What are Infrared Saunas About?
Infrared Rays produce invisible, far infrared heat. This is the same type of heat as produced by the sun and our bodies. Infrared heat is very safe and not at all like the heat produced by microwaves. In an infrared sauna, only 20 percent of the energy is used to heat the air, leaving the rest of the energy to heat the body. The radiant heat can penetrate deep below the skin producing a gentle warming inside the body.
How do Infrared Saunas Work? 2 Science Graphs!
Infrared heaters warm the body in the same manner as natural sunlight. Infrared heat therapy uses the wavelength of the visible and non-visible light spectrum of sunlight that heats the body normally.
Traditional saunas raise the temperature of the air to a very high level within the chamber to warm the body. Some people have difficulty breathing in this extremely warm air. Infrared saunas work differently. Instead of heating the air within the enclosure, infrared saunas heat the body directly. The result is deeper tissue penetration.
The temperature inside an infrared sauna is adjustable and averages a comfortable 100°F to 130°F. These lower temperatures allow you to sweat faster and to tolerate a longer sauna session offering greater therapeutic benefit.
Typical sessions last 20 to 45 minutes and can be repeated once or twice during the day to maximize the benefits. Infrared saunas leave you feeling invigorated, not depleted like conventional saunas.
So are Infrared Saunas better than Traditional Saunas?
It depends on what health benefit you're looking for!
The heat from Infrared Saunas will penetrated at a much deeper level than traditional saunas. Studies performed indicate that the heat will penetrate 1 – 1.5 inches into your muscle tissue. Traditional saunas about 1/8 of an inch. Thus, much better with Infrared. Any time you can get heat into your muscle tissue of 1 – 1.5 inches, there are multiple health benefits that come from this.