing hammam treatment while pregnant cannot be overlooked!
Can I Have a Hammam Treatment While Pregnant?
Two things to consider when you’re pregnant are:
- Your level of comfort (especially when it comes to heat)
- Medical advice from your family doctor or obstetrician (OB)
Regardless of whether you are pregnant or not, the common risks associated with hot tubs, saunas, and steam room treatments are universally the same: overheating, dehydration, and fainting.
Overheating Explained
An important consideration when deciding on a hammam treatment, especially a Turkish hammam, is the temperature of the steam room. The average Turkish steam room is approximately 45 degrees Celsius, and the average amount of time spent in a hot treatment room is about 10-20 minutes. Spas will typically indicate how long a guest should spend in the steam room (before other elements of the treatment begin like body washing and scrubbing). With this in mind, it is recommended to use your common sense based on past experiences — if you are someone who loves hot steam, then stay in the room as long as you are comfortable, if you are sensitive to heat then give yourself a time limit that suits your heat tolerance threshold.
A consideration for pregnant women is their body temperature might be higher than normal; pregnancy can affect the body’s ability to regulate temperature. Pregnant people may be more sensitive to long exposure to high heat. With this in mind, if you are pregnant, it is recommended you greatly decrease the normal amount of time you would spend in a spa steam room, or skip the steam room part of the treatment and go directly to the body washing or body mask part of the experience. It is better to amend the treatment and avoid potential overheating for the most beneficial experience.
Dehydration Diligence
It is well-known that the high heat of a steam room can increase your risk of dehydration — pregnant or not. Any weight lost from sweating in the steam room is water weight, therefore it is important that you replace it by drinking water during your hammam experience to avoid dehydration. Most quality spas will have fresh water stations or drinking water always available to guests to prevent dehydration.
Dehydration considerations for pregnant women typically involve appetite, morning sickness, and water retention. Pregnancy nausea can cause some women to avoid foods and liquids, which can lead to unintentional dehydration. Actually, sickness can be highly dehydrating because vomiting causes the body to lose additional fluids (this also includes diarrhoea). And lastly, the pregnant body uses up a lot of water through water retention. All of this means that if you are pregnant, you must be diligent in staying hydrated at all times. And avoid going without water for long stretches of time. The best way to stay properly hydrated during your pregnancy is to drink plenty of water every day. Drink eight to 12 glasses daily and eat foods with a high-water content like strawberries, cucumbers, lettuce, and soup.
Fainting Facts
Why do some people feel a bit light-headed after a hot sauna or steam room? The answer is heat causes the blood vessels to expand or dilate, and as our body fluids move downwards our blood pressure also drops, which results in some people feeling light-headed, or in some cases, they faint.
If you are pregnant, you should be having your blood pressure checked by your OB or family doctor, as most women experience low blood pressure during pregnancy. This is because more blood is being rerouted to the new baby. If you are experiencing low blood pressure while pregnant it would be advisable to skip the steam room portion of the hammam treatment and focus on the other beneficial aspects of the treatment like the body scrub and wash and any treatment massages.
Have you ever been to a Turkish hammam before? Make sure to take a look at our Beginner’s Guide: Your First Turkish Hammam Experience!
So, You’re Pregnant! Benefits Of A Hammam Spa Day!
Now that we have covered important health and safety considerations, let’s talk about the many soothing and relaxing hammam traditional luxury spa benefits!
Here are several reasons why a Turkish hammam spa is therapeutic for the pregnant body.
- Full Body Relaxation – hammam rituals reduce stress and ease anxiety. Relaxation is linked to positive effects on obstetric and neonatal outcomes.
- Immune Boost – hammam helps stimulate the immune system for better overall health. Did you know that during pregnancy your immune system changes to protect both mother and baby? Fact: some defences get stronger and some weaker.
- Pain Relief – gentle heat and massage soothe sore muscles; relaxing the body relaxes the mind. Cramping, gas, bloating, and constipation are common during pregnancy, and hammam massage helps to relieve these common pregnancy issues.
- Sleep Better – hammam relaxes body and mind; tension is soothed away for a better night's sleep. Hormonal changes during pregnancy can have a negative impact on sleep quality.
- Feel Good About Your Body – hammam rejuvenates the body from head to toe. It reboots the mind, rebalances the body, making you feel absolutely brilliant!
Hey, we have even more reasons why you should treat yourself to a traditional Turkish hammam spa experience. Look at our Top 10 Hammam Health Benefits blog.
We hope that while you are pregnant you are having a beautiful experience, and if we can help to make it feel even better consider booking one of our hammam Birmingham treatments. Let us know when you book your hammam spa day that you are pregnant, so our team of spa professionals can be extra mindful of your health and safety.
We are not open yet! But we will be open in the new year and hope to see you and your baby bump at the newest Este Medical Group location in Edgbaston. Our new Birmingham Este Spa & Hammam will feature 30 clinic rooms and 30 spa rooms as well as steam room facilities.
For the complete Este Spa & Hammam directory of Moroccan and Turkish hammam treatments, Far East and Classic massage services, plus Facials and Body Care see our spa menu.
More Birmingham hammam spa updates to be delivered soon!
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