How can you feel younger, stronger, boost your immune system, and improve overall health? Simply “turn up the heat.” At least that is what advocates of infrared sauna therapy think!
An Infrared sauna creates unique light waves that bathe your body in safe, but beneficial radiation.
“These saunas use infrared panels instead of conventional heat to easily penetrate human tissue, heating up your body before heating up the air,” explains physical therapist, Vivian Eisenstadt, MAPT, CPT, MASP.
Proponents of the treatments believe that the waves are capable of altering cells, cell membranes, DNA/proteins, and cell fluids in a positive way.
These changes, in turn, have a positive effect on metabolism and the body’s natural detoxification methods. Most of the benefits of infrared sauna therapy are achieved through this detoxification process.
We are exposed to toxins daily in the foods we eat, the water we drink, in the very air we breathe. These toxins build up in our bodies, causing inflammation, and a bevy of health problems. The only way to get rid of them is through detoxification. Your body’s most effective way of natural detoxification is through sweating.
Unlike a steam room, or ordinary sauna, because of the unique nature of the light waves, only 80-85 percent of the sweat produced in an infrared sauna is water, the other 15-20 percent contains cholesterol, fat-soluble toxins, toxic heavy metals, sulfuric acid, sodium, ammonia, and uric acid.
Compared to a traditional sauna, an infrared sauna will feel milder and less hot. However, it is seven times more effective and efficient in detoxification than an overly-hot traditional sauna room.
Manufacturers of the devices say that the positive effects of infrared sauna therapy include:
- Improved heart health
- Weight loss
- Relief of chronic pain
- Improved skin health
- Improved immune function and improved wound healing
- Improved circulation
- Relief for sufferers of fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome
There is some research data, but not a lot, to back up these claims. However, the good news is that there have been no reported negative effects of infrared sauna treatments, and even if your infrared sweat session doesn’t do all of the things claimed above, at least it still feels good.
Plus, it contributes to your overall health and well-being by helping you relax, loosening up stiff or tight muscles, reducing joint pain, and giving you some much needed time to yourself.