Sauna Benefits: What does the Research Actually Say?

An Evidence-Based Guide, by Mark Raisanen, 35 year sauna industry veteran

One doesn’t have to go far to find all kinds of information and misinformation on sauna and the related sauna health benefits. This is where it gets confusing and frustrating to most sauna buyers. If you get to the wrong website and find an infrared-sauna-only supplier you might come away thinking “traditional sauna is bad for me and infrared is healthier for me.” Likewise, if you go to some traditional sauna sites, some even owned by natives of Finland, of Finnish heritage or some Nordic heritage and come away thinking “Finnish Sauna good, infrared sauna bad.”

You might be able to tell from my last name “Raisanen” that I have Finnish heritage. All four of my grandparents were born in Finland and emigrated to America in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s. I grew up taking saunas as a child and have worked in the sauna industry for almost 4 decades. One thing I can say for certain is that both heat bathing styles (infrared and traditional Finnish) have evolved over the last 40 years plus. But at the core both styles remain largely unchanged and deliver benefits in relatively the same manner they have for decades. Below I will attempt to cut through all the clutter and share with you “proven benefits” of both heat bathing styles and the research/evidence in order for you to make your own informed decision clear of commercial bias and put you into the sauna that best fits you! One other mantra I’ve held onto for most of my career is “Try before you buy”. Even if you know what heat bathing style you prefer, the differences between brands, heaters, wood, ventilation and even lighting can change your experience. I’m pretty sure none of you, reading this, would purchase a car before test driving it. The same goes for sauna. Test sweat in it before you buy it. Or, in the case of some buyers or perhaps couples who cannot agree on which version to purchase, “get a hybrid/combo sauna”. That way you can have both without having to purchase two saunas.

Below I will break out the major core benefits of sauna and then provide links to more in-depth and neutral sources that help you decide how that benefit suits you. Keep in mind this is only the surface level of sauna benefits. You can do a deep-dive into the original medical study on most of them. I firmly believe there are dozens if not hundreds of benefits, but in general the 10 benefits below are the most often cited. Prior to the top 10 benefits I will provide some excellent neutral party whole-body-health-studies that you can spend time researching if you prefer. Covering multiple benefits in one link or study.

Research on the Health Benefits of Sauna

Overall full body health benefit articles. These links below provide you neutral party articles and studies for both heat bathing styles and cover a myriad of benefits. Following the introduction section are the top 10 most popular benefits.

If you prefer to watch a video of some of the highlights in this study, we love this video from “Found my Fitness”. A discussion between Dr. Rhonda Patrick’s and Dr. Jari Laukkanen. https://youtu.be/jL7vVG_CFWA?si=ROSkl2Hw89qGdfI8

Link to the peer reviewed major health study that was over 20 years in the making with over 2,300 participants.

From PubMed: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10989710/

From University of Eastern Finland (UEF): https://www.uef.fi/en/article/scientists-uncover-why-sauna-bathing-is-good-for-your-health

This article concludes that there appears to be benefits some of the claims made for infrared benefits are “weak” and need further study. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2718593/

Here is a summary paper from PubMed regarding the Waon study in Japan. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30239008/

Top 10 Sauna Benefits:

Cardiovascular / Heart Health

Taking regular sauna can be good for your health and dramatically reduce the onset of heart disease.

This summary from PubMed summarizes multiple studies that concentrated on infrared. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2718593/

Since the Waon study in Japan particularly concentrated on cardiovascular here is the link to the study show in the introduction section. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30239008/

And, this study came out prior to the UEF study and perhaps helped paved the way for further studies. “Annals of Clinical Research” https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/3218899/

Since the UEF study covers this extensively we have found this article from University of Bristol where they summarize the UEF study and you can download it in a pdf here: https://research-information.bris.ac.uk/en/publications/cardiovascular-and-other-health-benefits-of-sauna-bathing-a-revie/

Blood Pressure

Saunas can help lower blood pressure.

From a Far-infrared study. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15090706/

From the aforementioned UEF study. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28633297/

Sleep

Saunas can induce a deeper more restful sleep

I am unable to find any good medical studies on the effects of infrared sauna and sleep, but this article which covers the effect of spa or warm bath bathing and sleep would seem to indicate infrared could offer similar benefits: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37145200/

There are a couple of studies related to traditional sauna and sleep improvement. Here are links to summaries of both: Finland study. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10989710/ and Northern Sweden study. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11524357/

Recovery

Recovery of sore muscles, faster healing of injuries or any other myriad of ailments can experience much faster recovery.

This recent study from 2023 was done by a University in Finland of all places. It shows the benefits of infrared sauna related to athletic recovery: https://www.jyu.fi/en/news/infrared-sauna-shows-promising-benefits-for-team-sport-athletes

Another fun anecdotal story from Dan Gable regarding his learning of sauna use from the Russian wrestlers during his competitive career. https://dailyiowan.lib.uiowa.edu/DI/1993/di1993-03-11.pdf

Further, since its related to University of Iowa, some customers may be interested to hear what famous wrestler and coach Dan Gable has to say about the subject of sauna and recovery. In his book “A Wrestling Life 2” https://uipress.uiowa.edu/books/wrestling-life-2

Follow up Dr. Shield’s U of Iowa study: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37890230/

University of Iowa study on sauna and its effects on recovery (you can download the pdf summary on this page): https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3117202/

Longevity

While this one can be controversial to a degree we should all be stewards of our own health and there are studies that prove regular sauna use may extend one’s life, at least statistically.

Since there are not any major studies that allow for credible reference specifically to infrared, I am linking a Mayo Clinic summary that confirms there may be benefits, similar to traditional, but further study is needed: https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/consumer-health/expert-answers/infrared-sauna/faq-20057954

Association between sauna and all-cause mortality events. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/2130724

Brain Health

Regular sauna use can reduce the onset of strokes and the onset of Alzheimers.

I could find no reputable studies confirming infrared sauna produced similar results. However, heat bathing in general may have beneficial effects but there are no studies current peer reviewed clinical studies proving this that I could locate.

And this study that wasn’t using the same 2,300 men from the UEF study, included more participants and was over a 39 year period. Seems to confirm similar benefits. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7560162/

Dementia/Alzheimers: linked mainly to the UEF study https://academic.oup.com/ageing/article/46/2/245/2654230

Stroke: Here is from the American Academy of Neurology summary: https://www.neurology.org/doi/10.1212/WNL.0000000000005606

Stress

While “relaxation” is the most commonly quoted reason for people buying or using a sauna, there are medically proven benefits of reducing stress from using a sauna.

This article helps differentiate infrared from traditional showing its own set of benefits related to stress. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5941775/

A link to article on relaxation/stress reduction from Mayo Clinic proceedings: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0025619623000083

Respiratory Health

Saunas can help improve air flow, clear sinuses and other beneficial respiratory functions. The evidence is considerably stronger for traditional Finnish sauna than for infrared sauna.

The earlier mentioned Waon study has a portion dedicated to respiratory function, particularly COPD: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3865971/

Common respiratory airway function and reduction in respiratory infections: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28905164/

COPD: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/eci.13940

Pneumonia and common cold: https://www.resmedjournal.com/article/S0954-6111%2817%2930357-8/fulltext

Weight Loss

While the actual session of sitting in a sauna is generally only water loss, using saunas is proven to burn calories as your body works hard just to keep cool and sweat. This in turn, along with a healthy lifestyle often can aid in weight loss. In summary, both forms of heat bathing burn calories and it comes down to which one you will use the most or longer if calorie burn is your goal.

Infrared specific study: https://www.ovid.com/jnls/acsm-msse/abstract/10.1249/01.mss.0000386527.84749.60~acute-metabolic-effects-of-far-infrared-sauna-bath-2985board?redirectionsource=fulltextview

U.S. Army Research study on sauna: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/article-abstract/360118#google_vignette

Calorie burn: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6360547/ and https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/21/11503

Detoxification

Again, while there are some wild claims out there claiming that infrared will sweat out 90% heavy metals and other toxins while traditional will be only water loss, studies have proven that everyone’s sweat content is different and all sweating is good and detoxification has proven to be an extra benefit most people never expected in both types of sauna.

All Sweating—not just sauna. One interesting find that shows all sweating is good for riddance of heavy metals is this 2022 study that compared sauna use to exercise. The study seemed to indicate that exercise produced higher concentrations of heavy metals that sauna bathing, seeming to prove that all sweating is good. (*note the sample size of the study was very small—only 12 participants). https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8998800/

https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/tjem/195/3/195_3_163/_article

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36207634/

The oldest study I found related to the body ridding heavy metals in traditional sauna use: https://academic.oup.com/clinchem/article-abstract/19/11/1288/5676713

The UEF study did not concentrate on toxins or heavy metals in their ground breaking sauna study, but the same researchers earlier had studied how saunas indeed help eliminate toxins from the body and hailing both styles of sauna as effective tools for fire fighters wanting to get rid of toxins in their body: https://www.uef.fi/en/article/exploring-the-potential-of-sauna-detox-for-firefighters

In summary: As you can see from just these top 10 sauna benefits that medical and wellness studies seem to prove that saunas not only feel good, they are good for you. In general, the evidence seems to indicate that traditional saunas have far more extensive evidence when it comes to peer reviewed and large-scale studies. Infrared on the other hand seems to have far more randomized trials with very few participants. This can lead to misleading information just to prove a point for commercial use. However, it seems to indicate there are wellness benefits, but just be careful regarding the claims being made. The areas where beneficial studies prove to be largely absent for infrared sauna are related to Dementia and longevity or mortality evidence. This is an area where traditional sauna seems to rise above the clutter with all the substantial evidence in large group and peer reviewed studies. I maintain that “all sweating is good”, “heat therapy for our joints and muscles is good”, and putting yourself into a sauna environment that you’ll use most often is likely the best choice for you. Or, better yet, try both environments as many times as possible, before making a decision on which sauna is right for you. There are showrooms around the country where you can test soak in both types of sauna heat and determine which one is the best for you. “Let’s Sauna!”