Disclaimer: Sauna bathing may not be appropriate for you. Please check with your doctor before beginning any sauna bathing program.
I started my career in wellness and fitness as a personal trainer while I was still in university. I had the opportunity to work at several different gyms while I was in school and one of them didn’t have saunas in the locker rooms. It was a new gym with all new equipment and the footprint was enormous so it was not a capital issue or a space issue. The owner told us that he didn’t put saunas in because there wasn’t enough research on benefits. I remember hearing our members complain about the lack of saunas and that some of them may go to a different gym because of this. I didn’t really get the whole sauna thing to be honest. It seemed like a “lazy” way to burn calories instead of just hitting the treadmill or going for a bike ride.
Fast forward to 5 or 6 years ago and I started hearing about cold thermogenesis and heat therapy from more and more wellness experts. I did the cold shower and cold pool swimming thing off and on. But never really stuck with it and the research on benefits was only ho hum in my opinion. Heat was a bit scary to me though. I had once over heated very badly playing golf on a super hot and humid Kansas day. Before you laugh I was actually sprinting as fast as I could with a push cart around the entire course attempting to get a workout in and the temperature was over 100 degrees Fahrenheit. The course was also extremely hilly so I was getting a pretty intense workout. I made it to hole 16 and started to feel dizzy, high heart rate, and nausea. Basically classic symptoms for heat stroke.
I had to quit golfing and the office sent a cart out to get me with a large ice water. I remember struggling to drive home. I had a terrible headache and nausea for the rest of that day and it took most of the following day before I felt normal again. Ever since this incident I have felt more susceptible to heat exhaustion. Riding around Hong Kong in the summer time has been tricky as it can get extremely hot and humid here. Even early in the morning before the sun comes up it is like riding in an oven. So when I initially heard some of the benefits of sauna, I just figured it wasn’t for me.
But then I heard about some incredible longevity benefits of sauna from Dr. Rhonda Patrick and I was intrigued. If you watched or listened to my show last week (Episode 50 on fasting) you know I am very interested in longevity and am doing everything I can to make the environment for my cells a happy and healthy one. When I heard Dr. Patrick talk about heat shock proteins and aging I figured I had to at least give sauna bathing a try.
We are very fortunate to have a decent gym, pool, and saunas at our building here in Hong Kong. I have been using it almost daily for the last few weeks and am totally addicted. I will talk more about my routine and anecdotal findings at the end of the show. After we review these 11 Science-Backed Health Benefits Of Sauna, I think you will understand why I am hooked.
1. Longevity
A 2015 study in JAMA Internal Medicine is one of the most exciting findings sauna bathing research. They looked at over 2000 middle-aged Finnish men (42-60 years old) for an average period of 20 years and found that the more sauna sessions they did per week, the lower their risk was for sudden cardiac death, coronary heart disease, fatal cardiovascular disease, and all-cause mortality. This is a massive study over a substantial time period and it is pretty hard to beat all-cause mortality, so you can almost stop after reading this study and head to the sauna. But there is more!
A 2018 study in the Journal of Applied Physiology showed for the first time in human skeletal muscle that heat stress can improve mitochondrial function and adaptation. A quick review from your 7th grade science class on mitochondria, they are considered the “work horse” of your cells because they create ATP or energy from oxygen and nutrients and this powers the function of the cell. They are a pretty important component of our human functionality so you can see why there is excitement about helping these operate optimally.
Dr. Rhonda Patrick talks about how sauna bathing activates heat stress responses in the body (good stress) including heat shock proteins which prevent our cells from damage and aging and how humans that have genes that make this heat shock protein more readily have higher chance of becoming a centenarian.
A 2018 study in Mayo Clinic Proceedings that looked at over 70 studies on sauna bathing and affect on health found that there is evidence that it can lower blood pressure, reduce inflammation, reduce possibility of stroke, and help prevent neurological issues.
2. Improved Endurance Performance
Here is one for all the athletes out there. A 2007 study in the Journal of Science in Medicine and Sport found that a 30 minute sauna session 2 times per week for 3 weeks increased performance in male endurance runners. The sauna sessions were done post workout. It was found that the runners could run 32% longer than their baseline! They also noted an increase in plasma volume by 7.1% and red blood cell count by 3.5%. The researchers believe that the athletes were becoming acclimatized to the heat which would boost red blood cell count through erythropoietin (EPO) while the plasma volume rises.
3. Improved Cardiovascular Function
A 2017 study in European Journal of Preventive Cardiology found that sauna bathing can improve vascular compliance which is the blood vessel wall’s ability to expand and contract automatically as pressure changes occur. They also noted a decrease in systemic blood pressure with regular sauna use. If you think about how many times your heart beats each day it helps you appreciate why having an efficient cardiovascular system is critical to health.
4. Reduced Inflammation
A 2018 study in European Journal of Epidemiology found that increased sauna bathing brings down levels of C-reactive protein which is the main blood marker of systemic inflammation. So what is systemic inflammation you may wonder? We hear the word inflammation getting thrown around a lot these days and how certain things cause it and how particular foods or tactics can bring it down. It should be noted that some acute inflammation is actually good like how the body responds to twisted ankle or cut to begin the healing process. Chronic systemic inflammation is the bad stuff that we want to avoid as it can lead to cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer. Luckily healthy diet, exercise, fasting, and apparently sauna, can all help reduce systemic inflammation.
5. Improved Muscle Growth
A 2001 study in American Journal of Medicine found a 2-5 fold increase in growth hormone with sauna use. I love the fact that there is a natural way to get growth hormone to increase. I have always been a hard gainer for putting on and maintaining muscle so this is exciting.
6. Better Injury Recovery
A 2005 study in the American Journal of Physiology – Regulatory Integrative and Comparative Physiology found that muscle degradation can be decreased by 20% with heat treatment for 30 minutes and 32% with heat treatment for 60 minutes while the limb was immobilized. So if you have an injury that is keeping you partially or completely immobilized, it sounds like sauna bathing can help you maintain muscle and regain muscle quite significantly.
7. Pain Relief
A 2009 study in Clinical Rheumatology found short term benefits in pain and stiffness for rheumatoid arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis (pain and stiffness in the spine) patients. (anky low sing spondle itis). I have noticed my “trick” knee feels a lot better during and after sauna sessions. Also I am able to take it into a larger range of motion on mobility movements while in the sauna. While this seems to be temporary, I have only been doing sauna for a few weeks. I am anxious to see if consistent use over time will help, in conjunction with other tactics, to reduce pain in the knee more permanently.
8. Improved Sleep Quality
Much more research needs to be done on whether or not sauna session actually help with sleep quality and assistance with sleep disorders. There is lots of anecdotal evidence of folks saying the feel more relaxed after a sauna session and this helps them sleep better, which makes sense. There is a 2005 study in the Journal of Psychosomatic Research which showed that heat therapy dramatically improved fatigue, pain, and sleep disturbance, but this was only with 2 participants.
9. Stronger Immunity
There is an interesting 1990 study in the Annals of Medicine that found that regular sauna bathing reduced the incidence of common colds. The reason for this might be due to increased white blood cell count. A 2013 study in the Journal of Human Kinetics found that a single sauna session improved immunity function, in white blood cells specifically. They also found that the immune response was greater in athletes versus non-athletes so it appears that combining exercise with sauna can be extra powerful from an immunity perspective.
10. Detox Benefits
Sauna bathing causes you to sweat…pretty much instantly as soon as you enter. And sweating can be tremendously powerful at detoxing the body. A 2012 study in the Journal of Environmental and Public Health found that arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury may be excreted in appreciable quantities through the skin, and rates of excretion were reported to match or even exceed urinary excretion in a 24-hour period. With this in mind…do we make ourselves sweat enough?
11. Better Brain Function
Work out a problem in your head while in the sauna. A 2001 study in the American Journal of Medicine shows increase of norepinephrine by 2-4 fold with sauna use. Norepinephrine is known to improve alertness, memory recall, and focus. I haven’t quite gotten myself to the problem solving or meditative state yet, but I think as I get more comfortable in the heat it will be easier to do.
Additional Considerations
Fertility Not Affected
A 2001 study in American Journal of Medicine noted that serum levels in men of testosterone and gonadotropins remained unchanged after repeated sauna use. They acknowledge that several studies have found a decreased sperm count in men after sauna use but they note that Finnish men have a high sperm count and sauna use is the national pastime there. That said always check with your doctor first and if you are having issues with fertility you might consider leaving sauna out temporarily just to be safe.
Infrared vs. Regular Sauna
Dr. Rhonda Patrick on Joe Rogan Podcast mentioned that the benefits of sauna come from the heat stress itself versus the sauna type. She also mentioned that many of the studies have been done on the traditional Finnish sauna type at 180 degrees Fahrenheit or 82 degrees Celsius and that they can typically get hotter faster. I would say whatever you have access to, as long as they get it hot, is good. We have a regular sauna in our building that they only turn on by request. I usually ask them about 20 minutes before I want to get in to allow plenty of time to heat up to around 82 degrees Celsius.
My Routine and Anecdotes
So far I have been doing sauna bathing post workout. I have been doing it after both my strength training and cardio workouts and it feels great after both. I made the mistake of jumping straight in with my workout gear and socks on my first time. I didn’t realize how much you sweat in there. It is buckets worth! All my gear was soaked. Now I brink a pair of sandals and a towel with me so I can jump in and sweat freely. I put on some music on my bluetooth headphones which helps me relax and take my mind off the heat. I keep my phone outside of the sauna because it would overheat quickly.I usually do some light mobility work and stretching and enjoy the added range of motion and pain reduction.
Already noticing I my heart rate not going up as high, and I am able to stay in longer and at higher temps. This is in just a few weeks of consistent sauna bathing. It seems the adaptive process is already taking place. I am excited about reaping the benefits of sauna use and think that there will be more to come as it is researched further. Similar to fasting, I am most exciting about the longevity research with sauna bathing, but it makes you feel fantastic too!
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