Saunas give you more than just recreational and relaxation benefits. They also offer a host of health and beauty benefits. Saunas benefit your skin in several ways and make other skin and beauty treatments more effective.
You may have heard of this before, but do you know what the different skin benefits are? Or how to implement them in your existing skincare routine?
We take a look at the top sauna skin benefits below. And we include helpful tips on how to make the most of these benefits of sauna for the skin.
Are Saunas Good For Your Skin?
Do saunas benefit your skin? Yes, they benefit the skin all over your body as well as your face. And ten minutes in the sauna is enough to realize these benefits.
But irrespective of the reason you are using your sauna, remember to wash your face first. Especially if you’re popping into the sauna after a workout. This removes surface sweat and impurities and is essential before the heavy sweat session in the sauna.
Why are saunas good for your skin? The heat in the sauna and the reactions it causes, lead to benefits for both men and women of all ages and skin types.
To better explain how this works, let’s examine four of the top sauna skin benefits.
Cleanses Pores and Flushes Out Impurities
Saunas help to deep-cleanse your skin by opening the pores and flushing out dirt and impurities.
Blocked pores, caused by dirt or excess sebum trapped inside, typically result in breakouts and acne problems. But the heat of a sauna opens up the pores and allows them to be freed of this build-up.
So if you have skin issues such as acne, or suffer from occasional breakouts, you will benefit the most from this. But always cleanse your face before, and after, using your sauna to avoid any clogging of your pores.
Increases Blood Circulation
Sluggish blood circulation can cause water retention, cellulite, and various other health problems. But luckily, blood circulation is vastly improved through the use of a sauna.
This is good news for anyone suffering from circulatory issues, but it also improves the tone and texture of the skin.
Therefore cellulite, acne, and several other skin issues can be reduced by improving your blood circulation. The key is to be regular and consistent, to keep your circulation healthy.
Those individuals who are unable to perform strenuous physical activity can safely and comfortably increase their blood circulation by using a sauna.
All types of saunas will provide you with this benefit. But broad-spectrum infrared sauna therapy, in particular, will dramatically improve blood circulation.
Stimulates Collagen Production
Regular sauna sessions will also stimulate your skin’s natural collagen production.
Collagen is the main structural protein in the body’s connective tissues, found mostly in our cartilage, bones, tendons, ligaments, and skin.
Our bodies naturally produce the collagen stores that we need, but external factors can impact its production. And over time, we produce less of it, leading to looser skin and wrinkling as we age.
Regular sauna sessions boost HGH and collagen production. And you can optimize these amazing skin benefits by using a dry infrared sauna. This type of sauna uses infrared waves instead of heat coils, fire, or steam. The infrared waves penetrate deeply to stimulate collagen.
Promotes Sebum Production
Saunas warm you up and make you sweat, thereby increasing sebum production.
While some people may experience excess sebum production and oily skin, many more people complain of excessively dry skin. This problem is especially prevalent amongst older people but can affect any age group.
Dry, cracked skin causes much discomfort, but there is a solution. Hop into the sauna and work up a sweat. Excessively dry skin often occurs when there is an imbalance in the skin’s oil production. Saunas make you sweat more, thereby increasing your skin’s natural sebum production.
This helps to regulate the skin’s oil balance, and if done regularly, will help to soften dry skin.
Sauna Tips for Good Skin
No matter how diligent you are in your skincare routine, we all face certain skin issues from time to time. And then we need to incorporate more intensive skin treatments.
But it can be helpful to use a multi-faceted approach by combining sauna sessions with these products. Because not only does the use of a sauna does wonders for your skin in general, it enhances the effects of other skin treatments.
You will enjoy these benefits irrespective of the type of sauna you use: traditional or infra-red. Traditional saunas use hot coals or steam to produce their heating effects. Infrared saunas rely on infrared lamps to warm your body, without the need to warm the area around you.
Whichever type you have, there is a simple rule to follow for optimal skin health. Rinse your skin off in the shower or bath after your sauna session, before proceeding with these other skin treatments. This will ensure that you apply these products to fresh, clean, and sweat-free skin.
To understand the link between the sauna skin benefits and the efficacy of skin treatments more fully, check out the four tips that follow. Each of these is designed to maximize one of our above-mentioned sauna skin benefits.
A sauna session is a perfect way to prepare for an exfoliating body scrub or facial exfoliation scrub.
Exfoliation helps to remove deeply embedded impurities, remove dead surface skin cells, refine the texture and tone of your skin and boost circulation.
The heat of the sauna prepares the skin for exfoliation, making it much more effective. But remember that it should not be necessary to exfoliate too often. Three times a week is the accepted maximum.
If you want to prepare your skin for a deep-tissue or aromatherapy massage, there’s no better way than the sauna.
Aromatherapy and massage oils will be more readily absorbed into the skin that has been in the sauna. Do your anti-cellulite or skin-toning massage after an infrared sauna session for faster results.
The effect of skin treatments such as face masques or serums will be boosted by doing the sauna beforehand.
The effects of anti-aging products will be enhanced by first using an infrared sauna because studies have shown that it stimulates collagen production.
This is due to the skin being warm and the pores being open and more receptive to the ingredients in your masque or serum.
If you suffer from excessively dry skin, using the sauna will help. But it also makes skin more receptive to deep-moisturizing creams and lotions.
The increased sebum production after a sauna will moisturize your skin with its natural oils. And the heat will soften your dry skin to prepare it for the application of intensive moisturizing products.
Conclusion
If you want your skin to be in tip-top condition, using a sauna should be a part of your health and beauty regime. And if you want your sauna to operate at its best, with maximum efficiency, we can help. Recommended: Do saunas help lose weight?
With many years of experience in the temperature products industry, we have the expertise to advise and inform you about saunas and their efficiency.
Read our guides to learn more about improving your sauna’s performance. Or contact us with any sauna-related queries you have.