Date : March 18, 2010
Video Report:March 18, 2010【Press Tour to San-in Region Part2 (Tottori)】
post date : 2013.08.30
■Press Tour to San-in Region Part2 (Tottori)～Misasa Onsen, forefront spa therapy and contemporary spa resort (Misasa Town, Tottori Prefecture)～（March 18, 2010）
【Okayama University Hospital Misasa Medical Center】
Fumihiro Mitsunobu, Director, Okayama University Hospital Misasa Medical Center: The main reason that Okayama University started a medical service in Misasa Onsen is the radon-rich spa. Okayama University Hospital Misasa Medical Center is the only institute practicing full-scale spa-treatment in Japan. We provide a variety of therapies including exercise in a swimming pool, mud bath and mud compress.
Patient: I am recovering from a stiff neck. This mud compress treatment works for me.
Fumihiro Mitsunobu, Director: At standard temperature, radon forms a monatomic gas. This radioactive gas can be found in hot springs. By breathing low doses of radon radiation, it is believed to be beneficial, which is called the hormesis effect.
Patient: I feel breathless even just by walking. I am receiving treatment for it.
Fumihiro Mitsunobu, Director: Since there is debate on the hormesis effect, we established a research facility last year in cooperation with the Japan Atomic Energy Agency. We are conducting tests on animals at this stage. In addition, some patients stay at a local ryokan hotel and come to our hospital in the day time instead of being hospitalized.
【Misasa Onsen】
Shu Mifune, owner, Kiya-Ryokan: Usually, it is complicated to make a reservation for the University hospital. So, we made a long stay plan that comes with a medical examination at the Misasa Medical Center. If you fill in this application form and send it to us, we will make a reservation for you at the hospital. This is an innovative plan and advantageous both for patients and guests at Misasa.
We inaugurated a so-called “radiummelier,” a radon spa specialist who gives advice on how to take a radon bath and how to spend free time in Misasa, as a sommelier advises on wine.Misasa town is working on community revitalization. We are taking a second look at the value of onsen and our local culture.
Our spa is not just for curing physical ailments. We aim to soak away your worries and woes. We hope that our guests will recharge their bodies and minds and then return to their usual life or work; thus we call this plan “contemporary spa therapy”.