As you may know sweating is a fantastic way to detox your body of unwanted toxins and improve your circulation, especially today when chemical loads are so high. Your skin is your ‘third kidney’, since it’s believed to be responsible for eliminating up to 70% of your body waste.
If you’re injured or unable to exercise, sweating can be almost impossible. In these situations, turning to infrared saunas to sweat can be helpful.
Infrared saunas have a multitude of benefits from helping you to relax, to relieving pain, losing weight, detoxifying and creating glowing skin.
I’m constantly hearing stories from clients with chronic pain, fibromyalgia, muscular injuries and recurrent infections who swear by infrared saunas for their recovery or ongoing recovery.
7 Benefits of Infrared Sauna Therapy
1. Boosts Immune System
Increasing your body temperature tricks your body into believing it has an infection so it up regulates white blood cell and antibody production. Giving you a huge immunity boost. Great for lingering and recurrent infections or not quite feeling right after a cold or virus.
2. Relaxation
Warmth is relaxing to your body and mind as we all know. Infrared saunas turn up this effect up by increasing your circulation and heart rate similar to mild cardio workout. Endorphins and serotonin (the happy drug) are released into your blood and pumped around the body giving you feelings of euphoria and calmness. And who doesn’t want more of that! Also great for regulating sleep patterns.
3. Detoxification
Sweating is a crucial elimination pathway in the body, alongside breathing, urination and defecation. Essential to helping your body release toxins, including heavy metals like mercury and lead, and environmental chemicals. Infrared saunas are seven times more effective at eliminating toxins than traditional Swedish saunas, based on steam or heaters.
Why not team a series of infrared sauna sessions with a detox programme? Crank up removing the toxins in your body that keep you overweight, double your energy and feel super clear-headed. Book in to get started on a customised detox today.
4. Improved circulation
Infrared saunas increase your circulation and blood flow by increasing your core body temperature, without increasing your blood pressure. This happens because blood flow is diverted from your inner organs towards the extremities of the skin.
Regular infrared sauna use in the middle-infrared level, can stimulate blood flow, improve muscle recovery, and decrease pain and inflammation after intense exercise.
5. Pain Relief
Infrared saunas speed up healing and reduce pain by stimulating vasodilation of peripheral blood vessels, bringing oxygen to joints, muscles and extremities and removing metabolic and toxic waste products faster through the skin.
Infrared saunas also help to release large amounts of endorphins, enkephalins, serotonin, dopamine and norepinephrine, which help regulate pain, mood, sleep, appetite, anxiety and concentration.
Chronic pain, joint pain, headaches, arthritis, fibromyalgia and sports injuries all benefit from infrared sauna therapy.
6. Glowing skin
Clearer, softer and healthier looking skin are all by products of using infrared saunas. This happens through increasing the circulation in your skin, eliminating toxins and chemicals from your pores and removing dead cells on your skins surface.
7. Weight Loss
Did you know a 30 minute infrared sauna session can burn roughly 600 calories? How? Well energy is needed to keep up with an increased heart rate and having to lower your core temperature.
How do Infrared Saunas work?
Infrared sauna emits rays that penetrate the dermal layers of the skin pulling toxins from the deeper stored fat cells and muscle. This strategy is far more efficient than regular saunas (7x more detoxifying) which use steam or heaters to raise ambient air temperature, which then heats you.
Infrared will directly heat you, raising your core temperature which then heats the ambient air. This makes it a more bearable heat to sit in for longer periods of time.
Infrared sauna treatments are full spectrum which means they have different levels: near, middle, and far.
These different levels represent the different sizes in infrared wavelengths and refer to the intensity of the treatment. Most people find that:
near-infrared levels are best for pain, wound healing and increased immune function
middle-infrared levels are ideal for weight loss, increasing circulation and promoting muscle relaxation
far-infrared levels are used primarily for detoxification purposes, relaxation and reducing blood pressure.
Please check with your doctor before using infrared saunas if you have –
Pacemakers
Pins, rods and other implants
Medicines applied by skin patches
Pregnancy
Silicone implants
Recommendations
Infrared saunas are safe to use daily but it’s best if you start slowly to make sure you acclimatise to the heat. So, start with 30 minute session from 1 to 3 times a week depending on how you cope with heat then progress to 45 minutes which can be done daily if desired.
Tom, from Private Sea says if he feels like he’s getting a cold he uses the infrared sauna daily for 2 weeks to give his immune system a boost and clear the virus. However, he does say his symptoms are normally enhanced the day of the sauna then clear the following day.
My go to for infrared saunas is the Private Sea Float Centre, where I often team it with a float or a massage. It’s one of my self care treats. I also love to give it as a gift. Self care is so lacking today in this busy world.
If this article has helped you and you feel it may help someone else you know please share it.
Dirty Dozen Chemicals to Avoid in your Daily Personal Care Products
in the shower, on your face, body and even cleaning your teeth…
Why?
Well collectively these chemicals are messing with your hormonal balance, causing rashes, allergies and contributing to a plethora of immune system problems. Unknowingly you can be exposed to many chemicals all day long. Why not make wise choices when you do have control?
Did you know our little girls are born with a lifetime supply of eggs that may be our grandchildren? Hence these eggs (or grandchildren) are exposed to the same chemicals you are until conception? Scary isn’t it. 1,000’s of new chemicals are developed each year.
The Dirty Dozen Chemical Ingredients to Avoid:
#1 Sodium lauryl sulphate and sodium laureth sulphate
A detergent or foaming agent which is very drying to skin. It can strip away skin’s protective oils causing irritation and weakening skin’s barrier function.
#2 Parabens (methylparaben, ethylparaben etc)
Preservatives that are found in 75-90% of mass produced personal care products. They are associated with skin irritation and contact dermatitis and are suspected to interfere with hormone functioning.
#3 Fragrance or Parfum
Among the top 5 allergens in the world and are found in almost every mass produced product. The words fragrance or parfum are a catch-all for a whole big group of 1,000’s of undisclosed chemicals that include phthalates and other synthetics that can cause skin irritation, sensitisation, allergies, skin reactions, asthma, interfere with hormones and potentially cause cancer.
#4 DEA, TEA and MEA (cocomide DEA, lauramide DEA, triethanolamine)
Help to create a foam or lather and adjust the pH of a product. These are skin, eye and lung irritants …they may cause allergic reactions and have been
linked to cancer and hormone disruption.
#5 Phthalates
Are chemicals that hide under the words fragrance or parfum. They’re potential carcinogens that can mimic estrogen and have been linked to lower
sperm counts, early puberty in girls, birth defects and infertility ….and have been found in 72% of personal care products tested. These won’t be something you can look out for on a label, So again, avoid fragrances and parfum.
These preservatives are found in shampoos, moisturisers, make-up and baby products. These ingredients slowly release small amounts of formaldehyde which can be carcinogenic. They can cause skin irritation and have suspected effects on the liver, immune system and nervous system.
#7 Mineral oil, petrolatum, paraffin oil
Petroleum products that may be contaminated with hydrocarbons that are potentially carcinogenic. They can form a barrier on skin and interfere with skin’s natural functioning. As an alternative, look for products that contain ingredients that mimic skin’s natural oils and support skin’s natural functioning like grass fed tallow …or ingredients like beeswax and other natural waxes.
#8 Polyethylene Glycol (PEG)
Can interfere with skin’s barrier function and increase absorption of other chemicals and cause skin irritation. Can be contaminated with potentially carcinogenic 1,4-dioxane.
#9 Triclosan
Is an antibacterial found in hand sanitisers, cleansers, toothpaste and acne products, although less so nowadays with a lot of companies phasing it out.
It can be irritating to skin, is easily absorbed and is suspected to interfere with hormonal functioning.
#10 Coal tar and coal tar dyes (look for p-phenylenediamine, aminophenol, diaminobenzene and colors that begin in “CI” followed by a 5 digit number e.g. CI 19140)
Are found in shampoos and hair dyes, derived from petroleum and are potential carcinogens. May also be contaminated with heavy metals toxic to the brain.
#11 Silicones and siloxanes
Are found in haircare products, anti-aging products and sunscreens. Their function is to soften, smooth and moisten. Suspected to interfere with hormonal
functioning.
#12 BHA and BHT
Are preservatives found in moisturisers, shaving products and make-up. Skin irritants and also potential carcinogens and hormone disrupters.
# Compiled by Crystal Fieldhouse, creator of Ecology Skincare
Next Steps to Avoid these Nasties:
• Click here for detox checklist to carry to help you start decluttering the chemicals from your personal care products and cosmetics in your bathroom cupboard and shower
• Remember…you don’t need to throw out everything in your bathroom cupboard all at once. Take it one step at a time, choose your acceptable level of chemical exposure. As you use up a product, do your research and replace it with one that has more natural ingredients
• Check out resources like the Chemical Maze App, the skin deep database and Alexx Stuart’s Low Tox Life
• Check out the Mind Body Beauty Podcast episodes where they touch on sunscreens and how to be safe in the sun and also choosing and using make-up
• Check out the Ecology Skincare online store for 100% natural moisturising creams for sensitive skin and dry skin and also for low-tox options for cleansing and removing makeup
• “Healthy Home, Healthy Family” ~ Nicole Biljsma
• “What is Eczema? A Path to Ending the Misery” ~ Dr Harley Farmer
• “The Chemical Maze” ~ Bill Statham & Lindy Schneider
• “The Skintervention Guide” ~ Liz Wolfe
Apps
• The Chemical Maze App (available in the iTunes App Store)
Websites
• Campaign for Safe Cosmetics: Chemicals of Concern
• Campaign for Sale Cosmetics: What’s in your products
• The Environmental Working Group (EWG): Skin Deep Database
• Sarah Wilson: How to choose toxin-free sunscreen
Hope this was helpful? Please feel free to share it around to help others reduce the dirty dozen chemicals in their life.
Super excited to share what I do Feeling Great Naturopath Corowa video I love to Read more
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