NASHVILLE, Tennessee — Salt caves are popping up all across the country, and the new Serenity Salt Cave has just opened in Middle Tennessee.
"It's all natural. It's all antibacterial. Walk in this room and there's 20,000 pounds [of salt]," she told WTVF in Nashville. "You just relax for 45 minutes, listen to soft music, there's twinkle lights on the ceiling. It's just really, really relaxing."
So where did this idea come from?
"Over in the Himalayan mountains near that range [people] were going down to mine the salt and they found that they weren't getting sick when other people in the village were getting sick," she said.
For many Middle Tennesseans, salt is no longer a way to season a meal, it's a way to relax and even heal.
Deana Taylor is no stranger to these "sodium spas." She now owns three Serenity Salt Caves, in Murfreesboro, Nolensville and now in Spring Hill.
"This is the third location. We just opened a few weeks ago," she said, "Curiosity kind of brings [customers] out a little bit. Social media is helping."
The concept is simple and goes back to a belief that salt has healing properties, helping people suffering from allergies, asthma, even skin conditions.
It's that belief that has people like Kurt Steiner stepping into the cave and breathing in the salty air.
"I have asthma and I have a little bit of anxiety issues. Ever since I've been coming I've been able to breathe a lot easier," he said.
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