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Hormesis & stressors

Sauna (Finnish sauna)

DESauna (finnische Sauna)

A Finnish sauna is a dry-heat bath, typically 80 to 100°C with low humidity, used as a passive heat-stress tool. An acute session raises your core temperature and produces a cardiovascular response (your heart rate climbs, and surface blood vessels widen). That overlaps with some aspects of exercise, but it is not the same as aerobic training. Large Finnish cohort studies often group people by sessions per week (1, 2 to 3, and 4 to 7). They link frequent use to lower cardiovascular and all-cause death, with the lowest risk in the 4-to-7 group. But the data are observational, so a causal effect on longevity is not established.

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Sources

  1. Laukkanen T, Khan H, Zaccardi F, Laukkanen JA. (2015). Association between sauna bathing and fatal cardiovascular and all-cause mortality events. *JAMA Internal Medicine*doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2014.8187