Getting hot and steamy

For years, people have turned to saunas for relaxation, and in some cases detoxification. There’s something quite de-stressing, sitting in the sauna and letting it work its magic. Now here’s some cheerful news. Regularly taking a sauna can help reduce blood pressure.  

The study

A recent study found that people who took a sauna between four to seven times a week were 61 per cent less likely to have a stroke than those who had just one. Researchers studied 1,628 people over a period of 15 years in Finland, where most homes are fitted with saunas. The subjects, who had an average age of 63 and had no history of stroke, were asked about sauna habits and other factors, such as physical activity, alcohol intake, cholesterol, Blood Pressure (BP) and other factors.  During the study follow-up period, 155 of the participants had a stroke.

The rate of stroke per 1,000 person-years was 8.1 for those who took one sauna per week, compared to 7.4 for those who took two to three sauna per week and 2.8 for those who took four to seven saunas per week. Those who took a sauna four to seven times a week were 60 per cent less likely to have a stroke than people who took only one sauna per week, according to the findings. The results were the same after researchers adjusted for other factors that could affect stroke risk, like high cholesterol, smoking, diabetes and physical activity.

Sauna helps reduce blood pressure in normal individuals

Do our experts agree with the study’s findings? Dr Vinayaga Pandian, consultant interventional cardiologist, SRV Mamata Hospital, says that people take sauna for a duration of about 30 to 40 minutes, which acts as a stress busting activity. Any activity that is stress-busting takes some load off the heart. It calms you and brings the heart rate down, promotes blood circulation, and in turn brings down BP, as a result in the case of normal healthy individuals without cardiac problems. So, taking saunas may indirectly reduce BP.

Dr Santosh Kumar Dora, senior cardiologist, Asian Heart Institute, says, “It’s a well-known fact that when we take bath in warm water, then the blood vessels supplying the skin and muscle dilate. This leads to fall in blood pressure. High BP is a classic risk factor for cardiovascular disease including stroke. So, any manoeuvre which leads to bring down high BP should help preventing cardiovascular mortality and morbidity. This study has established this fact. Sauna helps in reducing the risk of stroke, however it needs to be done four to six times a week.”

Cardiac patients should get medical approval before taking a sauna

“People with uncontrolled or unstable hypertension, who use a sauna without medical approval may be at risk for serious complications, according to the Canadian Medical Association Journal. Because of the unpredictable reaction of BP to sudden temperature change, taking a sauna may elevate blood pressure during or after a session,” warns Dr Narayan Gadkar, cardiologist consultant, Zen Multi Specialty Hospital, adding, “Though people with controlled high BP might be able to use a sauna without any negative effects.”

Sauna is not advisable to patients having recent heart attack or having unstable angina. Dr Dora adds, “As explained earlier, sauna leads to fall in BP and moves more blood towards skin and muscle. Patients having heart attack or unstable angina need more blood to go to heart muscles. Any diversion of blood away from heart leads to more damage to heart muscles. Similarly, patients who have already low BP should not go for a sauna, as it leads to further reduction of BP and it may lead to fainting.”

Dr Pandian partially disagrees with the study. “It’s a bit too far to conclude that taking a sauna regularly can cut down the risk of stroke, in the case of cardiac-compromised patients. That’s because, in the case of strokes, the main reason is high blood pressure that has caused damage to the heart. The heart is already damaged, there’s reduced pumping of blood. Also, cardiac patients are already on too much medications, which have a diuretic effect. Being in a sauna, will cause them to sweat further, lose more salts and electrolytes in the body, causing dehydration and this may cause irritability in them. Therefore, any person with any cardiac issues should consult a cardiac rehabilitation specialist before undertaking a sauna,” he says.