How does sauna affect diseases? 3 ways how a sauna relieves the symptoms of flu and cold
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Diseases such as colds and flu become more common, especially in winter. Times when the weather changes like spring and autumn are also common times for us and our children when our health may be affected by the weather. No one enjoys being sick! You may have tried many different home remedies for diseases such as sore throat, stuffy nose or cough, which may be accompanied by a bad flu. Of course, hot drinks and foods such as chamomile tea or chicken soup are also a common way to relieve flu symptoms.
Did you know that researchers also agree with these home remedies? In an article published in the New York Times, researchers confirmed the belief that heat can relieve cold and flu symptoms. They study the scientific basis of heat and how the sauna affects diseases. The medical professionals in the research studied in more detail whether the use of hot saunas, that is, much higher heat, can cure colds even faster.
Does sauna help with the flu?
The answer is definitely yes. Using a sauna can certainly reduce the degree of illness and help to recover from symptoms faster. In this article, we will discuss specific research-supported reasons why saunas and infrared saunas improve the immune system and help to heal from the disease faster. Sauna therapy especially affects common diseases, such as the flu. You can see great benefits by going to the sauna if you are sick or if you feel that you may be sick!
Sauna relieves diseases
There are numerous benefits to going to the sauna when you are sick. Here are a few benefits:
1. High temperatures weaken diseases and increase immunity
In one study conducted at a Japanese university, researchers found that the use of infrared saunas improved low-grade fever in patients. Naturally, the high temperatures in the sauna mimic the immune-boosting effects of fever.
When fever begins to rise in the body as a result of attacks of bacteria or viruses, the biological reason is that a higher body temperature does not fit the proteins that make up foreign microbes. Bacteria and viruses specialize to be able to target certain parts of our cells or multiply in our body well within certain temperature ranges. Higher temperatures disrupt their systems and make it difficult for them to survive. At the same time, our immune system and metabolism gain momentum, which allows the hardworking defenders, bacteriophages and white blood cells in the blood to defend against these invaders more easily. It also kicks the immune cell production system into high gear. Our body tends to produce larger amounts of these white blood cells, along with fever, overwhelming defects and the improvement of our body’s launch.
The use of the sauna has the same effects, but without long-term weaknesses and pains, which may be accompanied by fever. Yes, you may feel a little weak after visiting the sauna, but it is only temporary. In the meantime, your immune system has tightened and all the latent viruses in your body have gone down. Saunas really help in the recovery of diseases and allow for a healthier and more active life.
2. Sauna relieves flu symptoms
None of us like the symptoms of the flu: runny nose, headache due to nasal congestion, sore throat, etc. They affect your day badly, and you want to get rid of them quickly! Can a sauna affect diseases such as flu symptoms?
Many medical studies on saunas have also shown that the heat of the sauna reduces the symptoms of allergies and colds, as it improves the emptying of the nose, making the sauna have a positive effect on diseases. Finnish researchers have recommended saunas for asthma, fatigue and many other things.
In one study conducted at a physiotherapy university in Thailand, medical researchers found that patients suffering from symptoms of allergic rhinitis received significant benefits from six weeks of sauna treatment. Allergic rhinitis is the sixth most common chronic disease worldwide, and it is simply nasal congestion and rhinitis from allergies. A group of 30 patients had improved nasal breathing flow compared to the beginning of treatment and the control group.
Another study conducted at Christian University in Taiwan found the same conclusion that advanced infrared sauna therapy can improve the lives of patients with chronic respiratory diseases. The study looked at the areas of the nose of patients and found clear advantages in itching and congestion in the nose. Allergic rhinitis is a serious problem on which $ 6 billion is spent per year. Compared to that, cold and flu symptoms seem to be easily treatable, and yet saunas and infrared saunas have helped patients deal with both successfully. Medical professionals certainly recommend trying an infrared sauna if you have similar symptoms that have bothered you.
3. Infrared saunas prevent flu and colds
Although we have all had colds from childhood until adulthood, did you know that there is a high mortality rate from colds? More than 60,000 people a year die from influenza or pneumonia. The cold is detrimental to our lifestyle, which leads to the fact that we lose time at work or cannot participate in sports or activities that benefit pleasure and health. The ideal would be if we could just prevent colds before they started.
Researchers have found that regular sauna bathing significantly reduces the incidence and frequency of the common cold. For example, an Austrian study of 25 volunteers who used a sauna at the University of Vienna found that they had significantly fewer colds compared to a test group that did not use a sauna. In addition, the colds received by sauna bathers were much shorter in duration and less severe, which again proves that sauna affects diseases in a healing way.
Finland is also known as the home of saunas. It is no wonder that the medical community here has conducted a huge amount of research on the benefits of sauna therapy for human health, and how the sauna affects diseases. In the publication “Cardiovascular diseases and other health benefits of sauna bathing: a review of evidence”, the researchers dived deep into the science between the health benefits of sauna and found that everything points towards saunas that help cure diseases such as headaches and flu. In other words, the sauna affects diseases in a healing way, and made the patients feel better. Lung conditions, that is, respiratory and pulmonary problems, as well as cardiovascular diseases, were also improved with regular use of the sauna.
Improved blood circulation in the body through infrared saunas improves the functioning of the body. Thus, it helps when flu symptoms improve breathing, which then improves the cardiovascular system, since it better oxygenates the blood. In addition, the results here can be compared to various conditions, such as allergic reactions and other chronic conditions, which infrared saunas also help with.