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HEALTHY SIDE OF ASHEVILLE

We are excited that a national publication has written about our Salt Cave and Asheville.

On October 3, 2015 Kimberly Nicoletti, a freelance writer and editor, had her article published in the VailDaily on their Travel website. The article is titled “Health and Wealth in Asheville, with decadent mansions and healing salt caves. ” Here is an excerpt from the article.

Vanderbilt and Edwin Wiley Grove, visionary of the Grove Park Inn, built their properties to support and encourage health, and Asheville still resonates with healthy-living lifestyle.

The Asheville Wellness Tour allows visitors to delve into three areas: a salt cave, a yoga tour including savasana, which helps the body reset itself, and Wake, a foot sanctuary offering handmade soaps, salts and pure oils (www.ashevillesaltcave.com/ashevilles-wellness-tour).

If you can just choose one healthy locale in Asheville, then head to Asheville’s Salt Cave, the nation’s only sustainable, growing salt cave built solely of natural materials (salt, wood and water). A large fountain and salt blocks mined from the Dead Sea, Poland and the Himalayans create a healing microclimate.

The Appels brought in a team from Poland after nearly three years of researching how to create a proper salt-crystal microclimate. Owner Beth Appel said they became inspired after a 45-minute session in a salt cave relieved her husband’s chronic asthma for weeks. In addition to respiratory problems, salt therapy has been employed by various cultures for hundreds of years to treat skin issues, arthritis, depression, digestive ailments, migraines, insomnia and even poor concentration. Its negative ions are believed to increase serotonin and flow of oxygen to the brain, as well as contribute to a sterile environment. The heated salt crystals also release 84 trace minerals and elements essential to human’s health.

Unlike most other caves, the Asheville Salt Cave surrounds visitors in 20 tons of salt, from the ceiling pieces and crushed pebbles on the floor (which you’re welcome to play with, place a handful on your forehead or otherwise indulge in) to the large, up to 300-pound chunks emanating from the dimly lit walls. Zero-gravity lounge chairs and an initial guided meditation enable guests to relax and restore in 45-minute sessions.

However you decide to tour Asheville — be it health, wealth or both — you’ll find some of the best natural resources intertwined with architecture and innovation, which make for a thoroughly enchanting Southern stay.

To read the entire article go to: http://www.vaildaily.com/news/18461802-113/vail-daily-travel-health-and-wealth-in-asheville.

 

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The secret of our cave is simple: the air is enriched with salt trace elements and ions.

These elements, which the human body absorbs through respiration and through our pores, are essential to our existence. The result is: bodily relaxation and rehabilitation where the body and mind come to a perfect balance and one feels rejuvenated and is filled with well-being.

We all live a stressful life with our workloads and work conditions. More and more of us are looking for ways to reduce our stress and increase our health. With less and less time to experience relaxation, rest and rejuvenation we are looking for ways to balance our professional and personal lives. We are looking for ways to reward ourselves. Some of us may be looking for ways to lose weight, reduce or stop smoking, or treat our health issues with a natural method. All of these can be addressed by visiting the Asheville Salt Cave on a regular basis. Ten consecutive sessions have the ability to complete a rejuvenation cycle in which one will observe the differences in stress levels and physical fitness of ones organism.

Salt therapy is an experience for both the body and the spirit.

It offers well-being, relaxation and the strengthening of the human organism. Just one visit is enough for one to discover the relaxing and beneficial properties of the rejuvenating salt cave. What one feels after their first session is almost magical and it will bring your body and your mind into a state of perfect balance.

The Asheville Salt Cave, through the use of mineral crystal salt rocks, has created a micro-climate that reproduces the therapeutic properties of the atmosphere of a salt mine. By keeping the temperature in the salt cave constant (between 68 and 70 degrees) with a humidity of 50% the mineral salt naturally releases its healthy ions and trace minerals into the air without losing its crystal structure and attributes. Sea salt is not a crystal and does not have this same behavior, therefore we keep it to a minimum in the cave.

Asheville salt cave does NOT use any type of Gypsum or salt panels in the cave. We do not use any artificial resins. These become bacteria nests. We also keep our sea salt to a minimum and only use it on the floor, due to its low ion generation, quality and purity. There is no use of salt tiles (except for wheel chair access to our cave) because these man-made tiles do not comply with the therapeutic requirements. There is no mechanical or artificial means of “spraying salt”. The natural micro-climate of the salt cave is rich in beneficial ions and trace elements which kill bacteria and other harmful micro-organisms through natural means. Heating the floor, which is covered in Himalayan, Polish mineral and Dead Sea salt helps to generate ions. The two water features contain a concentrated solution of mineral salt and water creating a Sole’, which is  similar to the primal ocean, the water in our body and embryonic fluid. These two water features are natural ionizers which enrich the atmosphere of the salt cave with additional salt ions.

The Asheville Salt Cave uses two types of lighting. There are special photo-diodes scattered throughout the ceiling along with crystal salt lamps in the walls of the cave. Together these diffuse light through the salt and create color therapy systems which have a positive affect on stress, fatigue and depression. Your body absorbs the energy from these systems into its nervous system to the point where it is most needed.

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Thanks to the natural low moisture content, Himalayan Salt Slabs can be heated or chilled to extreme temperatures. They work equally well on grills, stove tops, in the oven or as a serving platter for cold food presentations. The possibilities of cooking with Himalayan Salt Slabs are endless.

Cooking at the proper temperature is the most important guideline to follow when working with a salt slab. It is imperative to take the time to properly and adequately preheat the salt slab. Failure to do so may result in salty food and could effect the integrity of the salt slab. The thermal  qualities of the salt slab make for an ideal cooking surface to sear, bake and roast a wide variety of foods.

The salt slab is susceptible to thermal shock (breaking due to dramatic changes in temperature). Therefore always follow these siple guidelines when heating and cooking on your salt slab.

  1. Handle the heated plate carefully. It is extremely HOT
  2. When cooking on an electric stove top you will something that is heat safe to elevate the salt slab so that it sits just above the burner. A good recommendation is a cake or pastry ring.
  3. To heat your salt slab begin on low for 15 minutes, set to medium for 15 minutes and then turn your burner on high for and additional 15 minutes . Your salt slab is now ready for cooking.
  4. To use the salt slab in the oven begin preheating t 250 degrees for 15 minutes, increase the temperature to 325 degrees for 15 minutes and again raise the temperature to 400 degrees for 15 minutes. Use of a salt slab under a broiler is NOT recommended.
  5. When cooking on an outdoor gas grill place the salt slab parallel over a burner bar on the grill grate. Preheat the salt slab as you would for indoor cooking. Feel free to close the grill hood after you’ve ensured the burner has been lit for the first phase of preheating. When using a charcoal grill be sure to set the grill up with 3 separate heat zones. On the far left there should be open space with NO charcoal. In the middle a single layer of lit charcoal and on the far right a double layer of charcoal. Once the charcoal is lit start preheating with the salt slab on the left for 15 minutes, move it to the middle for 15 minutes and finish on the far right for another 15 minutes.
  6. Watch our blog in the coming weeks for several tasty recipes for use with your salt slab.

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“It all comes Full Circle”, this is so true of what the Asheville’s Therapeutic Salt Cave brings to Asheville, clean pure air in a micro-climate.

Through out history tuberculosis was treated with clean fresh air! Asheville’s setting in the mountains and large homes or boarding houses with wide front porches, helped provide that. The Mountain Sanatorium, advertised in William Gleitsmann’s pamphlet Mountain Sanitarium for Pulmonary Diseases, Asheville, N.C., published in the 1870s, argues that Asheville “has for a long time been visited by such patients, and its climate is well known to exert a beneficial influence on Consumptives” (p. 1). “The pure, clean mountain air,” combined with the “southerly situation,” make Asheville pleasant in both winter and summer (p. 1). The sanitarium opened under the charge of the author, Dr. William Gleitsmann of Baltimore. Stressing the importance of adequate nutrition to successful convalescence, the institution offered patients a “rich, nutritious diet, suitable to their condition, along with “board, including light, fire and nurse” for “$10 to $12, according to rooms, payable weekly in advance” (p. 1).

The microclimate of our cave is created by keeping it at a constant temperature and humidity and by feeding the saturated air with “sole”, a highly saturated  solution of salt and water,  from our two water features. Our Salt Cave is the only one in the United States that is sustainable and growing and free from any artificial or mechanical grinding of salt. One is totally immersed in a “sea” of microscopic salt.

Your body absorbs the microclimate through your lungs, by breathing it in and through your skin.

So once again Asheville offers tourists and residents alike the opportunity to experience an environment of clean pure air.

Call today to schedule your “me time”. 828-236-5999. Take 45 minutes out of your day, Just For You!!

 

 

 

 

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ASHEVILLE AS A HEALTH RETREAT

As far back as 1795, records show that the area of Asheville, NC was regarded as a place to come to heal oneself. The Indians used the area as a neutral ground for their sick and took advantage of the area around Hot Springs. The climate was regarded as optimal because its components of temperature, barometric pressure, etc were measured by a physician who wanted to find the best place for his patients to recuperate. From the late 1880’s to the 1930’s Asheville rose in prominence as a curative place for tuberculosis. Boarding houses with large open air front porches were abundant. In the 1870s Dr. H. P. Gatchell, one of the pioneers treating TB published a pamphlet promoting the advantages of the Asheville climate for health seekers. As a result numerous sanitariums were built in Asheville specifically for the treatment of this contagious condition. It is no wonder that Asheville today has people coming to for specialized treatment. Mission – St. Joseph Hospital is a prime medical center for Western North Carolina. While Asheville itself is considered to be “The New Age Mecca of the East”. Based on the history of Asheville and its present day attraction for holistic healing, Asheville Salt Cave, after doing a great deal of research, chose Asheville as “the place” to share this amazing healing space with. We believe that we are a perfect fit for the area. Salt therapy has been well known and documented in Europe for centuries. It is only within the past 10 years that this form of natural healing has been brought to the United States. Asheville Salt Cave’s mission Is to help people who are suffering from various respiratory illnesses such as bronchitis, sinusitis, asthma, hay-fever, pneumonia, wheezing, cold or cough with a drug-free solution which is free from side-effects. We focus on the source of the problem rather than just suppressing the symptoms like medication usually does. However, we make no medical claims and recommend that all medical conditions be treated by a physician competent in treating that particular condition. We have replicated the microclimate found in natural salt caves in Europe, through the use of 20 tons of imported Polish Salt, water features which are natural halo generators, and controlled temperature and humidity within the healing space. Let Us Put Salt Into Your Life !

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The Asheville Salt Cave is the only Salt Cave in the United States that is sustainable and growing. It is fashioned after the Wieliezka Mine in Poland, the largest Salt Therapy Center in the world. We have recreated the micro-climate of a natural salt cave through the use of a constant temperature, a constant humidity and two natural ionizers that feed the cave with sole’ (a saturated solution of salt and water). Our Salt Cave contains nothing artificial. It consists of materials found in nature, wood, rocks, water and 20 tons of salt rock crystals weighing between 6 oz and 300 pounds each . The floor of the cave is a combination of Polish, Himalayan, Dead Sea Salt. We keep the sea salt to a minimum because of its low ion quality, as compared to the large rocks that make up our walls and ceiling. Come experience Salt Therapy at its best.

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Think about a stressful situation you’re facing at the moment —something small or something epic. Close your eyes and scan your body, noticing where you feel tension when you think about this tough situation. It might take a minute to find the spot. (Good places to check: jaw, shoulders, belly, chest, throat.) Rest your hand on the tense spot and take a comfortable inhale, imagining the breath flowing into and around the spot. Exhale naturally, all the way out.

Repeat a few times, letting your breath take  you right into the center of the tension; your hand will help remind you to direct the breath.  If you’ve noticed tension in more than one spot, move your hand – and your breath – to another spot and repeat.  Then relax, eyes closed, hands in your lap, and feel the new softness of those spots. You can do this exercise anytime, anywhere, even with your eyes open — and even if you’re not sure what the source of the tension is.Breathe! Breathing into tightness and softening creates a gentle space for tension to relax.

We have created a space for you to enjoy moments like this and to gain the benefits of salt, music and light therapy at the same time.  Come breathe in our enriched micro-climate and enjoy it’s calming effect.

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Scientific research has shown that the amount of ions in the environment, that is acceptable by humans is 1000-1500/cm3. In closed rooms where a few people work at the same time or a room where electronic appliances are utilized the amount of negative ions may fall to as low as 200/cm3. In order to increase the number of negative ions in the environment, air ionizers are used. These air ionizers generate the negative ions and balance the atmosphere of the room. You can experience this effect by a visit to the Wieliczka Salt Mine, by going to the ocean, or by taking a walk right after a storm. In areas where negative ions are naturally produced, there can be a negative ion concentration of up to 10,000 negative ions per cubic centimeter. This is one of the reasons people often report feeling renewed or refreshed after a storm or after being  at the beach.

The harmful effect of electric smog, resulting in the concentration of positive ions, deteriorates the condition of air in rooms, and then negatively affects our physical and emotional state. Therefore it is important to reduce this to a minimum.   To help you remove electric smog, we suggest having Salt Lamps in your homes and offices. These are made from a natural salt crystal, and are natural air ionizers that effectively boost the number of negative ions in a room. The effect of air ionization by salt originates from physical and chemical properties of salt. In salt lamps the ionization effect is additionally enhanced by heating the salt crystal with a bulb installed inside the lamp. As a result, the lamp improves the quality of our environment, and thus our well-being. Since things like airborne mold, bacteria, and allergens often carry a positive charge, they can be neutralized by the negative ions of a Salt Lamp, as well.

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himalayanheartVisiting the salt cave can be very beneficial for people with heart and circulatory conditions. The salt rocks in our cave contain 84 trace elements that our bodies need and crave. Several of them are essential for good heart and circulation health.

Bromine –  helps to lower blood pressure and regulate the Nervous System

Iron – is an essential component of hemoglobin. It helps to improve muscle strength (your heart is a muscle)   and concentration. It helps reduce susceptibility to infection.

Copper – has anti-fungal properties and affects the synthesis of hemoglobin

Selenium – fights viral infections, blocks free radicals, slows down the skin aging process

People with heart and circulatory conditions will find that a visit to our salt cave may help with insufficient circulation and post heart attack hypertension.

A 45 minute visit to our salt cave will help relax you, reduce your stress, and give you a calm sense of being. This will result in helping to keep your heart healthy.

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Local Flavor’s Recharge Station IMG_0397held it’s ribbon cutting ceremony last evening at the Asheville Airport.

 

IMG_0399Asheville Salt Cave is proud to be one of the 10 businesses displayed at the recharge station where an offer of “Buy One Salt Cave Session and Get One Free” is featured as their “daily scoop”.

The new Recharge Station is located opposite the bag claim. Visitors are encouraged to use the station to recharge their cell phones, tablets and computers while waiting for their luggage to arrive. If you are at the airport be sure to stop by and check out the local art and music associated with this unique information booth.

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mm12h7v0There’s something more than salt in our cave. It’s negative ions! By regulating serotonin levels in the brain negative ions create a very relaxed state of mind. Warning: negative ions may cause happy mood swings! Book your next #saltcave session today!

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Uniquely Unwind and Rejuvenate Yourself at Asheville’s Therapeutic Salt Cave
BY AMY KOBOS · JANUARY 1, 2015

If you’ve ever read any of Dr. Suess’s books or enjoyed his whimsical illustrations, you probably could picture if he created a real-life city. This would be Asheville, North Carolina – The city where you can find nuns riding bicycles and people in cat costumes on stilts playing banjo. Asheville is liberal and creative about pretty much everything you can think of, but one thing is for certain – it’s a health and wellness community. Smack in the middle of Downtown Asheville at 12 Eagle Street is Asheville’s Therapeutic Salt Cave. It doesn’t matter if you’re a local or just traveling through, this is something you’ve got to experience. Submerge yourself into a cave absolutely full of salt. Even the walls are covered with actual salt rocks. When you step into the kernels of salt, it’s as if you are walking on the beach. This is no iodized salt my friends. This is high mineral density salt which comes in various sizes, anywhere from pea size to large rocks.

Most of the salt comes from Poland, and it is believed that this type of salt possesses health benefits. In the 1950s, Polish salt cave miners rarely ever developed tuberculosis. People caught wind of this more recently, but therapeutic salt caves have been popular since the 1800s because of it’s advantageous properties.

Who benefits from a salt cave and how does it work?

Whether it’s relieving stress, getting peace of mind, or alleviating asthmatic conditions, most everyone will benefit. Halotherapy or speleotherapy is therapy utilizing a microclimate, and in this case, nanoparticles of salt are diffused into the air. Research shows that when you breathe in the diffused salt, it enhances mucociliary clearance, helping to relieve respiratory conditions. If you are undergoing chemotherapy or have hypothyroidism or kidney disease, please check in with your doctor or call the facility to discuss these conditions prior to your services.The relaxing microclimate of the salt cave offers a couple of water features as well as dim lights, calming music, blankets, and antigravity chairs. Temperatures usually stay around 70 degrees. The cave is co-ed, but plenty of space to find your special spot, as the cave only holds up to 10 at a time. So, relax and enjoy. Just inhale and exhale and let yourself float away.

What I loved the most (besides the cave, of course) was being able to help myself to the array of exquisite teas provided by Dobra Tea of Asheville.Because they don’t rush you before or after the salt cave sessions, you can sip your tea, walk around and enjoy the unique salt spa gift shop. A typical session at Asheville’s Therapeutic Salt Cave lasts around 45 minutes (always get there at least 15 minutes beforehand). An adult session is $25, but on Tuesdays for locals (with proof of residence), it’s only $15. Kids are welcome, but make sure you make notification upon appointment, as kids are designated into their own sessions where it will not interfere with other visitors’ sessions who need peace and quiet. You can sign up online or call (828) 236-5999.

But wait, there’s more! Massages are available and reasonably priced. And for couples, you can even get massages in the salt cave. How freakin’ cool. Asheville’s Therapeutic Salt Cave is affordable, relaxing and rejuvinating. Let your stress float away, make peace and let your body embrace this unique Downtown Asheville experience.

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Magic-Salt-SockEar aches and infections are a terrible thing to experience as a child. You not only have a fever that makes you weak, but you also have to confront the constant earache pain . With autumn slowly installing its rainy self into each day of the week, a homemade solution to counter such discomfort is very welcomed.  The  Himalayan salt  will retain the heat because of the 84 minerals present in it, so combined with the fever (do not lower it) you can adjust the pain until the organism deals with the infection. But instead of this explanation, you can tell the young patient that the sock is magical; it will work great on their mood. A Salt Sock is basically just a white cotton sock filled with Coarse Himalayan Salt … and You will need a clean – ALL WHITE sock.

Follow these simple instructions to help reduce the pain caused by ear infections.

You will need about 1 – 1.5 cups of Coarse Himalayan Salt.  It has to be coarse or it will seep out of the sock .

Heat it in a clean skillet, over medium-low heat for about 4-6 minutes – pick it up and shake it around and flip it every minute or so, so it will heat evenly.

Heat until it is very warm, but not burning to the touch.

Magic-Salt-Sock-1

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Magic-Salt-SockEar aches and infections are a terrible thing to experience as a child. You not only have a fever that makes you weak, but you also have to confront the constant earache pain . With autumn slowly installing its rainy self into each day of the week, a homemade solution to counter such discomfort is very welcomed.  The  Himalayan salt  will retain the heat because of the 84 minerals present in it, so combined with the fever (do not lower it) you can adjust the pain until the organism deals with the infection. But instead of this explanation, you can tell the young patient that the sock is magical; it will work great on their mood. A Salt Sock is basically just a white cotton sock filled with Coarse Himalayan Salt … and You will need a clean – ALL WHITE sock.

Follow these simple instructions to help reduce the pain caused by ear infections.

You will need about 1 – 1.5 cups of Coarse Himalayan Salt.  It has to be coarse or it will seep out of the sock .

Heat it in a clean skillet, over medium-low heat for about 4-6 minutes – pick it up and shake it around and flip it every minute or so, so it will heat evenly.

Heat until it is very warm, but not burning to the touch.

Magic-Salt-Sock-1

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himalayanheartPut a Himalayan Salt Heart in of your coat pockets for use as a handy hand sanitizer! Salt is a great way to kill the bacteria that we pick up on our hands throughout the day. A Himalayan Salt Heart is the perfect size and shape for your palm. Just rub the heart and get a small coating on the hands and rub them together. Keep several around the home, school or office as a useful ornament that looks lovely and is at the ready whenever you need a quick hand cleansing.