Far Infrared Sauna - How It Works

A relatively new type of sauna has emerged in recent years. Unlike traditional saunas that use wood or electric stoves to heat them, this new far infrared sauna uses infrared heaters. In traditional saunas the heater heats the air of the sauna but infra red saunas only heat the people and objects – not the air.

Because the air is not heated, infrared heaters can be used anywhere – even outdoors – and still have a heating effect on human bodies. They are used in sauna enclosures simply for the atmosphere – people are used to going into saunas and may be more comfortable in an enclosure than in an open space.

Infrared is actually a frequency band of light that is invisible to the human eye. The heat from infrared is sometimes called infrared radiation (IR) – very different from ultraviolet radiation that can cause sunburn or atomic radiation from nuclear weapons. Most of the heat that warms the earth is IR from the sun, and the earth and even the human body gives off IR.

Proponents of infrared saunas say that infrared sauna health benefits far outweigh the traditional sauna health benefit.

Portable infrared saunas come in two basic styles. The first, which is truly portable, is a folding box-like structure that one person can sit in. The advantages of a portable infrared sauna are obvious – you can have a personal sauna anywhere you go. When used at home they are tremendous space-savers. When you have finished your sauna you can fold it up and store it under the bed.

There are also portable infrared saunas that look like traditional saunas. They are wood-lined and have doors and benches. This second type is portable in the sense that a bed is portable – you can take it with you when you move, but you wouldn't want to take it on a weekend excursion.

Traditional or Infrared Sauna? You decide!