An experimental study on oil-dispersion baths generated by the Jungebad apparatus

Since the very early documentation of medical treatments, bathing is an essential part of almost all traditional medical systems. In this context the oil-dispersion bath, developed in the 1930s by Werner Junge has been developed from anthroposophic medicine. We aimed at analyzing the apparatus, which churns water and essential oils into an oil-water dispersion, by means of an experimental study.

Using three different oils (rheumatic oil, citrus oil and rosemary oil) oil volumetric flow rate and oil droplet size distribution were examined at three different water volumetric flow rates of 5, 10, and 15 l/min at a constant temperature of 40 °C. Additionally, for the rheumatic oil measurements are taken at three different temperatures, 35, 40, and 45 °C at a constant volumetric flow rate of 10 l/min. Finally results were compared with a manual oil dispersion process.

Oil volumetric flow rate increases with increasing water volumetric flow rates. Oil flow rate increases with increasing water temperature. Droplet-size distribution shows an optimal fit with a log-normal distribution for a volumetric flow rate of 5 l/min in all oils applied with citrus and rosemary oil showing a larger mean diameter compared to the rheumatic oil. Comparing the oil droplet size distribution for a traditional oil bath, distributions behaved completely different in comparison to our distributions. Moreover it seemed not possible to create an oil-dispersion with repeatable droplet size distributions whereas the Jungebad apparatus created similar oil dispersions with predictable results, independent of the user.

This is the first study to explore the mechanisms of creation of the oil-dispersion bath by means of an experimental set up. Based on these experimental results, a more fundamental theoretical approach should be carried out to complement our findings and to gain deeper insights in the hydrodynamic and droplets forming processes in the Jungebad apparatus.