Benefits of a Steam Sauna
By Anna Lynn Sibal
The steam sauna is becoming a staple offering in gyms, health clubs and day spas. Although they were first seen by many people as an exotic indulgence, the same people are now recognizing the fact that spending time in a steam sauna does have many therapeutic benefits.
The Difference between Steam Saunas and Traditional Saunas
For those of you who are not really sure of what a steam sauna is, it is a special room where people spend time bathing in hot water vapor that is produced by a steam generator fitted in the room. It is different from the traditional sauna in the sense that the heat in the steam sauna is created by steam, earning for it the name “wet sauna.”
The traditional sauna, on the other hand, is often called "dry sauna" because the heat is produced mostly by an electric heater or a woodstove. It is just a matter of raising the temperature inside the sauna room. Traditional saunas do make use of heat-storing rocks, but they only create steam when water is poured upon them.
Another difference between a steam sauna and a traditional sauna is that the temperatures are higher inside a traditional sauna cabin. It may only feel hotter inside a steam sauna, but this is only because the humidity is high here, preventing your sweat from evaporating and from cooling you down.
However, it is possible to stay inside a traditional sauna much longer than inside a steam sauna. In a traditional sauna, it is the air that is being heated, and so the bather can stay inside for as long as he or she likes. In a steam sauna, staying for more than 15 minutes is often intolerable because the steam can burn the skin.
What a Steam Sauna Can Do for Your Health
Regardless of how a steam sauna is different from a traditional sauna, they offer the same benefits. The most obvious benefit is that staying in a sauna can be very relaxing. The heat inside a steam sauna helps in loosening tense and knotted muscles, thus easing up whatever pain and cramps that you may be feeling because of stress and muscle tension.
The heat inside a steam sauna also causes the blood vessels to widen. This allows more blood to flow through your veins and thus detoxify the body. The blood brings to individual cells the nutrients necessary for them to function and regenerate, as well as take away the waste materials produced in these cells.
Another great benefit that you can get from spending time in a steam sauna is that your pores will become clearer. Heat opens up the pores of your skin, and thus flushing out the dirt and excess oils, not to mention kill the bacteria that cause pimples and other skin infections.
The best benefit that you can get from staying inside a steam sauna is that feeling of well-being that can wash over you during and after your sauna session. You will feel rested and rejuvenated, ready to take on whatever challenges that await you.
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