May 04, 2025 18:00:00

Research shows that people who frequent saunas have better health, more energy and happiness

Saunas are a type of steam bath that originated in Finland and are now popular around the world, including Japan, where a sauna boom began around 2020. A study conducted in Sweden revealed that people who frequently go to saunas have better health, higher energy levels, and greater happiness.

Full article: Sauna bathing in northern Sweden: results from the MONICA study 2022
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/22423982.2024.2419698

Regular sauna users report better health, more energy, and greater happiness
https://www.psypost.org/regular-sauna-users-report-better-health-more-energy-and-greater-happiness/

Previous studies have shown that sauna use reduces the risk of sudden cardiac arrest and that frequent sauna use reduces the risk of fatal cardiovascular disease. However, most of the research on sauna use and health has been conducted in Finland, where sauna culture is deeply rooted, and it was unclear whether the same association was observed in other regions.

A Swedish research team investigated the relationship between sauna use and health and happiness in northern Sweden, where sauna culture is as deeply rooted as in Finland. The study used data from the Northern Sweden MONICA Study , a health survey that monitors the risk of cardiovascular disease in the general population.

'I had read about the benefits of sauna bathing, such as its positive effects on cardiovascular health,' said Åsa Engström , lead author of the study and professor of nursing at Luleå University of Technology in Sweden. 'The opportunity then presented itself to include questions about sauna bathing habits in the Northern Sweden MONICA Study, allowing us to compare various health parameters between sauna-goers and non-goers.'

Data collection for the study was conducted in the spring of 2022, and 1,180 randomly selected adults aged 25 to 74 living in

Norrbotten and Västerbotten counties in northern Sweden were asked questions about a wide range of topics, including sauna habits, health status, lifestyle habits, and mental health. Of the 971 people who responded, 66% were 'sauna bathers' who said they went to the sauna at least once a month.

The questions included specific questions about saunas, such as how often they used saunas, how long they stayed in the sauna, the temperature of the sauna, whether they went in alone or with others, etc. Data was also collected about the participants' levels of physical activity, drinking and smoking habits, sleep satisfaction, experience of pain, anxiety and depression, general health, energy levels and happiness.

The analysis found that sauna bathers were generally younger, more likely to be male and more physically active, less likely to smoke and more likely to consume alcohol, usually two to three times a week.

Additionally, sauna bathers report better overall health, are less likely to be diagnosed with high blood pressure, and report less physical pain. Sauna bathers also have lower levels of anxiety and depression, higher energy levels, greater happiness, and more satisfied sleep patterns.

These benefits were most pronounced in people who saunad one to four times a month, and more frequent sauna sessions did not result in any additional improvements in mental health or energy. The majority of sauna bathers did so in one or two 15-20 minute sessions at a time, with temperatures typically between 60 and 80 degrees Celsius. Most sauna bathers did so with others, and relatively few bathed in cold water or ice after the sauna.

The study also showed that the association between sauna use and improved health was not strongly linked to socioeconomic status: there were no significant differences in education or where people lived between frequent and infrequent sauna users, suggesting that the benefits seen among sauna bathers cannot be explained solely by economic status or living environment.

'Because the study was based on data collected at one time, it's not possible to determine whether sauna use leads to improved health or whether only healthy people take saunas. In addition, the majority of sauna bathers were younger and male, which may have influenced the results.'