Specialists from the University of Arizona (USA) have developed a non-trivial way to deal with depression.
They argue that a patient’s condition improves, if he or she is held in the so-called hot tent for 2 hours. Heating elements are mounted in such a tent, and its walls are covered with silver reflectors, which allow raising the temperature up to 38 degrees.
The head, however, should be held outside. In such a position, the occurring processes stimulate the production of chemicals responsible for mood improvement. These substances – beta-endorphins – are the famous “happy hormones”. They are natural analgesics and give people a range of pleasant emotional states, from high self-esteem to euphoria.
The visits to the hot tent should be repeated every few weeks. Now the researchers are going to do a comprehensive study of this method. Overheating as a way of depression treatment got them interested after it was proved that patients began to feel better not only physically but also psychologically after visiting a sauna.
