Health Benefits of Far Infrared Saunas
HOW DOES IT WORK?
Better Circulation and Increased Energy: The far infrared sauna emits FIR energy that is absorbed by human cells, causing a physical phenomenon called “resonance”. Thus the cellular activities are instantly invigorated, resulting in a better blood circulation and an overall improved metabolism.
Reduce Stress / Relaxation: Infrared heat therapy loosens muscles and relaxes the body. Many massage therapists use infrared heat prior to massage to provide a more thorough and effective treatment.
Cardiovascular Health: The FIR Sauna increases heart rate and blood circulation, crucial to maintaining one’s health. The heart rate increases as more blood flow is diverted from the inner organs towards the extremities of the skin, without heightening blood pressure.
Detoxification: Toxins such as sodium, alcohol, nicotine, carcinogenic heavy metals (cadmium, lead, zinc, nickel) and mercury accumulate in the body during modern daily life. Infrared heat therapy stimulates the sweat glands to cleanse and detoxify your skin.
Exercise Exchange: A 30 minute far-infrared (FIR) sauna session burns up to 500 calories, similar to a 5km run. Infrared saunas are perfect for those who do not have time for regular exercise or suffer from personal injuries that inhibit rigorous activity.
Pain Relief: FIR heat relieves pain by expanding blood vessels and increasing circulation. Better circulation allows more oxygen to reach the injured areas of the body and helps reduce pain and speed up the healing process. Many people use FIR heat as a successful treatment for arthritis, muscle spasms and rheumatism.
Skin Benefits: Infrared heat increases blood circulation, expels dirt chemicals and removes dead cells from surface of skin. All of these benefits lead to a softer and firmer complexion and in turn, infrared heat can be used to reduce the signs of wrinkles associated with aging.
Improves Immune System: During a fever, the body heats up to eliminate viruses and attack foreign agents. Subsequently, the body wards off invading organisms far more easily because the immune system is activated consistently by the “artificial fever.” Recent studies also show that colds and flu-like illnesses are reduced dramatically if treated in the early stages with FIR heat therapy.
Read article on how Sauna therapy extends your life
Traditional Sauna vs Far Infrared Sauna
Traditional Saunas (Finnish or hot rock) heat the surrounding air. This creates a very hot environment, with temperatures around 180F to 220F. In this type of sauna your body sweats in an attempt to cool itself down. The sauna user will usually adjust the humidity to protect the body’s mucous membranes by splashing water on the heating element. This creates the steam-filled environment Finnish saunas are known for.
Far Infrared Saunas do not heat the surrounding air in the same way. Instead, they heat the body directly with infrared heat waves and raise the body’s core temperature instead of its surface temperature. This allows for a much lower temperature within the sauna, typically 110F to 140F. There is no need to increase the humidity within the sauna and therefore the sauna won’t be filled with steam. It takes much less time to heat an infrared sauna because it isn’t necessary to raise the air temperature as high in order to begin the session.
