Taking A Sauna May Be Good For The Heart

It’s not exactly a strenuous cardio workout, but taking a sauna may diminish the risk of death from unfortunate cardiac event. Science Daily reports that researchers at the University of Eastern Finland looked at death rates from a sudden cardiac event and heart disease over a 21 year period in 2,315 middle-aged men (42 to 60 years old). What did they find? The envelope please….Compared with men who took one sauna a week, the risk of a sudden cardiac event was 22 percent lower for 2 to 3 sauna bathing sessions per week and 63 percent lower for 4 to 7 sauna sessions per week. The risk of fatal heart events was 23 percent lower for 2 to 3 bathing sessions per week and 48 percent lower for 4 to 7 sauna sessions per week compared to once a week. Cardiovascular disease death also was 27 percent lower for men who took saunas 2 to 3 times a week and 50 percent lower for men who were in the sauna 4 to 7 times a week compared with men who indulged just once per week. For all-cause mortality, sauna bathing 2 to 3 times per week was associated with a 24 percent lower risk and 4 to 7 times per week with a 40 percent reduction in risk compared to only one sauna session per week. Wait, there’s more: The amount of time spent in the sauna seemed to matter too. Compared with men who spent less than 11 minutes in the sauna, the risk of sudden cardiac death was 7 percent lower for sauna sessions of 11 to 19 minutes and 52 percent less for sessions lasting more than 19 minutes.