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Research Suggests That Saunas Help You Live Longer

Posted by samzenpus on from the sweat-it-out dept.

jones_supa writes A study of Finnish men suggests that frequent sauna baths may help you live longer. Previous research has suggested that saunas might improve blood vessel function and exercise capacity, or even lower blood pressure in patients with hypertension. The new study links long, hot sauna baths with more benefits, including fewer deaths from heart attacks, strokes, various heart-related conditions and other causes. The study tracked 2315 Finnish men for nearly 20 years on average. Most participants used saunas at least once weekly. Those who used them four to seven times weekly received the greatest benefits. The study published in JAMA Internal Medicine wraps up by saying that further studies are warranted to establish the potential mechanism that links sauna bathing and the aforementioned cardiovascular benefits.

14 of 208 comments (clear)

  1. Easy life by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I bet if I had the time to visit the fucking spa 7 days a week I'd live a heck of a lot longer too.

    1. Re:Easy life by __aaltlg1547 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Not a problem if you enjoy exercising. Or saunas.

    2. Re:Easy life by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

      And when you are not exercising, you sleep better, you look better, you feel better, you are happier, and sometimes you experience high utility from your more powerful body.

      But if you don't like exercising none of this matters. Those benefits will not be enough to motivate you to hit the gym. But that's ok. There is no law that says you must seek these benefits. Anyone who would impose these values on you is not worth your time.

    3. Re:Easy life by pepty · · Score: 5, Insightful

      And we're not talking about those painful last 5 years where you can't do anything, but 5 years of vitality to your productive mid-life.

      Cite? I'm genuinely curious. The trick is finding research that is based on intervention, not just observation. For example: studies of runners. People who are still running at age 55+ have been intensively selected by their joints over the years, many people will have experienced knee/hip/ankle/back problems well before that age and quit. How do you establish the control group: people who could keep running but choose not to? Otherwise you are conflating the benefits of not being at risk for arthritis, tendinosis, vertabrae/disk issuses, torn meniscus, etc. with the benefits of exercise.

    4. Re: Easy life by rycamor · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Explain Jim fix?

      Easily. Not all exercise is created equal. The jogging craze of the 70s/80s should be dumped into history's dustbin along with the low-fat diet. Also, too much exercise is almost as bad as too little. See my other responses in this thread for more.

    5. Re: Easy life by Immerman · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Easy. The standard deviation is substantially larger than the effect being measured. Doesn't mean the effect isn't real, or even that it can't be measured fairly accurately. Just that it will be completely lost in the noise of anecdotal evidence without a proper statistical analysis.

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      --- Most topics have many sides worth arguing, allow me to take one opposite you.
    6. Re: Easy life by rycamor · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Yeah, and my experience is that a) most doctors are physically lazy and have abominable fitness, and b) they are stuck on years or even decades-outdated studies of fitness and diet. And, c) they tend to favor medical and pharmaceutical intervention rather than lifestyle changes. This is a natural outcome of how their money is made and their social position in Western society. Which is why I don't have *blanket* trust in their fitness recommendations as a majority. This particular cardiologist was doing his own original research, which is why he came to these conclusions.

      I come from a family of doctors and medical people, BTW. I have no axe to grind. I just try to observe as clearly as possible.

  2. Smoking Hot Blondes by sycodon · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Especially when the sauna is filled with naked Scandinavian women.

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    When Fascism comes to America, it will call itself Anti-Fascism, and tell you to give up your guns.
  3. Research Suggests by AdamStarks · · Score: 4, Insightful

    That being happy and relaxed every now and then can prolong your life.

  4. recipe for long life by PopeRatzo · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Big surprise: People that take time out of their day for things they enjoy and self-care live longer. Who knew?

    So, someone who has the time and financial resources to spend an hour in a sauna probably has a long list of factors that will contribute to longer life, none of which involve the life-giving effects of sitting in a hot box.

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    You are welcome on my lawn.
  5. Re:Relaxing = Live longer? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Insightful

    Something tells me anyone who leads a lifestyle that allows you to go to a sauna "four to seven times weekly" is already not exactly living a stressful life to begin with.

  6. I hate gender bias in studies by wwphx · · Score: 3, Insightful

    2,000 men: no women. Guess what -- women are alive and have cardiovascular health also. And a lot of women die because most heart studies don't study women and their symptoms of heart attack are different.

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    When you sympathize with stupidity, you start thinking like an idiot.
  7. Skewed Results by Dorianny · · Score: 4, Insightful

    The problem with this type of studies is that is that you can never establish causality. Does X activity really extend ones lifespan on its own or is the type of person that engages in that activity simply into a healthier overall lifestyle. This particular study might even be skewed due to most doctors advising patients with chronic Cardiovascular Disease to avoid saunas. Cardiovascular Disease is the number one killer in the developed world and removing them from a population sample would tip average life expectancy higher.

  8. Re:The wrong conclusion was drawn by rasjani · · Score: 3, Insightful

    People who are weak can not tolerate many saunas and therefore avoid them. Healthy people don't have a problem with them and take more of them. Saunas didn't make them healthy, saunas just weeded out the unhealthy.

    You obviously have not been into public sauna in Finland if you claim that only healthy people go there..

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    yush