# What good, if any, does a sauna actually do you? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 3, 2006, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-if-any-does-a-sauna-actually-do-you/338164 "2006-01-03T01:14:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2006, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-if-any-does-a-sauna-actually-do-you/338164/1 "2006-01-03T01:14:04Z")
From the Wikipedia – [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sauna:](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sauna:) > [@](#): > > It is believed by some that heavy sweating helps to remove ‘toxins’ from the body.[citation needed] It is also believed that exposure of the skin to heat stimulates the production of white blood cells and strengthens the immune system. [citation needed] That’s all it says. “Citation needed.” Is there any scientific proof that prolonged sitting in a room heated to 70-90 degrees Celsius (158-194 Farenheit) actually has any health benefits? ---
**Author:** ![Raguleader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/258eb7/32.png) [@Raguleader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raguleader)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2006, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-if-any-does-a-sauna-actually-do-you/338164/2 "2006-01-03T01:54:49Z")
I was always told that it opens up the pores of your skin, which I guess would theoretically help with some skin conditions. ---
**Author:** ![Bruce\_Daddy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/85f322/32.png) [@Bruce\_Daddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bruce_Daddy)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2006, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-if-any-does-a-sauna-actually-do-you/338164/3 "2006-01-03T02:25:43Z")
> **[What are saunas for?](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=314221)** > > Got back into the gym recently and they have a sauna. Every once in a while, I’ll see a guy in there, sweating his ass off. Back in my high school wrestling days, I can see that being an awesome way to drop a few quick pounds right before a weigh-in,... IMHO thread. ---
**Author:** ![Ponster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponster/32/17081_2.png) [@Ponster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponster)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2006, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-if-any-does-a-sauna-actually-do-you/338164/4 "2006-01-03T11:24:40Z")
Sauna & Health Sweat Bathing and the Body ©1997 Mikkel Aaland All Rights Reserved [http://www.cyberbohemia.com/Pages/saunahealth.htm](http://www.cyberbohemia.com/Pages/saunahealth.htm) > [@](#): > > The heat produces an artificial “fever” and urges every organ of the body into action. While outwardly relaxed, your inner organs are as active as though you were jogging or mowing the lawn. At the same time, you are being cleansed from inside out by the skin, your body’s largest organ and its excretion, sweat. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Jones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/96bed5/32.png) [@Cat\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Jones)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2006, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-if-any-does-a-sauna-actually-do-you/338164/5 "2006-01-03T13:55:12Z")
I knew Estonians who favoured a sauna over a shower or bath to get clean - in fact one student told me her nephews and nieces (age range 9 downwards) had never used soap or shampoo just had saunas; gently slapping yourself with twigs dipped in cold water was suposed to help stimulate the skin in some way too but not sure how this relates to cleansing. If avoiding using chemicals, which cause allergies in some, to clean yourself is a health benefit then it would seem that yes, sauna are a good thing. ---
**Author:** ![CBCD](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9fc348/32.png) [@CBCD](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CBCD)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2006, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-if-any-does-a-sauna-actually-do-you/338164/6 "2006-01-03T14:00:50Z")
When I have the time, I sometimes take a sauna, then a steam bath, then a shower after a workout at the gym. The benefits? I will feel absolutely terrific! My husband tells me I look radiant after I do this. My muscles are relaxed. I feel good about life. 15 minutes in the sauna, 15 minutes in the steam bath - Ah! ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2006, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-if-any-does-a-sauna-actually-do-you/338164/7 "2006-01-03T18:49:30Z")
> [@Cat Jones](#): > > I knew Estonians who favoured a sauna over a shower or bath to get clean - in fact one student told me her nephews and nieces (age range 9 downwards) had never used soap or shampoo just had saunas; gently slapping yourself with twigs dipped in cold water was suposed to help stimulate the skin in some way too but not sure how this relates to cleansing. Ummm . . . They do take a shower or bath **after** the sauna, don’t they? If not . . . :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2006, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-if-any-does-a-sauna-actually-do-you/338164/8 "2006-01-03T19:02:06Z")
So far, I’ve seen nothing to suggest this doesn’t belong in IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![Amazon\_Floozy\_Goddess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/779978/32.png) [@Amazon\_Floozy\_Goddess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amazon_Floozy_Goddess)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2006, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-if-any-does-a-sauna-actually-do-you/338164/9 "2006-01-03T23:47:52Z")
I’ve been to several sweat lodges as well as saunas. Sweat lodges are very similar to saunas but can get much hotter, depending on outside air temp as well as how much the rocks heat up beforehand. You really do sweat buckets in there, and come out absolutely drenched. After I’ve been in one, I “feel” cleaner, find breathing easier, and my skin feels velvety soft. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2006, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-if-any-does-a-sauna-actually-do-you/338164/10 "2006-01-04T01:12:51Z")
After a sauna, I am super-duper clean (that’s a technical term, you know) – far more squeaky clean (another technical term) than I get from just showering. After a sauna I am fabuously relaxed (yet another technical term). Fortunately, although I live in Canda, I live in a city that is swarming (another technical term) with people with Finnish ancestry, so saunas are common here. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Jones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/96bed5/32.png) [@Cat\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Jones)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2006, 10:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-if-any-does-a-sauna-actually-do-you/338164/11 "2006-01-04T10:31:16Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > Ummm . . . They do take a shower or bath **after** the sauna, don’t they? If not . . . :eek: Nope, as I understood it they scrubbed while in there just had a rub down with a towel afterwards. ---
**Author:** ![Coil](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Coil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coil)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2006, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-if-any-does-a-sauna-actually-do-you/338164/12 "2006-01-04T13:17:32Z")
It feels good and you get clean. What more do you need? ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2006, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-if-any-does-a-sauna-actually-do-you/338164/13 "2006-01-04T13:29:39Z")
Saunas really help open up the old sinuses, if the sinuses are clogged. ---
**Author:** ![cactus\_waltz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/74df32/32.png) [@cactus\_waltz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cactus_waltz)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2006, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-if-any-does-a-sauna-actually-do-you/338164/14 "2006-01-04T13:55:12Z")
If you take a sauna in the wild, if there any outdoor saunas where you are at, you can go from extreme cold to extreme warm instantly. By tradition, you take the outdoor sauna in the winter when the water is frozen and take a dive into the sub-zero degree water, then rush right back into the sauna again. This opens up your blood veins and preempts cloggings and cholestrol. ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2006, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-if-any-does-a-sauna-actually-do-you/338164/15 "2006-01-04T14:14:55Z")
> [@cactus waltz](#): > > This opens up your blood veins and preempts cloggings and cholestrol. IANAD, but I assume that this statement is your opinion. I would love to see a cite linking saunas with lower cholesterol and/or preventing clogged arteries. ---
**Author:** ![cactus\_waltz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/74df32/32.png) [@cactus\_waltz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cactus_waltz)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2006, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-if-any-does-a-sauna-actually-do-you/338164/16 "2006-01-04T14:41:03Z")
Yes, it’s my opinion, based on a study I read some time ago that came to the conclusion while comparing people in a sauna-rich culture with that of a sauna-poor culture. I’m trying to google for it, but I’m not in luck. ---
**Author:** ![Raguleader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/258eb7/32.png) [@Raguleader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raguleader)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2006, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-if-any-does-a-sauna-actually-do-you/338164/17 "2006-01-04T15:12:40Z")
One of my profs at school mentioned that sudden changes in temperature also give your immune system a motivational kick in the rear. Saunas might help along these lines. ---
**Author:** ![Tibby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tibby/32/17030_2.png) [@Tibby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tibby)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2006, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-if-any-does-a-sauna-actually-do-you/338164/18 "2006-01-04T19:28:27Z")
I am proud to say that I don’t take saunas, baths or showers and, puzzlingly, I rarely become afflicted with communicable diseases. I try to explain this situation to people in person, but, obviously jealous of my good fortune, they always seem to avoid me. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2006, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-if-any-does-a-sauna-actually-do-you/338164/19 "2006-01-04T19:41:25Z")
> [@cactus waltz](#): > > If you take a sauna in the wild, if there any outdoor saunas where you are at, you can go from extreme cold to extreme warm instantly. By tradition, you take the outdoor sauna in the winter when the water is frozen and take a dive into the sub-zero degree water, then rush right back into the sauna again. This opens up your blood veins and preempts cloggings and cholestrol. Sounds like it might also cause catatonia or death from shock.