新疆吐魯番高溫沙療治風溼受熱捧

People from across China are flocking to the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region to bury themselves in the sand between June and August as Turpan's hot desert sands contain minerals that are believed to provide a cure for rheumatism and rheumatoid arthritis.

由於吐魯番熾熱的沙漠沙子中據信含有能治療風溼和類風溼性關節炎的礦物質，6-8月，全國各地的人們都爭相涌入新疆維吾爾自治區將自己埋入沙土中。

The term "hot" cannot adequately describe the surface temperature in the Kumtag Desert near Turpan. It is one of the hottest places in China, with the sand temperature reaching 80℃, compared with an average summer temperature in the area of between 38℃ and 42℃.

“熱”這個詞不能充分地描述在吐魯番附近的庫姆塔格沙漠的表面溫度。這裏是中國最熱的地方，沙子的溫度達到80攝氏度，該地區的夏季平均溫度大約在38攝氏度到42攝氏度之間。

Sand treatment is part of traditional Uygur medication. The sands are believed to work their magic between 2 pm and 5 pm, and Kahrimalar, a sand dune in the Kumtag desert, can attract up to 1,000 people during this period.

沙療是烏魯木齊傳統醫療的一部分。據信，下午2-5時沙子具有神奇的療效，在這個時段庫姆塔格沙漠的Kahrimalar沙丘能夠吸引多達1000人。

Gao Jialing, 48, from Hunan province, has suffered from rheumatism, which causes severe pain, for many years. She decided to try it in 2014.

來自湖南省的高佳靈今年48歲，患有風溼，多年來一直飽受嚴重的疼痛。她在2014年決定嘗試一下沙療。

"After about two weeks' of treatment, I suddenly felt that my arms and legs were not as weak as before," Gao said.

高佳靈表示：“在大約兩週的療程之後，我突然覺得我的胳膊和腿不再像以前虛弱無力了。”

Seeing the positive effects the treatment has, she now travels to Turpan from Hunan every year around July and says the pain caused by rheumatism has been greatly reduced.

在看到這項治療起到積極的作用之後，每年的7月她都會從湖南趕往吐魯番並表示，由風溼引起的疼痛已經大大減輕了。

Shatar Kurban, head of the Turpan Uygur Medicine Hospital, said: "The sand grains in the Turpan desert, especially in Kahrimalar, are black and relatively large so they can absorb more heat, which helps the patients to detoxify. The heat and more than 20 trace elements in the sands can help people to get rid of the 'chill' in their bodies."

吐魯番市維吾爾醫醫院院長沙塔爾·庫爾班稱，在吐魯番的沙漠區域，特別是Kahrimalar沙丘，沙子呈黑色且顆粒相對較大，因此它們能吸收更多熱量幫助病人排毒。沙子中的熱量和20多種微量元素能幫助人們祛除體內的寒氣。