The benefits of the thermal water of Bagnères de Bigorre
Bagnères-de-Bigorre stands out among the resorts offering hydrotherapy in the Hautes-Pyrénées due to the physicochemical properties of the water and the therapeutic benefits it provide
High-quality thermal water
The water used for hydrotherapy in Bagnères-de-Bigorre has very specific characteristics:
- It is groundwater resulting from rainwater slowly seeping into the limestone of the Massif du Monné and Massif du Bédat. It flows underground for 30 years before being collected for therapeutic or wellness purposes.
- Particularly abundant in Bagnères-de-Bigorre, it comes from several underground natural springs. For many years now, the water used for hydrotherapy has been collected from nearly 200 m underground, at a level where the layers of soil are sheltered from surface pollution, using 2 boreholes (Reine and Régina) ensuring a constant flow.
- The naturally hot thermal water is extracted at 50 °C.
- Its chemical composition is very stable over time, in particular from a microbiological standpoint. In this respect, we can talk about incredibly pure water.
- It does not undergo any treatments between the time it is collected and when it is used at various locations. When it is drawn for hydrotherapy, its physicochemical composition is predominately made up of sulphur, calcium and magnesium.
©Rachel Barranco
©Rachel Barranco
When geology works wonders
The Pyrenees mountain range is the fruit of the collision, 40 million years ago, of two continental tectonic plates: the Iberian and Eurasian. A series of episodes of compression and extension occurred during the Cretaceous, between 145 and 66 million years ago, giving the Pyrenees mountain range its current shape. In the Hautes-Pyrénées, and Bagnères-de-Bigorre in particular, the compressive movements at the end of the Cretaceous are easy to see. This geological past has caused some seismic activity and significant hydrothermal activity.
Thermal water is rainwater which has seeped into the soil through fractures created when tectonic plates move. It then circulates through underground networks that it has dug over time by dissolving the limestone rock, here that of Le Monné and Le Bédat. The hot water flows in a U-shape here: the rainwater descends, seeping down to around 2,000 m underground thanks to a network of faults and drops. It heats up and, as it rises, takes on mineral salts and trace elements through contact with Triassic gypsum.
Recognised benefits
The properties of the thermal water of Bagnères-de-Bigorre are recognised by the Académie Nationale de Médecine (National Academy of Medicine) as good for your health. In particular, this water relieves pain, suppresses spasms and relaxes muscles. During hydrotherapy, the water is inhaled, ingested or put in direct contact with the skin for thermal treatments related to three medical indications:
- rheumatology: osteoarthritis, sciatica, rheumatism, osteoporosis, pain syndromes, etc.
- psychosomatic disorders: stress, anxiety, sleep disorders, overwork, burn out, etc.
- respiratory tract and ENT problems: asthma, chronic bronchitis, repeat infections, etc.
Bagnères thermal water has quite exceptional effects. This quality is the result of an incredible 30-year journey right to the “centre of the Earth”… Didn’t we say that nature works wonders?
©Rachel Barranco
3 allée Tournefort 65200
Bagnères-de-Bigorre
05 62 95 50 71
info@tourmaletpicdumidi.fr
Bagnères-de-Bigorre 
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