Naturopathy >>>> Why can a sauna be harmful?

Why can a sauna be harmful?

It is believed that going to a sauna is very beneficial for health, but not everyone benefits from a sauna. Why can a sauna be harmful?

The sauna or "steam room" has long been considered a health procedure due to the many positive health effects of visiting it. In the modern world, the beneficial properties of the sauna are not diminished at all, as it is an opportunity to relieve nervous tension, muscle tension, lose weight, cleanse the skin, revive the blood supply to the skin and many organs directly related to the process of thermoregulation of the body without physical effort and any complex hardware procedures.

But the results of visiting a sauna can have the opposite effect and are not at all healthy. What health risks can be hidden in being in a stuffy and hot room, overheating with steam in an atmosphere with high humidity?

In many cardiovascular diseases, sauna is extremely harmful to health and can provoke not only the peak of the disease, but also a fatal outcome. For example, in case of suspected myocardial infarction (and after myocardial infarction), in case of arrhythmia, in case of varicose veins, in case of ischemic heart disease, and even in case of high blood pressure and especially in case of low blood pressure, sauna is strictly contraindicated.

Also sauna is harmful for such diseases as cataracts, hyperthyroidism, inflammatory diseases of the kidneys or liver, skin weeping and itchy diseases, viral, fungal and bacterial respiratory infections, skin infectious diseases, chronic infectious diseases. This is due to the fact that steam, heating the body, expands blood vessels in a very short period of time, which can contribute to a sharp increase in sluggish painful processes directly related to blood circulation.

If your health allows you to visit a sauna, then even in this case the time spent in the steam room should be strictly limited - no more than 15 minutes per visit to the sauna itself and no more than three visits per trip to the bathhouse with a sauna. Between visits to the steam room itself, it is necessary to observe a time interval of at least 20-25 minutes. Any other mode of visiting the sauna can lead to a painful condition in even the healthiest person.

Not everyone is suitable for contrasting temperature conditions in a bathhouse, for example, rushing from a cold pool or from under a cold shower into a steam room. Or, on the contrary, leaving the steam room, getting under a cold shower or plunging into a pool. Such temperature changes can, at best, end in a short-term loss of consciousness, and at worst - loss of health.

The sauna itself is considered useful, as it relaxes muscles, relieves stress and makes blood circulate through superficial microvessels (peripheral vessels). But at the same time, the sauna can provoke thromboembolism, myocardial infarction or stroke, an attack of atrial fibrillation, headache and dizziness. Steaming the skin can aggravate chronic skin diseases that are in remission.

It would be a good idea to consult a therapist about possible contraindications to visiting a sauna based on your own health or ill health before visiting a sauna. Together with your doctor, choose the optimal sauna visiting regimen so that your desire to improve your health does not turn into serious health problems.