Travel & Leisure Magazine this week issued its list of the ten top healing spots around the world, and southern Israel’s Dead Sea is first on the list.
It’s followed by Yakushima Island in Japan, The Healing Hole in Bimini (The Bahamas) and seven others.
“Besides being absolutely breathtaking” T&L writes, the Dead Sea has long been valued for its health-giving properties.
Its filtered air — which lowers the chance of a sunburn — is due to being the lowest place on earth, at 430 meters below sea level.
The magazine also lauds the Dead Sea’s iconic black mud, used to help rid the skin of dead cells as well as to alleviate painful conditions such as psoriaisis, dermatitis, arthritis, rheumatism and others due to its ability to stimulate blood circulation.
The mud and sea contain sulfur, magnesium, calcium, chloride, sodium, bromide, potassium and other trace elements — all told, 21 essential minerals, of which 12 are unique to the Dead Sea.
The lake water’s salinity is 34.2 percent (as compared with 3.5 percent in the Mediterranean Sea), making it the fourth saltiest body of water in the world. But the water also contains 26 beneficial minerals, including chloride salts, magnesium, sodium, potassium, calcium and bromine.
The soporific atmosphere is likewise due to the relaxing mineral mix that evaporates above the Dead Sea. It includes a high concentration of bromine and magnesium, with its high oxygen density, 15 percent above the average levels.
With few allergens in the dry air to trouble sensitive souls, the landlocked mineral lake (referred to by some as a “salt lake”) is an annual destination spot for thousands of Europeans and Israelis who come to relax and be healed in its beauty.
