University of Eastern Finland: Frequent Sauna use Associated With Lower Cardiovascular Death Rate in men and Women

 

Regular sauna use is associated with a lower risk of death from cardiovascular disease (CVD) in men and women aged 50 years and over, according to a study published in the open access journal BMC Medicine.

Researchers from the University of Eastern Finland and the University of Jyväskylä, Finland found that mortality from CVD among people who used a sauna four to seven times a week was 2.7 fatal CVD events per 1,000 person years, compared to 10.1 events per 1,000 person years in those who used a sauna once a week. Person years refers to the total number of years that participants remained in the study. It is a way of measuring the number of new events in the study population in a given time period, with a lower number of events indicating a lower risk.

Professor Jari Laukkanen, the corresponding author, said: “An important finding of this research is that more regular sauna use is associated with a lower risk of death from CVD in middle-aged to elderly women as well as in men. Previous population studies were done mostly in men only.”

Professor Laukkanen continued: “There are several possible reasons why sauna use may decrease the risk of death due to CVD. Our research team has shown in previous studies that high sauna use is associated with lower blood pressure. Additionally, sauna use is known to trigger an increase in heart rate equal to that seen in low to moderate intensity physical exercise.”

The incidence (i.e. number of new cases) of CVD mortality over the study period was also found to decrease as the length of time spent in the sauna per week increased. For those who spent over 45 minutes per week in the sauna in total the incidence was 5.1 per 1,000 person years whilst it was 9.6 for those who spent less than 15 minutes per week in the sauna in total.

The authors assessed sauna use by a self-reported questionnaire and checked deaths from cardiovascular causes against documents from hospitals and health centre wards, death certificates, as well as medico legal reports for 1,688 participants living in and around Kuopio, Finland. At the start of the study, the participants were on average 63 years old and 51.4% were women. Data for this prospective study were collected between 1998 and 2015 and the mean follow-up time was 15 years.

The authors caution that all the patients whose data were analyzed in this study were from one region and therefore there is a need for further research to understand if the findings apply to other populations. The observational nature of the study does not allow for conclusions about cause and effect.

For further information, please contact:

Professor Jari Laukkanen
tel. +358-50-5053013
jariantero.laukkanen

Research article:

Sauna bathing is associated with reduced cardiovascular mortality and improves risk prediction in men and women: a prospective cohort study.

Laukkanen al. BMC Medicine 2018. DOI: 10.1186/s12916-018-1198-0

https://bmcmedicine.biomedcentral.com/articles//10.1186/s12916-018-1198-0




I want to grow my online platform to create awareness about ethical consumerism, environmentalism, and the plant-based lifestyle. My main mission is to share information that empowers people to make better choices and create a VEG NEW WORLD :)


Your support is vital and is helping me share the collected information with thousands of readers and viewers. I try to deliver exclusive stories and relevant content in a challenging commercial environment. Your contribution helps me to cover the costs that my service requires. Please consider contributing (no matter how small) to keep the information flowing so you can remain informed and have life changing interviews and stories to share.

Related articles

Betty Tűndik
Betty Tűndikhttps://vegnew.world
Hi everyone! Nice to e-meet you! Here are a few things you should know about me. I am a conscientious, open-minded, adaptable to new experiences, and ambitious Business Development Manager with a Bachelor's Degree in Economics - Banking, Finance, and Accountancy. Through my studies, I've also obtained many naturopathic and nutrition degrees as well. Part-time jobs have added marketing, network marketing, event management, and store management skills to my experience throughout my career. Throughout my career, I have also been a Hotel Manager and owned a Bar/Restaurant & Internet Cafe. My online marketing and social media interactivity experience was gained when I and my husband started a business with an online/organic webshop & healthy lifestyle consultancy. I've improved my English at Cambridge Academy of English - 2003, in Cambridge. I live a conscious lifestyle, and try to protect the ecosystem. Animal lover and capable of helping others without judgment or negative reactions, this is thanked my knowledge in holistic therapies and the naturopathy courses I've followed. I cannot leave for my spiritual growth and the continuous development in alternative and holistic therapies, so I'm learning at Kyron School of New Consciousness, receiving a Bio Energo-therapist diploma. Thanks to all my experiences I've decided to venture into publishing and writing, while also continuing to learn many new things daily. I hope you enjoy reading my hand-picked news and check back for my weekly articles.