Darla wants to know: “I read that products using Dead Sea salts are good for your skin. Should I be using a Dead Sea Salt scrub instead of my wrinkle cream? Is there any truth to this at all?” The Right Brain Responds:
The Dead Sea is the second saltiest body of water on Earth and its salts have been reputed to have healing properties since Biblical times. Can this be true? Is Dead Sea salt better than “regular” salt? Yes it is, at least according to a study conducted at the University of Negev, Israel. The Journal of the European Adcademy of Dermatology and Venereology, published a paper (9 (1997) 237-242, Dead Sea Bath Salt for the treatment of psoriasis vulgaris) by authors Halevy, et. al, that attempted to answer this very question.
The researchers treated 30 patients with psoriasis vulgaris, a condition involving rapidly dividing, overactive cells that causes patchy, scaley skin. The patients were first evaluated using the Psoriasis Area and Serverity Index (PASI), a scale that indicates the intensity of the condition.
The patients were then divided into two groups: The control group were treated with common salt and the test group were treated with a Dead Sea salt mixture. The treatment for both groups involved soaking in warm, salty bath water for 20 minutes each day for a period of 3 weeks. At the end of the treatment, patients were assessed using the PSAI scale again.
The results showed that both types of salt water baths significantly reduced the extent and the severity of the psoriasis. However, the Dead Sea salt soak reduced the psoriasis a bit more. (However, the researchers point out that not all measurements reached a statistically valid level.) Still, this is pretty good evidence that the Dead Sea salt mixture is better at reducing the effects of psoriasis. Why is this the case? No one knows for sure, but it apparently is related to proportion of magnesium, bromide and other counter ions contained in Dead Sea salt.
The Beauty Brains Bottom Line:
Soaking in salt water does benefit certain dry skin conditions, such as psoriasis. While even ordinary salt is helpful in this regard, Dead Sea Salts may offer some additional level of benefit. But that doesn’t mean a product containing Dead Sea salts will help other skin problems, like wrinkles.
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If the Dead Sea salt treatment had a better outcome than the common salt treatment, wouldn’t it be a good idea (and a profitable one) to mass spec dead sea salt samples, optimize the concentration of the ions to increase efficacy, get the raw materials from a cheaper source (or one that’s more nearby than the Dead Sea), and sell the stuff with some cool name?
I like how you think Tinni. But it implies that you could analyze all of the relevant ingredients that make Dead Sea salt special. And based on consumer research that we’ve seen, people would rather have Dead Sea salt (sounds exotic) than a cool made-up name like Regenium Salt or something like that.
can dead sea salt cause dry skin, and light pink dry spots on your skin?
We sell alot of dead sea salts and related products. The dact is alot of people purchase them for Psorias and Eczema relief. I would say that just based on repeat business and customer feedback that they do provide relief and comfort for people with these conditions. Great Post and I agree with your conclusion.
This one shouldn’t even be a question. The Dead Sea has been the source of ingredients with most skin care products like cosmetics and bath salts. Part of the reason why people flock to the Dead Sea is because of its healing properties. More importantly, studies support this.
Hello,
Being a health practitioner I must say that I have used certain creams with dead sea salt in the ingredients and some of my clients claim that it does dry out their skin, perhaps the salt may be too concentrated for certain skin types…it may have healing powers but not everyone is going to always benefit from this. Also the dead sea is evaporating at a frightening rate, sadly it may not be available for the next generation to enjoy!
I totally rely on sea salts to prevent breakouts. I get my sea salts online. I add a few scoops of salt to a bowl and fill with warm water, then soak a wash cloth in the water a wash my face, neck and shoulders. Let it soak in for 5-10 mins. Great results.
Tinni, that’s exactly what’s already happening. I can’t say anything about concentration or efficiency of the actual product, but think about it…
The Dead Sea is dead because it’s so frickin salty that nothing can live there. It’s /insanely/ salty. It’s got salt up the /wazoo/, not to mention a lot of neato minerals.
So what to do with this big hurkin mass of a sea that nothing can even live in? You can purify the water to use locally, but that’s hard to do even with just normal ocean water. The Dead Sea is just a small tourist spot and a big hassle for the people who have jurisdiction over it.
So– stroke of frickin brilliance– why not take the impurities in the water, which is is chock full of, and sell it en masse?
And a cool name? Well, dang, there’s not a lot of places with names cooler than the /Dead Sea/, are there?
It’s like printing your own money.
As for how the end results of the scientific study goes… Seeing how the dead sea salt results are hardly different than the control group, I’d say it’s money in your pocket and a smile on your face if you settle for not-so-mystical normal bath salts for nigh identical results.
I’d like to see a bigger test group though. 30′s a tad small for a study. Then again, I don’t think /I/ could get funding for dead sea salt testing, so I can’t really assume they can.
Still, a boring result in a small group is usually a REALLY boring result in a large group.
Tl;dr: High price for hype.
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