Main Therapeutic Uses of Some Moroccan Hot Springs' Waters

Morocco has an important groundwater reserve, especially in the Atlas domain, corresponding to its largest water reservoir. This reserve comes from rainwater infiltrated into rocks and sediments to give rise to mineralized waters feeding many springs and having curative properties, which confer each spa-specific therapeutic indications, based on the medicinal properties of its waters. All over the world, mineral waters of thermal springs have interesting therapeutic uses to cure some diseases; unfortunately, such potential is underexploited in Morocco. This narrative review deals with the distribution of thermal springs in Morocco, the classification of their thermal waters, and their health effects, with the aim to enhance them. For this purpose, previous studies' results on different aspects of thermal waters were searched in the most famous scientific databases, by using targeted specific keywords. Literature has shown that Morocco contains several thermal springs, scattered throughout the Middle Atlas, in the South, and in the Rif, which are regarded as waters of high therapeutic quality, whose thermal cures are often recommended to people suffering from rheumatism and locomotor system's diseases, skin diseases such as eczema and psoriasis, cardiovascular diseases, overweight, or respiratory troubles. However, apart from the unique and real thermal station of Moulay Yacoub, the other thermal springs are exploited in an empirical and artisanal way, mainly by a local population. So, as hydrotherapy constitutes a good choice of natural therapy using water components as a complement or alternative to conventional treatments, a better understanding of the thermal springs' distribution in Morocco, their thermal waters' classification, and their potential health effects may enable their valorization through a better use of their waters.