In the ranking of the happiest countries, the Nordic countries always come first. Their secrets? The other day we were talking to you about the Danish concept of arbejdsglaede which consists of taking responsibility for your immediate area to be happy at work. But another Scandinavian habit could also play a role in the well-being of the premises: the sauna. According to a study published in theInternational Journal of Circumpolar Healthpeople who go there regularly are said to be happier and have more energy. The benefits would therefore appear in terms of physical and mental health.
To reach this conclusion, the researchers based themselves on responses to questionnaires and health surveys from participants in Norrbotten and Västerbotten, in northern Sweden. In the survey, which was conducted in 2022, participants were asked about their sauna habits.
Among the 971 people answering questions about their sauna habits, 66% said they went at least once a month. This group was compared to people who never went.
Better sleep as a bonus
The results show “that sauna users are happier, sleep better, have more energy, and rate their mental and physical health better than the group that does not use a sauna,” explains Hans Hägglund, at the origin of the study.
“The sauna user group was slightly younger, slightly more masculine, more active or employed, slightly more physically active and less likely to smoke. In contrast, more people in this group drank alcohol,” he qualifies, however.
Until now, most studies on saunas had been carried out in Finland and showed that you would have to go there between four and seven times a week to benefit from positive effects on health. Here, there is no need to go so far, it would seem.
Once to four times a month for optimal results
“The best solution seems to be to do a sauna one to four times a month; they seem to be the happiest. Using the sauna more often than this, for example 2 to 7 times per week, does not further improve mental or physical health or energy levels,” analysis Hans Hägglund.
The researchers would now like to carry out other studies using the same data. For example, it would be a question of determining whether the use of the sauna is really at the origin of the positive effects observed.
“We will be performing more statistical analysis on this large data set. We also want to determine whether studies can be carried out in a more controlled manner in the laboratory. What allows us to sleep better, for example? We want to try to understand the root causes of these positive relationships that we observe in the study. »
An ally in weight loss?
Besides sleep and energy, it has already been proven that sauna could be helpful for weight loss. This summer, researchers from the University of Massachusetts Amherst (in the United States) published the results of their experiments on mice. They first simulated artificial menopause in female rodents, leading to weight gain. Then, they exposed them for 12 weeks, thirty minutes every day, to a hot environment (40°C). Results ? The rodents responded better to insulin, the hormone responsible for breaking down fat and regulating blood sugar, and were more receptive to a specific protein (called TRPV1) involved in the body’s energy expenditure.
Be careful though. If you suffer from heart problems, kidney problems, diabetes, epilepsy or even hypertension, hypotension or circulatory disorders, the sauna should be avoided.
Source: www.topsante.com
