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New Research: Saunas Are Super Healthy!


What kind of study was this?

This is what researchers call a narrative review. These types of reviews are meant to be general overviews of the existing research on a specific subject.

They're different from systematic reviews because the researchers didn't follow preset rules to ensure that they reviewed every piece of existing research and compare the findings and quality of each study.

What did researchers want to know?

They wanted to review the existing research on the health effects of saunas to see if saunas would be a good thing to offer people who work in high-stress occupations (HSOs) and suffer disproportionately from chronic diseases.

What did the researchers actually do?

They collected the major studies on saunas and health and wrote a paper describing the findings of these studies.

What did the researchers find?

They found that there is a lot of research that shows saunas have beneficial health effects for humans. They also found a lot of research that showed the various reasons (what researchers call "mechanisms") heat exposure in saunas could lead to improved health.

Specifically, they described research that showed an increase in biochemicals important for heart health and metabolic health, and a decrease in biochemicals related to chronic inflammation. Also, they found that sauna use reduced the levels of broad markers of cardiovascular health like resting heart rater and blood pressure.

They also found that the majority of health benefits were seen after using a sauna for 25 minutes a day for four days a week, with no added benefits after 30 minutes for over five days a week.

These results were found mostly in studies that looked at dry saunas at temperatures that ranged from 158º - 170º Fahrenheit.

What does this mean for parents and kids?

The review authors were particularly interested in the benefits of saunas for people in high-stress occupations because being under such high stress increases the risk for chronic diseases.

They didn't include parents in HSOs but they should have! If saunas can help reduce the risk for disease in firefighters and police officers, then it probably does the same for parents!

Original Article:

Henderson KN, Killen LG, O’Neal EK, Waldman HS. The Cardiometabolic Health Benefits of Sauna Exposure in Individuals with High-Stress Occupations. A Mechanistic Review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2021; 18(3):1105. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18031105

New Research: Saunas Are Super Healthy!

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New Research: Saunas Are Super Healthy!

Saunas offer a number of mental and physical health benefits

By

The Family Thrive Expert Team

June 3, 2021

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Key takeaways

1

Researchers conducted a narrative review to see if saunas would be a good thing to offer people who work in high-stress occupations (HSOs) and suffer disproportionately from chronic diseases.

2

They collected the major studies on saunas and health and wrote a paper describing the findings of these studies.

3

They found that there is a lot of research that shows saunas have beneficial health effects for humans.

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What kind of study was this?

This is what researchers call a narrative review. These types of reviews are meant to be general overviews of the existing research on a specific subject.

They're different from systematic reviews because the researchers didn't follow preset rules to ensure that they reviewed every piece of existing research and compare the findings and quality of each study.

What did researchers want to know?

They wanted to review the existing research on the health effects of saunas to see if saunas would be a good thing to offer people who work in high-stress occupations (HSOs) and suffer disproportionately from chronic diseases.

What did the researchers actually do?

They collected the major studies on saunas and health and wrote a paper describing the findings of these studies.

What did the researchers find?

They found that there is a lot of research that shows saunas have beneficial health effects for humans. They also found a lot of research that showed the various reasons (what researchers call "mechanisms") heat exposure in saunas could lead to improved health.

Specifically, they described research that showed an increase in biochemicals important for heart health and metabolic health, and a decrease in biochemicals related to chronic inflammation. Also, they found that sauna use reduced the levels of broad markers of cardiovascular health like resting heart rater and blood pressure.

They also found that the majority of health benefits were seen after using a sauna for 25 minutes a day for four days a week, with no added benefits after 30 minutes for over five days a week.

These results were found mostly in studies that looked at dry saunas at temperatures that ranged from 158º - 170º Fahrenheit.

What does this mean for parents and kids?

The review authors were particularly interested in the benefits of saunas for people in high-stress occupations because being under such high stress increases the risk for chronic diseases.

They didn't include parents in HSOs but they should have! If saunas can help reduce the risk for disease in firefighters and police officers, then it probably does the same for parents!

Original Article:

Henderson KN, Killen LG, O’Neal EK, Waldman HS. The Cardiometabolic Health Benefits of Sauna Exposure in Individuals with High-Stress Occupations. A Mechanistic Review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2021; 18(3):1105. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18031105


What kind of study was this?

This is what researchers call a narrative review. These types of reviews are meant to be general overviews of the existing research on a specific subject.

They're different from systematic reviews because the researchers didn't follow preset rules to ensure that they reviewed every piece of existing research and compare the findings and quality of each study.

What did researchers want to know?

They wanted to review the existing research on the health effects of saunas to see if saunas would be a good thing to offer people who work in high-stress occupations (HSOs) and suffer disproportionately from chronic diseases.

What did the researchers actually do?

They collected the major studies on saunas and health and wrote a paper describing the findings of these studies.

What did the researchers find?

They found that there is a lot of research that shows saunas have beneficial health effects for humans. They also found a lot of research that showed the various reasons (what researchers call "mechanisms") heat exposure in saunas could lead to improved health.

Specifically, they described research that showed an increase in biochemicals important for heart health and metabolic health, and a decrease in biochemicals related to chronic inflammation. Also, they found that sauna use reduced the levels of broad markers of cardiovascular health like resting heart rater and blood pressure.

They also found that the majority of health benefits were seen after using a sauna for 25 minutes a day for four days a week, with no added benefits after 30 minutes for over five days a week.

These results were found mostly in studies that looked at dry saunas at temperatures that ranged from 158º - 170º Fahrenheit.

What does this mean for parents and kids?

The review authors were particularly interested in the benefits of saunas for people in high-stress occupations because being under such high stress increases the risk for chronic diseases.

They didn't include parents in HSOs but they should have! If saunas can help reduce the risk for disease in firefighters and police officers, then it probably does the same for parents!

Original Article:

Henderson KN, Killen LG, O’Neal EK, Waldman HS. The Cardiometabolic Health Benefits of Sauna Exposure in Individuals with High-Stress Occupations. A Mechanistic Review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2021; 18(3):1105. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18031105


What kind of study was this?

This is what researchers call a narrative review. These types of reviews are meant to be general overviews of the existing research on a specific subject.

They're different from systematic reviews because the researchers didn't follow preset rules to ensure that they reviewed every piece of existing research and compare the findings and quality of each study.

What did researchers want to know?

They wanted to review the existing research on the health effects of saunas to see if saunas would be a good thing to offer people who work in high-stress occupations (HSOs) and suffer disproportionately from chronic diseases.

What did the researchers actually do?

They collected the major studies on saunas and health and wrote a paper describing the findings of these studies.

What did the researchers find?

They found that there is a lot of research that shows saunas have beneficial health effects for humans. They also found a lot of research that showed the various reasons (what researchers call "mechanisms") heat exposure in saunas could lead to improved health.

Specifically, they described research that showed an increase in biochemicals important for heart health and metabolic health, and a decrease in biochemicals related to chronic inflammation. Also, they found that sauna use reduced the levels of broad markers of cardiovascular health like resting heart rater and blood pressure.

They also found that the majority of health benefits were seen after using a sauna for 25 minutes a day for four days a week, with no added benefits after 30 minutes for over five days a week.

These results were found mostly in studies that looked at dry saunas at temperatures that ranged from 158º - 170º Fahrenheit.

What does this mean for parents and kids?

The review authors were particularly interested in the benefits of saunas for people in high-stress occupations because being under such high stress increases the risk for chronic diseases.

They didn't include parents in HSOs but they should have! If saunas can help reduce the risk for disease in firefighters and police officers, then it probably does the same for parents!

Original Article:

Henderson KN, Killen LG, O’Neal EK, Waldman HS. The Cardiometabolic Health Benefits of Sauna Exposure in Individuals with High-Stress Occupations. A Mechanistic Review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2021; 18(3):1105. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18031105

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