These vapors, because they are strongly dissolving and evacuating, make the patient feel easy, comfortable, and most cheerful and happy. Consequently, there is a danger of misusing that which is good in itself, of repeating the vapors too frequently, and by this of doing great harm to the health by imprudence.
To extinguish a match, I do not require a smith’s bellows; a soft breath is sufficient.
Today there are no really healthy men, we all are more or less filled with morbid matter, our skin is more or less neglected, we all suffer from too much water in our blood and in our system, a steam bath is therefore a necessity to prevent serious sickness.
Last month we examined the “steam bath in bed,” and this month we explore Kneipp’s “vapor baths,” referenced above. In pursuit of a curative outcome, Kneipp had used the vapor bath for several years, evolving from his continuous refinements to the implementation of the steam bath. Much like the surge in infrared saunas of today, in the 19th century the Russian steam bath was popular, spawning an industry to accommodate the demand for cabinets for clinics and homes to facilitate these baths. Attractive advertisements began appearing in Lust’s journals, enticing Naturopaths to incorporate the latest steam bath cabinet (Figure 1).n Lust’s first health journal, Amerikanischen Kneipp Blätter, published 1896-1899, the prominent language was German, with occasional articles in English, the latter mostly about Father Sebastian Kneipp [1821-1897] water therapies. In a series appearing in several issues in 1899, Kneipp outlined the procedures for “vapor baths.” Kneipp had passed away 2 years earlier; however, Lust had been mandated by the great man shortly before his death in 1896 to spread the word about water-cure therapies. It appears from the available archives that Lust translated lectures and sections from Kneipp’s books and used these in his new publishing endeavors.
These steam cabinets allowed a patient to sit inside and experience a whole body steam bath, except for the head. So effective were these new contraptions that “within a few minutes the whole body [would be] completely enveloped by the hottest vapor.” (Kneipp, 1899, p.16) Kneipp, known for his freezing-cold water applications, had experimented himself with the vapor baths, including the Russian steam bath. His disappointment with the results led him to modify the Russian steam bath according to the same principles that he applied to his water therapies. Kneipp summarized his golden rule for these therapies: “The gentlest application is always the best.” (Kneipp, 1899, p.17) What Kneipp discovered was that when steam baths were delivered to just part of the body, the healing reactions were greater.
Kneipp iterates that the vapor bath was to be applied “in the gentlest manner and therefore entirely without harm and danger.” (Kneipp, 1899, p.16) In any case, knowing when to prescribe a vapor or steam bath is essential in doing no harm. Those who were least suited to vapors were the patients with “poor blood,” to which patients Kneipp administered very few vapor baths. Instead of vapor treatments, Kneipp would instruct the patient to receive half-baths and gushes. These 2 water applications used cold water temperatures.
Another suggestion that Lust provides for the mechanics of a head steam bath is to “take two chairs and put the seats together; sit astride of one of the chairs… and put on the other chair a vessel of boiling water over which the head is held.” (Lust, 1904, p.108) The vapor foot bath, on the other hand, had the patient seated on a chair with his feet resting on a stool that was placed in a tub of boiling water, with the water level below the uppermost surface of the stool. When the patient was ready, a blanket was snuggly placed over the feet and the tub of steaming water.
For the vapor foot bath, the duration suggested was between 15 and 20 minutes. Before the days of electrical convenience, Kneipp did not have at his disposal electrical warming units to keep water hot and steaming. Thus, hot bricks were added to the water to maintain the flow of steam. Today, we have numerous easy and safe devices at our disposal to keep water hot and steaming.
The simple elegance of these protocols is matched by their unrelenting effectiveness. That the early Naturopaths relied heavily on water in various manifestations is testament to their principles-driven and experience-driven medicine. Invariably committed to do no harm, they were exceptionally skilled at developing techniques using the basic elements of air, earth, and water, which they consistently refined and perfected for their patients and colleagues.
In the spirit of Kneipp and Lust, Dr Cathy Rogers of Washington is widely known for her present-day, inventive, even brilliant interplay of creative, simple equipment constructions and masterful processes to mimic a steam bath. She uses bamboo rods attached to the chair of the patient to suspend the blanket so that it does not touch the patient and interfere with the steam bath. The remarkable tools and practices of our forebears live on.
Sussanna Czeranko ND, BBE, incorporates “nature-cure” approaches to primary care by including balneotherapy, breathing therapy, and nutrition into her naturopathic practice. Dr Czeranko is a faculty member working as the Rare Books curator at NCNM and is currently compiling a 12-volume series based upon the journals published early in the last century by Benedict Lust. Four of the books have been published: Origins of Naturopathic Medicine, Philosophy of Naturopathic Medicine, Dietetics of Naturopathic Medicine, and Principles of Naturopathic Medicine. In addition to her work in balneotherapy, she is the founder of the Breathing Academy, a training institute for naturopaths to incorporate a scientific model of breathing therapy called Buteyko into their practice. She is a founding board member of the International Congress of Naturopathic Medicine and a member of the International Society of Medical Hydrology.
Kneipp, S. (1899). Water applications. Amerikanischen Kneipp Blätter, IV (1), 16-17.
Kneipp, S. (1899). Water applications, (continuation). Amerikanischen Kneipp Blätter, IV (2), 47-48.
Kneipp, S. (1899). Water applications, (continuation). Amerikanischen Kneipp Blätter, IV (3), 78-79.
Lust, B. (1900). The steam bath and its usefulness. The Kneipp Water Cure Monthly, I (2), 20.
Lust, B. (1900). Special vapor application. The Kneipp Water Cure Monthly, I (6), 102.
Lust, B. (1904). Naturopathy VII. The Naturopath and Herald of Health, V (4), 84-87.
Lust, B. (1904). Naturopathy VIII. The Naturopath and Herald of Health, V (4), 108-109.
Kuhne, L. (1917). My remedial agents. Herald of Health and Naturopath, XXII (6), 359-368.