Most people head to the sauna for a dose of calm, or maybe to ease a few aches and pains, but if you knew the full extent of their benefits, you’d probably move in.
Dry heat rooms, used for centuries in Finnish and Swedish communities, have some serious health credentials, including a reduced risk of high blood pressure, improved lung function and proven benefits for cognitive health.
The science-based evidence for heart health has long been established. Indeed, a review of 40 studies involving 3,855 participants in the journal Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine reports that regular sauna use reduced the enlarged heart size of people with congestive heart failure, improved arrhythmia (irregular heartbeat) and cut the risk of sudden death from heart attack by 63 per cent. Research shows they’re good for cognitive health, too, with one study reporting a 66 per cent reduction in dementia risk.
When it comes to fitness, saunas are good news – improving oxygen saturation during exercise and increasing workout time post heat session, even boosting the function of your powerhouse cells, the mitochondria, by 28 per cent. Add to this proven benefits for pain relief and their undoubted usefulness for post-workout recovery and you can see visiting the sauna is a valuable addition to your training plan.
HOW THEY WORK
Often housed in small wood-panelled cabins, saunas provide dry heat at between 65°C to 90°C. The intense heat exposure raises your skin and core body temperature, and your sympathetic nervous system (fight or flight response) kicks in along with other mechanisms, increasing heart rate, blood flow and sweating in an attempt to regulate your temperature. Your muscles relax, you feel more alert and less sensitive to pain. On a cellular level, the effects include reduced oxidative stress and inflammation. It’s also believed the heat stress your body experiences in a sauna improves its functionality and/or tolerance to more severe challenges in a similar way to exercising. Finally, adding essential oils into the air brings additional benefits – eucalyptus, for example, can help clear the airways, while pine can leave you feeling refreshed and energised.
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