When the weather is cold and uncomfortable, most of the people are dreaming about warm days and summer. Where to find the heat in winter? The answer is very simple – sauna! Most of us think that sauna gives only recreational fun and it’s a great way to communicate with friends. However, the fact is that sauna plays even the greater role in our lifes because heat is a very important factor in our healing processes and for our health.
So, what happens when we enter the sauna? Our body receives much positive thermal stimulus, because a hot stove, sauna stones and wooden walls radiate the heat. In the beginning, heat enters the body through our skin. It heats up our respiratory tract and increases body temperature by 1-2 º C. Therefore, this artificially initiates the fever and intensifies all the metabolic processes and blood circulation, strengthens natural defense forces of the body.
However, all these positive things happen only when you pay attention to sauna rules: take a shower, and dry yourself, spend 15 minutes in sauna, wash in a cold water, then stay in sauna for 10-15 minutes on more time and finally take a cold shower. Now you should dry your body and stay calm.
Keep in mind that you can heat up in sauna only when you are feeling well. So, the ones that want to start visiting sauna should consult with their family doctor (even if there are healthy). Though sauna can’t replace a doctor, it’s ideally suited as a complementary medicine. The main benefits of the sauna are the help to relax the tense of the muscles or rheumatic ailments, the help in getting rid of spinal diseases or joint injury. Sauna also has a positive effect on the heart and blood vessels and it can be especially effective for people with high blood pressure (of course, only with the doctor’s monitoring).