Going out clean
The Japanese hot bath may be hazardous to your health says a study conducted at Keio University Hospital in Tokyo.
About 14,000 Japanese people die in the bath annually, with such deaths more prevelant in the wintertime and among the elderly.
Heatstroke can indeed occur when taking hot baths, according to Shingo Hori, a Keio University assistant professor who specializes in emergency medicine.
Hori, who leads a group of researchers who have examined bath-stricken patients at Keio University Hospital in Tokyo, recently reported their findings at a Saitama seminar.
Masaru Suzuki, an assistant to Hori, said that while strokes or heart attacks cannot be ruled out, they can’t be blamed for causing all bath-induced deaths.
And so does this mean that another one of life’s little pleasures is doomed to bite the dust?
No need to stay stop taking baths, just don’t take them in semi-scalding water.
November 24th, 2005 at 4:47 amSome of those baths are really, really hot. I like the ones that actually tell you the temperature. I try to avoid anything at 40c.
November 24th, 2005 at 7:11 amIf the water is too hot, for men, especially, watch the sperm count drop over time. Not a pretty picture.
November 24th, 2005 at 11:37 am