Benefits include: Detoxification: When you sweat in a sauna, the body often releases toxins, resulting in a pleasant and needed detox from unwanted toxins that linger in our bodies. Inflammation Reduction: While acute inflammation is necessary for many biological factors, chronic inflammation can harm long-term health, advancing aging. Heat from the infrared light penetrates deep into the body, causing blood vessels to dilate and improving blood flow. Enhanced blood flow helps deliver oxygen and nutrients to inflamed areas and promotes healing, lowering inflammation. Pain Management: Pain can be reduced by improving blood flow, relieving inflammation, relaxing the muscles and joints, and increasing endorphins, the body’s natural painkillers. Similarly, recovery time for people with muscle soreness or fatigue reduces. Improved Sleep & Recovery: Many sauna users sleep better after sauna use. Stress Relief: Sauna use is an exercise in its own right; although it is more passive, it reduces stress. However, health professionals advise that sauna use should not entirely replace other active exercise forms. Skin Health: Applying Near Infrared (NIR) light on the skin in a sauna has been shown to improve skin tone and texture by increasing collagen and elastin production, a result red light therapy produces. Collagen helps keep fine lines, wrinkles, and loose skin at bay. Similarly, NIR can enhance wound healing, increase skin hydration, decrease pore appearance, and clean the skin by removing dead skin cells. Interestingly, both NIR and FIR light have been shown to block a certain amount of UVB skin damage when exposed to either light source before exposure to outdoor sun. Improved Heart Health and Decreased Blood Pressure: When studied in the laboratory, this therapy shows decreased blood pressure, as reported by the Cleveland Clinic (2022). As discussed, a sauna session is similar to light/moderate exercise, which means the heart has to increase blood flow. In turn, blood pressure is reduced, and circulation is improved, all of which are great for heart health. Calorie Burn: Combined with diet, exercise, or other avenues, this is a great supplemental tool for your weight loss journey. Improved Energy Levels: By nature, improving blood flow and decreasing stress and inflammation plays a significant role in energy. Since this therapy can accomplish these feats, daily energy levels may rise. However, if one is detoxing, many people report feeling tired after their first or second session, but this subsides as toxins are released through sweat from the body.