The body wrap – is it the ultimate hangover cure?

Fancy sleeping off  your hangover whilst cocooned in the comforts of a nurturing body wrap? We reveal why this most misunderstood of  treatments could be the best place to be the-morning-after-the-night before…

Now, we like to consider ourselves something of a beauty expert but even we were stumped when asked to explain the ins and outs of a body wrap. With theories ranging from a medical weight loss technique through to an anti-cellulite fix, we decided to get to grips with body wraps once and for all.  Cue a week long research project code named ‘project unwrapped’ in which we tried, tested and investigated the many (as it turns out) benefits of this mysterious treatment. Here’s what we learnt;

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• 1 It gives you one heck of a detox. Fact.

  Brilliant. The first thing we learn about the body wrap is that it’s quite possibly the best hangover treatment ever. Not only are you laid flat on your back for a full hour; your toxic body will be cleansed of the sins of the night before. ‘The treatment starts  with a full body exfoliation, followed by a light skin brush to get the lymphatic drainage system going,’ says Laura Kimber, head therapist at the highly acclaimed Bulgari spa. ‘This prepares you for the next step, the wrap, which aims to flush the toxins out of your blood stream.’ So far so good. ‘We then cover your body in a nutrient-rich detoxifying mud or an algae based mud to really cleanse and purify your system,’ explains Laura. The wrap itself is designed to boost the detoxification process and involves being tightly bound in a material that makes you sweat! Usually a foil, plastic or linen blanket.
• 2 Feeling bloated? There’s a wrap for that.

  Reasons to get wrapped number two: we don’t have to tell you how long it takes to get rid of that heavy,sluggish, bloated feeling a hangover can leave you with. Days!  The good news is that whilst you’re sweating out the toxins, your circulation is being increased which in turn reduces water retention. ‘It has the power to help you lose a couple of inches in just under an hour,’ says Laura who admits that this special lymphatic drainage technique is nothing short of magic, and hard as you might try, it’s sadly not something you’d be able to replicate in the comforts of your own home.  
• 3 You’re swaddled like a baby. Think about it.

  Detoxing. Check. Bloat busting. Check. Pampering? Check, check and check again. During this most nurturing of treatments, you’ll be as warm and wrapped up as a newborn baby. Makes for a much more tempting alternative to being face down in a fetal position, on the sofa surrounded by empty chinese take away boxes now doesn’t it? At the end of your wrap you’ll hop into an invigorating steam shower to remove the mud and then enjoy a good rub down with a nourishing body oil. We can’t think of a better way to soothe away our self-inflicted party pains.

  image credits: stocksy