| We love Epsom salt baths and pretend to be mermaids |
Every Biomed mum worth her salt (pun intended) knows the importance of Epsom Salt ie. magnesium sulphate. Epsom Salt baths are part of basic Biomed, one of the first things we can start safely ourselves. The benefits are enormous, the side-effects if any are rare.
“The magnesium and sulfate in the salts are absorbed into the body through the skin. Because the sulfur is already in the sulfate form, it does not need to be converted like other forms of sulfur do. Sulfate is thought to circulate in the body up to about nine hours. Any Epsom salts left on the skin may continue to be absorbed as long as it is still on the skin, offering continuous ‘timed-released’ input into the bloodstream – like medications given through skin patches. Many people on a typical ‘modern’ processed diet are very deficient in magnesium as well, which Epsom salts also supply in a highly available form. Main effects of insufficient magnesium are hyperness, irritability, anxiety, and muscle twitching or spasms. So the salts may provide two-way assistance.” ~ Karen Defelice, Enzyme Stuff.com
We use prodigious amounts of Epsom Salts and buy it in bulk. Buying retail is usually more expensive, plus you’d have to buy trolley-fulls of little packets or boxes of Epsom Salts at the pharmacy or certain supermarkets. I usually get enquiries from salesclerks and other customers when they see me clearing out the entire shelf and loading up my shopping cart. This happened constantly last year when it seemed the whole of KL ran out of stock of Epsom Salts, retail and wholesale.
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| Daddy plays fun games with the towel |
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| I love it when Daddy makes silly faces:-) |
We dissolve it in warm baths and encourage our kids to soak in it for 10-15 minutes. We use lots of bath toys and play silly games in the hopes that our little darlings will stay in the bath long enough. Hubby was especially great at keeping Mei occupied long enough to stay in the tub. Initially, my very hyper eldest daughter who was diagnosed with autism, could barely stay in the bath for 2 minutes. We put a clock in the bathroom and timed it, eventually we got up to 20 minutes.
Some of us jump into the bath together with our kids, this usually works best for me when both my girls were at their most hyper. They love it when mummy joins them in the splashing fun and wants to stay longer in the bath. However, that was a long time ago, they are no longer hyper and love bath time. Though occasionally I still jump into the tub with them coz it certainly cheers me up after a long and tiring day.
We usually dissolve half a cup of Epsom Salts into a bathtub of warm water, more if it’s a deep bath. I prefer to pour some Epsom Salts into very warm water in a separate container, stir until completely dissolved, then I pour it into the bathtub. My hubby takes a shortcut and just dump the salts into the tub. This tends to leave the bottom of the tub gritty, it takes a long time to dissolve and can be extremely uncomfortable for female private parts. We call this ‘sandy bottom syndrome’ in our home, usually occurs when Daddy is in charge of bath time and I’m not there to remind ie. nag him. So, for Super Dads out there with daughters, remember to pre-dissolve the salts first!
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| Need a bigger basin and more cooking utensils! |
Those without bathtubs at home make do with large plastic basins. For variety, we even bring the basin to the garden and pretend we’re in a jungle pool. The smaller the body of water, the less Epsom Salts we need, so this is a great cost saving method not to mention conserving water. However, in my household, at times all 4 of us are in the tub together, this is a rare treat for the girls indeed. Though a bit overcrowded, it’s certainly fun for the whole family!
Most kids do Epsom Salt baths daily, for some their biomed doctor would recommend to do the baths twice a day. Epsom Salt baths are recommended especially after our kids swim in chlorinated swimming pools. There are several ways to use Epsom Salts, bathing is popular, so is spraying on the skin, applying it as a cream, as a footbath or in an oil base. Some resourceful mothers mix Epsom Salts with water and pour it into a bottle with a spray nozzle. After swimming, the kids take a quick shower then Mum will spritz them all over with the Epsom Salts spray and let it dry on the skin. There are sprays available for sale online, but most parents make do with home-made spritzers. You can also buy Kirkman’s Magnesium Sulfate cream www.spectrumsupplements.com though personally I find it’s quite expensive and not good value for money. However, I use the cream when traveling or when baths are not possible. Karen DeFelice’s site offers a great recipe for homemade Magnesium Sulfate cream.
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| Bath time necessities |
Do not use any soaps or shampoos as this will neutralize the effects of the magnesium sulfate. Don’t rinse off with clean water after the bath, we want to encourage the salts to soak and penetrate into our pores. Letting it dry on the skin after a bath is best, though it may not be practical. So a gentle pat dry with a towel is better than rubbing the towel to dry your child. I usually just pat their faces dry and wrap them in a towel for a couple of minutes, in the Malaysian heat, they’ll dry within seconds.
Personally, my girls and I like to put a few drops of lavender oil in the bath as it has a calming effect, especially great before bedtime. I especially love therapeutic-grade Lavender essential oils. Some parents like to add a bit of baking soda into the bath ie. Sodium bicarbonate for detox purposes.
As you can see, we’ve got Barbie Mermaid dolls, rubber duckies, swimming goggles and sometimes even my cooking spoons get into the bath too. Little teapots and watering cans are especially fun in the bath too.
Thanks to our resourceful Super Mums, we’ve sourced a new Epsom Salts distributor in Malaysia. Please contact them below;
Matahari Organic
No.24, Jalan SS23/11, Taman Sea
Petaling Jaya
47400 Malaysia
enquiry@matahariorganic.com http://www.matahariorganic.com/
603-78045861, 603-78035174, 603-78055381
They offer a special rate of RM10 per kg (minimum purchase of 25kg) for parents of special children. For those outside of Klang Valley, do inquire about delivery. Please contact the owner Mr. Choo 016-2858048 directly since he is the only one at the moment who knows about the special rate. If you need it to be re-packaged to smaller bags, please ask if he can assist. They charge a small fee to deliver to your home, RM8.00 to my doorstep. No more driving to industrial areas through heavy traffic and lugging 25kg sacks!
Spectrum Mum in Malaysia 
>Gosh, when I was a kid, I never wanted to get out of the bath! Had to be repeatedly told to stop playing with the water and to get on with bathing. The games I played with just one sponge! Wonder why your girls are in a such a hurry to get out.
>thanx for the info.been trying to find it since u mentioned it to me last year :-))
>thanks for the info. i have been doing the baths for several months but also with a bubbly soap… I will stop the soap and see if there is a difference.thanks again for this continued blog – it is so helpful! Hope you feel better soon!
>Pei Sze- as a kid, I too could spend ages in the bath tub, especially in Malaysia in those days when bath tubs were rare. My kids were hyper-active, short attention span and non-compliant at that time lah. Maya also had an issue about sitting in the bath, she preferred to stand up, so getting her to sit was a great feat already. What can I say, my girls don't make it easy:-)
>Just found your blog while researching Epsom salt as I have been giving my kids a daily Epsom salt bath to help our severe eczema. Great blog.
I bought the epsom salt from Matahari and have been using it for a week. However, I don’t see the white powdery residue left on the skin. Is it the salt or am I not doing it right? I use 1 cup in a baby bath tub which my daughter soaks in for 20 minutes. Hope you can shed some light. Thanks!
Hi Jacqueline,
Just because we don’t see any residue doesn’t mean it isn’t helping. And we don’t want the powdery effect anyway. 1 cup in a baby bath tub is A LOT. More is not necessarily better. 1/4 cup in that volume of water is heaps.
Marissa
Thanks Marissa. I read on websites about the white residue that should be left on their bodies as time-release of magnesium sulphate. So I was quite gung ho by increasing more salt in the hope of achieving a powdery residue as I thought it was a neccesary after-effect. I will cut down as advised. Appreciate your feedback. You have a great blog.
Hi Jacqueline,
Thanks. You can also make your own Epsom Salt cream, just a thought. However, too much sulphation may not be well tolerated by everyone. So in moderation please:-)
Marissa
Hey, I stumble here while trying to find out more about epsom salt for baths. Today I went to Cold Storage to look for Epsom Salt but I couldn’t find the it, but I found a twin packet of salts called Himalayan Rock Salt 500g (Fine) and it says it’s great for baths. The other pack, Portuguese Sea Salt 500g. The twin pack costs RM7.50 now instead of 9.40.
Could I use Sea Salt for Baths as well? or are they not the same. This is my first time 😦 trying to figure this out.
You can go to a pharmacy or organic store to buy it instead. It must say Epsom Salt, not sea salt or rock salt. They are different. Epsom salt is magnesium sulfate.
Excellent info……….
I,SILENTLY FOUND A FRIEND IN YOU…
On doctor’s recommendation, i just started soaking my feet in epsom salt for 30 minutes a day (no bath tub). My skin is by nature excessively dry. Can i apply a layer of pure petroleum jelly onto the feet immediately after soaking in epsom salt? Thank you.
Hi Irene, yes you can. Coconut oil is also suitable. For very dry skin or eczema, taking fish oil or flaxseed oil daily provides the essential fatty acid and Omega 3. You can also and perhaps a bit of evening primrose oil will also help.
I realized after using Epsom salt on my feet, i feel smooth and soft on both feet. And at initial stage, there were like dead skin or perhaps some particles which i do not know what they are peeled off from my feet, as time passes, after couple of times soaking, i don\’t see those anymore.
It was good somehow, i was having ache on my ankle joint yesterday night, and i quickly soak my feet with Epsom salt and i kind of forgotten that i even had the aches earlier on.
Btw, i would like to find out, how much do i need to pour onto the pail for soaking my feet? I would like to soak my full body with it however i do not have a bath tub, so i do not know if i could ever try it out? Any suggestion? Can i just shower with it? And how do i prepare the spray? Can it be used on the face for pimples / acne, white/black heads or etc? Would love to find out more ways to benefit from this salt.
Thank you in advance.
Hi Eelyn,
How much epsom salts may depend on the person. I use 1 cup of Epsom Salts in a large bathtub, but after my girls go swimming in a chlorinated pool, I use 1.5 cups. But for some children, they can’t tolerate too much, so just a few tablespoons of epsom salts in a large bath is more than sufficient. I would start with 1 tablespoon in a pail if you’re doing foot baths.
Hmmm, I’m not sure if I’d shower with it, it’s a waste of the epsom salt perhaps? But sometimes if I don’t have time to run a full bath, I just fill the tub halfway and use a bucket to pour over my girls again and again, same effect as soaking. then you can also make your own spray or cream. This is an excellent article on the benefits of epsom salts and how to make creams and sprays, even the ratio of salt to water.http://www.enzymestuff.com/epsomsalts.htm You can also buy magnesium oil in Malaysia.
I’m not sure if Epsom salts will help with acne and skin conditions. For skin, taking fish oil or flaxseed oil orally helps. So does eliminating allergenic foods e.g. dairy or wheat. If yeast overgrowth or candida is the cause of the skin problems, then oral and topical antifungals will help. A few drops of tea tree oil into water and splash it on your face may help. But, I’m not a dermatologist or skin specialist, this is just from my experience. But I do know for a fact epsom salts or tea tree oil does NOT help with blackheads, I’ve been doing the bath for years and I still have blackheads!
Good luck,
Marissa
Hi Marissa
I’ve jst ordered my very 1st 5kg Epsom Salt from Matahari Organics. I hav a relatively big basin, but enough for 1 child. Should i change the water and dissolve another cup of Epsom salt for different child?
Plz advise. Thank you, thank you, thank you….
Hi Yenny, you can use the same bath water. Provided you didn’t add any soap or shampoo to it. I’ve soaked in the bath after the kids are done in it, it is not as ‘potent’ as a fresh bath but I can still feel some relaxing effects.
hi.do u still get epsom wholesale frm the above mentioned supplier? tq