Water Cure For Cellulite
- Myth Or Magic?

There are two approaches to the water cure for cellulite. One advocate is the internal approach - drinking lots of water to flush out so called cellulite causing toxins. And the other is by utilizing a spa-based approach, where lots of hot baths are taken regularly. The hot baths are supposed to increase circulation and also remove 'toxins'. But does either approach actually work?

Unfortunately, the short answer is "Not Really"! Therapeutic baths, and drinking water, can definitely provide health benefits. But they will not cure your cellulite. Let's look at the two more closely.

Water Cure For Cellulite - The Detox Approach

At the heart of this cellulite cure is the belief common to many in the natural health field - that toxins contribute to, or cause cellulite. This is incorrect. Whilst we don't know exactly what causes cellulite, we do know that genetics, and the way our skin is structured, plays a significant role. Genetics influences our appearance and metabolism in many ways, but specific to cellulite is the fact that the number of fibrous septae in our connective tissue are genetically determined. Fibrous septae are vertical fibers covering the muscles of our thighs, hips and butts. They hold our skin, sitting above the top layer of fat, to the connective tissue beneath these layers.

They are implicated in cellulite because in women, particularly in women with a cellulite problem, there are fewer fibrous septae. With less of them, they cannot hold the fat cells in place. The fat cells bulge up, and we see cellulite.

Thus, it can be seen toxins play absolutely no role in the matter. If they did, men would get cellulite as much as women do - perhaps more so, given women are more likely to be health conscious and men often have a poorer diet.

There are no doubt more factors implicated in cellulite that scientists have yet to discover. But toxins are not one of them.

Toxins And Health

I am not dismissive of the view that we can be affected by toxins, as some in the medical field are. However, toxins are more likely to impact on our health in other ways - perhaps causing headaches, sluggishness, a propensity to colds and flu's due to a lowered immune system.

They may cause chemical sensitivity, aches and pains, even death, as in the case of two young boys who died after using too much deodorant (Clean Food Organic, Vol 7 "Deodorants And Antiperspirants" p37). They may also influence our hormones and cause all sorts of secondary effects in our body, even contributing to weight gain. Many chemicals in our food and beauty products act as xenoestrogens. So, the impact of toxins on our health is real.

However, even putting aside for one minute that cellulite is not caused by toxins, to suggest that drinking lots of water can flush out those toxins and solve the problem, is simplistic in the extreme. For a start, a lot of toxins are fat soluble, which means they are not affected by water. Secondly, if toxins are stored in various tissues in our body, simply drinking more water is not going to have much of an effect on them. There are a lot of factors, and cellular processes, that influence what passes into and out of a cell.

And if you drink too much water, you can actually kill yourself, as happened to a woman in the UK not long ago.

You can't just flush toxins - or fat - out of the body like you're rinsing the dishes.

Water Cure For Cellulite - The Therapeutic Spa Approach

There is more merit to using spa approach to the water cure for cellulite. There was an article in the New England Journal of Medicine in 1999 that described how participants who took a hot bath for half an hour a night for six days a week, for three weeks, lost nearly four pounds. Losing weight can make cellulite less noticeable. However, this result needs to be put in perspective.

Generally, the weight we lose from a hot bath is water loss. You could probably get the same effect from taking a diuretic. It will not lead to fat loss, or permanent weight loss. Of course, its harmless, so if you have the time, its not going to hurt you. 

A lot of the myths associated with 'water cure for cellulite' theories come from a poor understanding of the way our bodies work, and a complete misunderstanding of what causes cellulite. Unfortunately, there is no quick fix cellulite solution. You can get temporary benefits from many things, most notably a lot of the creams. But water, whilst beneficial, will not cure your cellulite.