Research & Development

The Science Behind ThermoPure™

What is in ThermoPure™, where each ingredient comes from, and the research we read while formulating it. Ingredients first, papers second — and we say where the two do not line up.

Ingredient Breakdown

Six ingredients. What each one is, where it comes from, and how it behaves in water.

1

Magnesium Chloride

Dead Sea

What It Is

  • A magnesium salt, supplied as flakes
  • Pharmaceutical grade
  • Dissolves in warm or cold water
  • The mineral base of the formula

Background

Magnesium chloride is a magnesium salt that dissolves readily in water. It is used here in place of magnesium sulfate — Epsom salt — which is the more common bath mineral and a different compound.

2

OptiMSM®

Pharmaceutical Grade

What It Is

  • Methylsulfonylmethane, an organic sulfur compound
  • A branded, distilled grade of MSM
  • Odourless white crystals
  • Water-soluble

Background

OptiMSM® is a distilled form of MSM. Distillation is the purification step that separates it from crystallised MSM; the brand exists to identify that process and its supply chain.

3

Menthol

Natural Peppermint Extract

What It Is

  • An organic compound found in peppermint oil
  • Gives the water a cooling note on the skin
  • Carries the formula's peppermint scent
  • One formula, used warm or cold

Background

Menthol is what makes mint feel cool. It changes how water feels against skin rather than the temperature of the water — a bath with menthol in it reads as colder than the thermometer says.

4

Australian Kunzea Oil

Tasmanian Kunzea ambigua

What It Is

  • Steam-distilled from Kunzea ambigua foliage
  • Grown and distilled in Tasmania
  • Contains α-pinene, 1,8-cineole and viridiflorol
  • Gives the formula its eucalypt-like scent

Background

Kunzea ambigua is a shrub native to Tasmania and south-eastern Australia. The oil is steam-distilled from its foliage, and its principal constituents are α-pinene, 1,8-cineole and viridiflorol.

5

Dead Sea Salt

Jordan Dead Sea

What It Is

  • Harvested from the Dead Sea in Jordan
  • A mineral salt, not table salt
  • Largely magnesium, potassium and calcium salts
  • Coarse crystals

Background

Dead Sea salt differs from ordinary sea salt in composition. Sea salt is mostly sodium chloride; Dead Sea salt is largely magnesium, potassium and calcium salts, with sodium chloride a minor component.

6

ThermoPure™ Complex

Proprietary Blend

What It Is

  • Our own blend
  • The warming half of the thermal contrast
  • Works alongside the menthol, not against it
  • Composition not published

Background

ThermoPure™ Complex is the part of the formula that produces a warming undertone underneath the menthol's cooling one. That contrast is the thing the formula is built around. Its exact composition is not published.

Research We Read

Papers on cold water immersion and on the minerals in the formula. They are studies of those things, not of this product — where the method differs from how you would actually use ThermoPure™, the note underneath says so.

Journal of Sports Sciences2022

Cold Water Immersion and Recovery

Finding: Cold water immersion at 10-15°C for 10-15 minutes was associated with lower reported delayed onset muscle soreness and perceived fatigue in trained athletes.

This is research on cold water itself. ThermoPure™ is a mineral blend you add to the water — the temperature and the time are yours to set.

PLoS One2021

Transdermal Magnesium Absorption

Finding: The authors report higher intracellular magnesium after transdermal magnesium chloride application than after oral supplementation in the populations studied.

The magnesium in ThermoPure™ is magnesium chloride, the same salt used in that work.

Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition2020

MSM and Exercise-Induced Muscle Damage

Finding: MSM supplementation was associated with lower markers of muscle damage (CK, LDH) and oxidative stress following exhaustive exercise.

ThermoPure™ contains OptiMSM®, a distilled grade of MSM. Note the difference in method: that study dosed MSM orally, not in a bath.

Cell Metabolism2021

Cold Exposure and Metabolic Health

Finding: Regular cold exposure was observed to activate brown adipose tissue and improve insulin sensitivity in the subjects studied.

Listed because cold exposure is the context this product is used in. It is research on the cold, not on ThermoPure™.

The Four-Stage Experience

The formula is built around a contrast between a cooling note and a warming one. Here is the order you notice them in.

1

Cooling Note

Menthol comes through first

2

Thermal Contrast

ThermoPure™ Complex warms underneath it

3

Mineral Soak

Magnesium chloride and Dead Sea salt in the water

4

After The Bath

Kunzea oil and its scent on the skin

Disclaimer: The information provided on this page is for educational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. The studies referenced are for informational purposes and do not constitute endorsement of specific claims. Always consult with a healthcare professional before beginning any new recovery regimen.