Fango
Spa & Balneology Terms
Also: fango, fango therapy, Italian mud therapy, volcanic mud
Italian term for therapeutic mud, specifically clay-based peloid matured in thermal mineral water. Fango is NOT peat — it is a mineral/volcanic product with fundamentally different composition and mechanism.
How Fango Differs from Peat
| Property | Fango | Peat |
|---|---|---|
| Base material | Volcanic clay | Decomposed plant matter |
| Organic content | 5-15% | 90-98% |
| Active agents | Minerals, thermal water, microalgae | Humic acids, fulvic acids, phenolics |
| Maturation | Clay “matured” in thermal water for months | Formed naturally over millennia |
| Main regions | Italy (Abano Terme, Montegrotto) | Central/Northern Europe |
Why It Matters for CPI
Fango is often confused with peat therapy in popular media. The distinction is important: peat’s therapeutic effects come primarily from organic humic substances, while fango relies on mineral content and thermal water chemistry. Both are peloids, but the mechanisms are different.