A research group at Kyushu University Graduate School collaborated with Beppu City and the Beppu City Ryokan Hotel Association to verify the effects of hot springs and found that hot spring bathing has different effects on the intestinal flora of healthy people depending on the quality of the water. announced new research results.
Throughout history, hot springs have been used to promote health and treat illnesses. It has been said that there are 10 types of therapeutic springs in Japan, each with different efficacy. However, little is known about how they affect healthy people, and verification of their effects has been desired.
The research group conducted a study on 2021 healthy adults (6 men and 2022 women) living in Kyushu from June 7 to July 136. Participants were healthy adults with no chronic illnesses aged 80 to 56 who spent 18 consecutive days soaking in Beppu Onsen's five different spring qualities (simple spring, chloride spring, bicarbonate spring, sulfur spring, and sulfate spring). and take a bath. They were asked to bathe for at least 65 minutes each day and maintain a normal diet.
As a result of collecting stool samples before and after bathing for 7 days and analyzing changes in intestinal flora, it was found that a type of bifidobacterium (Bifidobacterium bifidum) significantly increased after bathing in bicarbonate springs. It was revealed. In addition, significant changes in the intestinal flora were observed after bathing in simple springs, bicarbonate springs, and sulfur springs.
This discovery provides new scientific evidence regarding the health-promoting effects of bathing in hot springs, and is expected to contribute to the improvement of public health and regional revitalization using hot spring therapy in the future.
Paper information:【Scientific Reports】Effects of bathing in different hot spring types on Japanese gut microbiota
