This Saturday, I’ll be giving a presentation on sauna “sow-nah” bathing (aka sauna therapy) at the Colorado Association of Naturopathic Doctors’ annual convention. I’m excited to share my experience with this fascinating topic, both because I have expertise to share with how effective this therapy is at increasing healthspan (the period of one’s life spent in good health, free from the chronic diseases and disabilities that commonly accompany aging), and because I have built my own traditional Finnish outdoor sauna. What started as a family tradition (both my grandfather and father built their own saunas), became a source of study, especially as it fits very well with the traditional principles of Naturopathic Medicine. Sauna therapy falls into the category of “Tonification of Weakened Systems,” in what is known as the Therapeutic Order.
The benefits of traditional sauna therapy have been extensively studied by the Finnish people. There is hardly a Finnish professional athlete who doesn’t swear (and sweat) by them! Today, we can choose between the classic dry/wet sauna, infra-red (IR) units, or a combination of both. Both have their advantages, with the short answer to “which is best?” being that both are of therapeutic benefit.
The most studied of beneficial effects is on the cardiovascular system, such that the taking of traditional Finnish sauna may result in a notable drop in both systolic and diastolic blood pressures, 30 mins after a session. There are also benefits to the neurological, immune and endocrine systems, and cognitive, mood and anti-inflammatory benefits. IR units have the advantage of being cooler, less expensive and much easier to build or install, especially because access to saunas of any kind are limited in the United States.
IR saunas are also known to speed exercise recovery in female athletes, improve acclimation to heat in untrained males, promote chemical and heavy metal detoxification, and stimulate the production of regenerative heat shock proteins (HSPs) that slow muscle atrophy and promote longevity.
Overall, regular sauna therapy (either radiant heat or far-IR units) appears to be safe and offers multiple health benefits to regular users. I can help determine if you are indicated for sauna therapy, as pregnant women and people with certain advanced cardiac and skin diseases should be very careful with sauna bathing.
Wondering if sauna therapy is right for you? Give me a call today at 970.250.4104 to schedule an appointment, or take advantage of a 15-min complimentary conversation, to see if we’ll be a good fit. I’m here to help.
