5 Evidence-based Benefits of Infrared Sauna Therapy
Five Benefits of Infrared Saunas
If you’ve ever experienced infrared sauna therapy, you know that it’s a nourishing experience that really breaks up the hustle and bustle of daily life. In fact, there’s a certain satisfaction in having a deep sweat; feeling your body purge from the inside out and then being left with a relaxed, yet energized state always has people feeling better than before they came in. From weight loss to skin purification, pain management, relaxation, and heart health, infrared therapy has people raving with reviews. The question some people have is - does science align with these benefits? Yes! Let’s dive in and look at some of the many evidence-based benefits of infrared sauna therapy.
Improved Heart Health
That glowy, relaxed feeling after an hour in an infrared wrap or sauna cabin is in part due to infrared’s cardiovascular benefits. Not only does infrared support weight loss, but it promotes cardiovascular health due to the gentle strain on the body. Soon after getting started in an infrared sauna session, your body’s natural response begins. Beads of sweat start to appear, blood vessels widen and increase blood flow, heart rate ticks up – which are mimicking the effects of exercise on your body! Infrared saunas are dubbed a ‘passive’ cardio workout, as if you’re on a moderately-paced walk for an hour.
2. BETTER SLEEP
Sleeping better at night is a real benefit of sauna usage! In fact, using infrared therapy to heal her sleep issues is one of the main reasons HOT HAVEN’S founders, opened the studio! In a study published in 2019, researchers found that 83% of people who used the sauna once or twice a week had sleep improvements, specifically, having a deeper, more relaxed sleep (especially if you partake in an evening sauna session). If you’d like to read more, here’s the link to the study:https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0965229919300998
3. BOOST IMMUNE SYSTEM
Great news for the upcoming cold and flu season – research shows that saunas were able to significantly reduce the incidences of colds and influenza among study participants (check out the study: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2248758/). Lots of research backs this up, and another study found that this is due to a change in white blood cell profile. It appears that using a sauna regularly can lead to white blood cells having a faster first line of defense against the seasonal bugs!
4. Skin Purification
Sweating with saunas are one of the original ways to beautify and cleanse the skin. When the body begins to sweat through deep sweating, the bacteria in the skin is rinsed away, so are the dead skin cells. Skin stays soft and supple, with clear pores and better circulation. The FDA has even approved infrared light to treat pimples, see here: https://www.aad.org/public/diseases/acne/derm-treat/lasers-lights.
5. Brain Health
Using a sauna can improve brain health? You heard us right. As we all know, modern humans are exposed to pollutants every day - X-rays, ozone, cigarette smoking, air pollutants, and industrial chemicals. These cause what is known as oxidative stress on the body (this is why getting antioxidants through the diet is very important). Oxidative stress is linked to dementia, cancer, and cardiovascular disease. Luckily, saunas have been found to reduce oxidative stress! In fact, there’s a 25 year study that found that using the sauna for just 20 minutes a few times a week lowered the risk for both Alzheimer's and Dementia by reducing oxidative stress in the body. Here’s the link: https://www.finnleo.com/saunas-101/health-and-wellness/library/20-Year-Sauna-Study-by-Dr.-Jari-Laukkanen-Sauna-bathing-is-inversely-associated-with-dementia-and-Alzheimers-disease-in-middle-aged-Finnish-men .
Written By: Sydey Dodd