At 30 degrees in the summer in the sauna? That sounds absurd. Nevertheless, summer saunas are becoming increasingly popular, mainly because the health benefits are scientifically undisputed.
V o many people it seems absurd to go to a sauna in summer. Especially when the hot, humid air outside is driving the sweat out of all pores anyway and the clothes are sticking to the body, one wonders why one should also voluntarily sweat in sauna rooms at 90 degrees Celsius.
But the secret lies in the alternation with tingling variants of cooling down. "Together with the dry warmth in the sauna room the freshness kick causes physical recovery and psychological relaxation", explains Hans-Jurgen Gensow of the German Sauna Association. According to his experience, this healthy refreshment is becoming more and more popular in the summer.
The body can adapt better to "tropical weather conditions" Gensow says that the body has to adapt to the new conditions if it is to exercise its blood vessels regularly. In any case, the warm, humid air that prevails during hot periods in Central European latitudes cannot be compared with the special climate of a sauna room.
There is a pleasant dry warmth. The hygrometer shows only five to 15 percent relative humidity. In this climate, the sauna sweat on the unclothed skin can evaporate freely and cool it effectively. This body's own cooling system functions all the more effectively, the better it is in practice.
On the other hand, sweating on hot summer days with high humidity, even with light clothing, tends to be perceived as unpleasant, because a thin layer of air saturated with water vapor above the skin leads to an annoying "heat buildup" could lead.
Interplay of warmth and cold
The decisive factor for the success of sauna bathing, however, is the interplay of heat and cold. "After a stay in the warmth of the sauna and a previous walk in the fresh air, the bather longs to cool down with the cool water of about ten to 15 degrees Celsius.", emphasizes Gensow.
The hose pouring after Kneipp, the strong Schwallbrause, a stimulating cool swimming and dipping pool or the rubbing off with Crush ice would stand with the guests of the summer sauna highly in the course and would be felt as extremely pleasantly.
"Medical-scientific work confirms a favorable re-tuning in the vegetative nervous system by strong cold stimuli, which lead to comprehensive refreshment. The health valuable impulses of the cold water applications with the Saunabaden are often underestimated", underlines the sauna expert.
Gensow also sees a welcome side effect of summer sauna bathing in the fact that the facilities are often less crowded at this time of year than in winter. The individual guest has substantially more free space.
Special summer events with seasonally and thematically adapted infusion scents additionally enhance the sauna in the warm season to a healthy refreshment pleasure "More and more guests appreciate this and therefore swear by the regular summer sauna."
Health benefits undisputed
Regular sauna bathing can protect against Alzheimer's disease
Regular sauna visits have a positive effect on the immune system. This is proven. Healthy sweating is also supposed to reduce the risk of Alzheimer's, according to a study from Finland – where else would it come from?.
The health benefits of regular sauna bathing have long been the subject of extensive scientific research. It is considered as undisputed that apart from the psychological relaxation the defense forces are strengthened.
The number of white blood cells, which are responsible for the immune defense, increases. In the mouth area immune globulin A is increasingly released, which represents a first barrier against invaded pathogens.