Hippocrates went beyond this and his writings speak of curing an illness as re-establishing balance in the body, which was done through water, healthy living, light, diet, massages and psychic calm. These are all values that have seen a strong resurgence today.

Hydrotherapy was considered one of the best therapeutic methods, using cold water, sea water and/or hot water, depending on the particular illness or ailment. During this era, there was a wide range of different application techniques: jets, steam baths, hot and wet compresses, applications of clay. All of these are still currently used today at spas.

The Roman Era was characterised by the existence of public baths in nearly all of the large cities. The extraordinary architectural constructions that housed these baths can still be seen today. Like the empire, the bath culture extended throughout Europe, reaching up to Galicia. Roman hydrotherapy techniques were similar to those of the Greeks, since the principal is the same; to seek balance in the body that has been altered by illness or disease.

Islam adores water

Islam considered hydrotherapy prestigious and Mohammad placed great importance on hygiene and care of the body through water. Rhazes and Avicenna, the latter considered the greatest doctor of the Arab-speaking world, developed hydrotherapy as a technique that was applied through baths, drinks and local applications. 

The dark ages and reappearance thanks to the printing press

In the Europe of the middle ages, the culture of the body and hygiene was abandoned and the knowledge acquired over all these years was forgotten.

The discovery of the printing press in 1450 in Germany helped see the resurgence and dissemination of knowledge about hydrotherapy. In 1498, Juan Miguel Savonarola published ‘De Balneis et Thermis’ considered the first treatise about thermal baths and spa therapy. Subsequently in 1571, Andrea Bacius’ book, ‘De Termis’, summarises the characteristics and effects of medicinal waters and is considered one of the most important works about this subject.

During the 17 ^th and 18 ^th centuries, many doctors studied and developed hydrotherapy, giving it a great boost and widespread dissemination

Kneipp gives a name to one of the famous techniques

At the end of the 18th century, a new generation of doctors started working in the profession, which would lead to a retrocession in the culture of hydrotherapy, due to their zeal to discover new techniques and instructions for each pathology.

However, when Priessnitz came onto the scene, there was a resurgence once again of hydrotherapy. Priessnitz started to apply full or partial baths, compresses and cold water showers combined with the ingestion of water, physical exercise and a healthy diet. His technique was not based solely on the pathology, but also on the reaction of the sick person to the treatment.

Another of the figures who were important to hydrotherapy in this century was Kneipp, who would end up creating one of the most important hydrotherapy techniques that is still in use and relevant today: the ‘Kneipp Cure’, based on fully body or localised applications of cold-water jets. Kneipp also left us with many books on the subject of hydrotherapy, which are currently considered basic to know about.

The 20 ^th century, an époque of splendour

The age of great splendour for hydrotherapy was the 20 ^th century, when social and scientific factors converged that gave it a definitive boost. Studies of medicine in these times helped to understand and improve techniques and true understanding of how the human body functions and improved diagnostics all contributed to the development of hydrotherapy. 

In the Western world at the end of the 20th century where the pace of modern lifestyles and stress, combined with an increase in acquisition power have led people to seek a greater sense of wellbeing and a better quality of life. This has led to a resurgence in hydrotherapy that can be seen at thermal centres, urban spas, thalassotherapy centres, zones for relaxation and rest, anti-stress treatments... a return to the values of Hippocrates.