A Splendid Sauna Story

Heat Up Inside A Sauna

Sauna bath might be a trendy affair in recent times like the jacuzzi, but its origin is quite ancient. Native to Finland, the word literally means bath or a bathhouse. A rage across Europe in the Middle Ages, saunas were pushed backseat due to a syphilis scare during the 1500s. Colored lights, aromatic fragrances and music might hold a regular place in commercial saunas, but authentic Finnish saunas are dimly lit without any music or aroma. Sauna is calming, refreshing, rejuvenating and of all, healthy.
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Any person who had stepped into the sauna will only understand why it is popular worldwide. Therapeutic sauna is believed to reduce stress, lower blood pressure and improve cardiovascular conditions. There’s nothing more inviting that sitting inside a dark, damp shed devoid of any thoughts or noises. The latest findings have showed a positive link between sauna and reduced stroke risk.

Sauna & Stroke
Stroke is one of the leading causes of disability and death worldwide. The study (15-year period study) was in Finland involving 1,628 men and women aged between 53 and 74 years. During the follow-up period, 155 participants had stroke. The participants were divided into three categories, those taking a sauna once a week, those taking a sauna 2-3 times a week and those taking a sauna 4-7 times a week, depending on their frequency of taking traditional Finnish sauna bath. Even after considering factors such as age, sex, diabetes, body mass index, blood lipids, alcohol consumption, socio-economic status and physical activity, results showed that, compared to people taking one sauna session a week:

• Those who took 2-3 sessions were at a 14% reduced risk of stroke
• Those who took 4-7 sessions were at a 61% reduced risk of stroke
  
  

Elevated blood pressure is a priority risk factor for stroke and researchers relate sauna baths to lowered blood pressure rates which in turn reduce the risk of stroke. The same study group previously witnessed that sauna bath had remarkable effects on stiffness of the arterial walls thereby influencing blood pressure and cardiac function parameters. There are other studies that emphasize on the advantages of this hot cabin-healthier heart, lowered blood pressure from a 30-minute sauna session, increased immunity and longer, stress-free life.

Sauna for All
Sauna is safe and suggested for everybody. Only exceptions are newborns and people with serious conditions such as open wounds or heart problems while every other person can enjoy and relax doing this activity with zero worries! It is mental and physical cleansing usually performed with a ‘vasta’ or ‘vihta’. This is nothing but a bunch of fresh birch twigs that is used to gently whip yourself. Though sounding violent, it will prove its smoothness and worthiness on your skin later, when you are done with the bath. Also, it is recommended to drink plenty of water before hitting the sauna as you are sure to sweat heavily. Water loss from any activity that causes sweating must be compensated with enough water intake to avoid dehydration. Else dehydration can result in drastic side effects that worsen the health of the body as elaborated in the website www.firsteatright.com. 

While the results are encouraging, sauna should never become a replacement for conventional physical exercise but only act as a supplement. Although sauna temperate levels can be anywhere between 70°C and 100°C, those unfamiliar with sauna bathing are advised to begin with caution, test their heat tolerance level and then slowly increase their frequency and intensity of bathing. Physicians too advise newbies to proceed with caution as even a single episode can trigger heart problems, dehydration or stroke, specifically when people don’t follow instructions against abstaining from alcohol.