The Benefits of Water in Aquatic Therapy

Welcome back! Today I want to touch on why aquatic therapy is so beneficial. Aquatic therapy has the ability to help individuals facing all types of physical ailments and disabilities. Why though? What is it about aquatic therapy that is yielding such great physical outcomes for those participating?  The answer is simple, the water.

Unlike traditional physical and occupational therapy that takes place on land, aquatic therapy takes place in a pool. The water in the pool has physical properties that make it optimal for therapeutic purposes. These properties include:  buoyancy, hydrostatic pressure and viscosity.            

Buoyancy: Because the human body is less dense than water, the body is naturally buoyant. This buoyancy allows for those with balance deficits to be able to remain upright while performing exercises in water (Becker).  This is especially beneficial to those that cannot stand upright on their own.

Hydrostatic pressure: Hydrostatic pressure is the force exerted on the body from the surrounding water. The hydrostatic pressure present in water helps decrease physical pain and helps to improve range of motion (Becker). This pressure is also calming for the entire nervous system because of the feeling of “compression” the water provides.

Viscosity: Water is highly viscous which provides resistance during exercise. The resistance of the water helps to tone and strengthen muscles without the use of weights (Becker).

Aquatic therapy is an under utilized therapy method that has the potential to help many people with: spinal cord injuries, autism, down syndrome and arthritis. Over the next few weeks, I will be delving into how aquatic therapy helps each of these conditions specifically.

See you next week!

References:

Bruce E. Becker, Aquatic Therapy: Scientific Foundations and Clinical Rehabilitation Applications, PM&R, Volume 1, Issue 9, September 2009, Pages 859-872, ISSN 1934-1482, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.pmrj.2009.05.017

http://www.brainline.org/content/2009/05/creative-therapy-why-aquatic-therapy_pageall.html