How Do Infrared Saunas Work?
An in-depth look into how infrared saunas work and how they can improve everything from skin health to fat loss
How Do Infrared Saunas Work
If you are used to the visible heat generated from the steam in a traditional rock sauna or Finnish sauna, you might be wondering both how do infrared saunas work and what is the difference between infrared and traditional sauna?
While traditional saunas heat up the space largely by pouring cold water on hot rocks to produce steam which raises the ambient or surrounding temperature in the sauna, infrared saunas are emitting infrared light waves that penetrate the body and produce heat energy.
Put simply, the main difference between infrared and traditional sauna is the heat source – the former produces infrared light whereas the latter heats the air around you. Both sauna types have fantastic benefits for the body and for improving recovery from a hard workout, improving sleep, reducing body fat, increasing human growth hormone and testosterone for performance and muscle repair, improving mood and mental health, improving cardiovascular health and even extending lifespan.
If you are someone who uses saunas regularly or wondering if saunas are good for you, it is beneficial to understand how infrared saunas work and how you should use an infrared sauna.
The Science of Heating the Body
All saunas serve the purpose of raising the core temperature of the body, producing ‘heat stress’, to create an adaptive response in the body and produce physiological responses that improve recovery and detoxification.
Heating the body deliberately is a method of biohacking and recovery that many experts have been talking about and that is becoming a much more mainstream approach to improving recovery time in athletes.
When the body is heated up, many of the same physiological effects as exercise are taking place, like increased heart rate, increased breathing rate, greater circulation of blood and vasodilation, increased sweating, raised body temperature, growth hormone release, increased cortisol, and activation of heat shock proteins.
Deliberate heat exposure and its benefits for the body are discussed in depth in podcasts like the Huberman Lab with Dr Andrew Huberman. We have touched on a summary of the benefits of sauna, sauna blankets and heat therapy in some of our other articles and use heat therapy as a very regular method of improving exercise recovery.
By heating the body and raising the body’s core temperature, we are taking advantage of numerous effects relating to the endocrine system, cardiovascular health improvements, growth hormone benefits, mental health benefits, weight loss and brown fat producing benefits, inflammation reduction, and many more positive health effects.
How Infrared Saunas Work
Infrared saunas are sold in three different types: Far Infrared, Near Infrared and Full Spectrum Infrared.
We know that sunlight is a combination of both visible and invisible forms of light. One of the parts of this spectrum is the invisible infrared light which gives sunlight some of its life giving and reparatory benefits to the body. This infrared light from the sun has a warming and relaxing quality and is what we can’t see but can feel.
Using specially designed panels, infrared saunas radiate either Far Infrared, Near Infrared or a combination of both that gradually heat the cells of the body, raising core body temperature. In the process, the infrared rays are penetrating through the various layers of the skin, something that traditional saunas do not do, causing a host of amazing responses that promote recovery, healing, weight loss, skin repair, immune health, mood regulation, sleep promotion and relaxation.
Near Infrared Saunas
Some saunas produce primarily near infrared (NIR) light. Unlike the traditional saunas, near infrared (NIR) light saunas produce radiant heat—from the inside out. This type of light mimics the natural light produced by the sun and effectively penetrates into the body, beyond the surface of the skin to heat up core temperature with a deeper heat than traditional saunas.
Near infrared saunas are good at promoting topical healing of skin and wounds as well as hair regrowth, and also have a mild pain relieving benefit.
Far Infrared Saunas
Far infrared (FIR) saunas make up the majority of infrared saunas available to buy online. Far infrared saunas are generally cheaper than full spectrum infrared saunas due to the cheaper technology associated with producing far infrared light alone.
Far infrared saunas provide and incredibly effective way of removing toxins, improving circulation, and relaxing the muscles. In one study, the use of FIR is shown to “produce thermal and non-thermal effects, such as increasing artery blood flow and peripheral blood circulation, improving endothelial function, alleviating fatigue and pain, reduce blood pressure, and promote capillary dilatation.” These results show amazing implications for improving recovery after a hard workout and preparing for athletic performance.
Full Spectrum Infrared Saunas
Full Spectrum Infrared Saunas, like the Clearlight Full Spectrum Infrared Sauna, are the best quality infrared saunas on the market. Full spectrum infrared saunas use technology that includes a combination of near, mid and far infrared wavelengths for the best of both worlds in infrared light types.
By combining all three levels of infrared light, full spectrum saunas give a complimentary benefit of the unique effects of each wavelength of infrared light to maximise the effects of infrared sauna use. The cost of Full spectrum infrared saunas is generally double or even triple the price of many Far infrared saunas, with the average price of a full spectrum sauna sitting at about $8000AUD - $12000AUD.
Infrared Sauna Vs Traditional Sauna
We know that traditional saunas use some variation of steam, fire, or electric heaters to make the surrounding or ambient air in the sauna hot, which in turn heats up the body.
Infrared saunas, on the other hand, harness the spectrum of light that is present in the sun to produce light energy that heats the body internally at a cellular level. These differences in infrared sauna vs traditional sauna have a few implications for effects, benefits, energy consumption and suitable setup space.
Traditional saunas generally take 30-60 minutes to heat up to their operating temperature of around 80-90 degrees C, whereas most infrared saunas take about 10-15 minutes to reach their full heat at about 65-70 degrees C which mean infrared saunas may end up using less energy.
Some differences in benefits of infrared vs traditional saunas also exist due to the method of heating. Both sauna types share their ability to assist in detoxification through sweat production and metabolism benefits. Infrared saunas have added benefits of eliminating bacteria and improving cellular function and immunity.
Traditional saunas may have a longer lifespan than infrared saunas as the technology in infrared saunas may be more prone to breaking down and requiring repair. It is also worth noting that much of the research conducted around the benefits of sauna use has been using traditional and Finnish saunas, although new research is emerging on infrared sauna use and the benefits of infrared light on the body for photo biomodulation have been extensive. Infrared light has been shown to improve skin health, benefit wound healing, improve hair growth and improve eye health.
As far as setup goes, while traditional saunas may require setup in a wet space due to the need to pour water over rocks to produce steam, infrared saunas can be set up in the home in a spare bedroom or garage without any need for drainage. In this regard, infrared saunas are more suitable for heat therapy at home and are a completely dry (apart from sweat) treatment.
Infrared Sauna Vs Ice Baths
Infrared Sauna vs Ice Bath
Infrared saunas and ice baths offer some very similar benefits for recovery. While ice baths constrict blood vessels and draw blood away from the skins surface to protect vital organs, infrared saunas cause vasodilation, increasing blood flow around the body.
Read Also: Sauna vs Ice Bath: Which Is Better For Recovery
Both infrared saunas and ice baths are a relatively safe method of recovery when conducted in the right fashion, it is worth acknowledging that heating the body too high and too frequently can have detrimental impacts on the brain. Ice baths on the other hand, can be done repeatedly and will continue to cause the release of adrenaline and dopamine without the risk of dehydration and heat stroke, although hypothermia is still a considerable risk.
It is understood that while using infrared saunas has a positive effect on reducing inflammation, promoting healing and boosting red blood cell count for recovery from exercise types, ice baths should be used with caution following strength based training as cold therapy can actually be detrimental to recovery and muscle hypertrophy.
When To Use An Infrared Sauna
Realistically, an infrared sauna is suitable for use at any time of the day and even beneficial for using close to bed time to improve sleep by causing the rebound effect of lowering the body’s core temperature to induce faster transition into sleep.
Infrared saunas are suitable to use early in the morning to aid in increasing heart rate, breath rate and other physiological responses, similar to exercise, to aid in releasing natural hormones like cortisol that cause powerful waking signals that also set in motion the body clock.
Saunas are primarily used following a hard workout and have been scientifically proven to dramatically boost levels of human growth hormone and testosterone release that aids in recovery and repair of muscles. Infrared saunas can be used at any time for post-workout recovery with the importance of continued hydration coming into play to counteract the loss of fluids from sweat. The heat stress and heat acclimation caused by taking an infrared sauna, has positive effects on overall cardiovascular function and can improve the body’s ability to regulate temperature, known as thermoregulation.
Conclusion on How Infrared Saunas Work
Infrared sauna offer some unique benefits that are grounded in science. The question of whether infrared sauna actually work is an easy one – yes they do.
As you can see, infrared saunas work by generating infrared light usually from heating panels that are located throughout the infrared sauna back rests and additional front panels for all round coverage.
The unique process of heating the body at the cellular level, essentially from the inside out, results in a different experience and some added benefits of brain health, wound healing, gut and immune health and hair regrowth that generally are not a feature of traditional saunas.
Infrared saunas are a powerful tool for promoting health and wellbeing and there are loads of infrared sauna options that allow for single person use all the way up to commercial infrared saunas for gyms, wellness spaces and recovery centres. When choosing an infrared sauna it is important to assess the quality of the heating, aiming for full spectrum saunas and definitely those with long warranty periods if you are outlaying the thousands of dollars that many infrared saunas cost.
Happy sweating!
