Infrared Sauna and Salt Caves

Infrared saunas use special light panels to warm your body. Unlike regular saunas that heat the air, infrared saunas use light to warm your skin directly. The heat usually stays between 110-135°F (43-57°C). This makes you sweat, your heart beat faster, and your blood vessels get wider, kind of like what happens when you exercise. A 20 to 30-minute session can make your body work harder, even though the heat is lower than in regular saunas.

• Better blood flow and heart health: Sitting in an infrared sauna helps your blood move better through your body. Some studies say one sauna session is similar to going for a brisk walk. It may help lower blood pressure and support heart health.
• Muscle recovery and pain relief: The warmth helps relax sore muscles and joints. Studies show that infrared saunas may help people with long-term pain conditions like arthritis or fibromyalgia. They can also help your muscles recover faster after exercise.
• Sweating and staying healthy: When you sweat a lot, your body may push out some toxins, though scientists aren’t completely sure about this yet. Regular sauna use may help you get sick less often and reduce stress on your body.
• Relaxation and feeling better: Many people feel calm and happy after using an infrared sauna. The heat helps your body make feel-good chemicals called endorphins. It can also reduce stress and help you sleep better.

Tips for Using an Infrared Sauna Safely

• Start slow: For your first time, keep the heat low (around 110°F) and stay in the sauna for just 5 to 10 minutes. As your body gets used to it, you can slowly increase the time. Even if you’re used to it, try to keep sessions to 20-30 minutes, about 3 to 4 times a week. 
• Stay Hydrated: Always drink plenty of water before and after using the sauna. It’s a good idea to take a shower afterward to wash off sweat and anything else your body may have released.

Safety Reminders

Infrared saunas are safe for most healthy people, but not for everyone. You should avoid them if you’re pregnant, trying to have a baby (because heat can affect sperm), or have health problems like multiple sclerosis. If you have heart issues, talk to your doctor before using a sauna. If you feel dizzy, sick, or lightheaded, leave the sauna right away. Don’t drink alcohol before or during your session, it can make you more dehydrated. Always pay attention to how your body feels. Stop right away if you feel too hot or unwell. Most importantly, stay hydrated and talk to a doctor if you have any health conditions.

Radiant vs. Regular Heating

Infrared saunas and traditional saunas heat your body in very different ways, and knowing the difference can help you decide which one might be better for you.*

Traditional saunas, like the Finnish-style ones, use a strong heat source, such as an electric, wood, or gas heater, to warm up a stack of rocks. Once the rocks are hot, they heat up the air in the sauna room. When you sit inside, your body gets warmer because of the hot air all around you. This kind of heating is known as convection heating. It works by surrounding your body with hot air, causing your skin to warm up from the outside in. Some people enjoy the heavy, steamy feeling, especially when water is poured on the rocks to create steam.

Infrared saunas use a completely different method. They have special infrared lamps that give off invisible light waves called infrared radiation. These waves pass through the air without heating it much and go directly into your body. Your skin and muscles absorb this heat, warming you up from the inside. This process is known as radiant heating. Because the air doesn’t get as hot, many people find infrared saunas more comfortable to breathe in, especially during longer sessions.

This big difference in how they heat your body changes the way each sauna feels and works. Infrared saunas usually feel cooler in the air, but they still heat you deeply and can make you sweat just as much. Traditional saunas feel much hotter in the room, but the heat mostly stays near the surface of your skin. Both types can help you relax, warm up your muscles, and sweat, but they do it in their own unique way.

Understanding this can help you pick the sauna experience that fits your comfort level and wellness goals best.

Infrared vs Traditional Saunas

Infrared and traditional saunas heat your body in different ways, and that changes how each one feels and works. Here's a simple explanation of how they compare.

• Temperature and Comfort: Infrared saunas use lower heat, usually between 110°F and 140°F (43°C to 60°C). This makes them easier to handle, especially if you don’t like super hot places. You can stay in them longer without feeling too uncomfortable. Traditional saunas are much hotter, reaching temperatures between 150°F and 195°F (65°C to 91°C), and some can even go up to 230°F (110°C). Some people enjoy this intense heat, but it can be hard for others to handle.
• How Deep the Heat Goes: People who like infrared saunas say the heat goes deeper into your body, about 1.5 to 2 inches under the skin. This deep heat may help your body sweat more and support things like muscle recovery and energy in your cells. Traditional saunas mostly warm the surface of your skin using the hot air in the room.
• Humidity Levels: Traditional saunas let you change the air's moisture. You can keep it dry or pour water on hot rocks to make steam. This changes how the heat feels and makes the air more humid. Infrared saunas don’t use steam, so the air stays dry the whole time.
• Set-Up and Cost: Infrared saunas are usually easier and cheaper to install at home. Many of them plug into a normal power outlet and don’t need much space. Traditional saunas, especially the ones that use wood heat or steam, can be harder and more expensive to put in. They often need extra space and good ventilation to handle the high heat and moisture.

Infrared saunas work by sending heat directly into your body, which is what makes them different from traditional saunas. This deep heat is one reason why people say infrared saunas can help with things like muscle recovery or cell health. But this same deep heat is also why some scientists are concerned.

Research shows that certain kinds of infrared rays might lead to problems over time, like eye damage (such as cataracts) or faster aging of the skin. These risks aren’t usually found with traditional saunas, which heat the air around you instead of going deep into your body.

So, while infrared saunas may offer some special benefits, they also come with unique risks. It’s important for users to understand both the good and the bad before using one regularly.

Salt Cave (Halotherapy) Therapy

Salt caves are quiet, dimly lit rooms where the walls and floor are covered in salt, like Himalayan or Dead Sea salt. In these rooms, a machine called a halogenerator blows tiny salt particles into the air. When people sit and breathe in the salty air, it may help clear out mucus from their lungs and make it easier to breathe. That’s why people with asthma, bronchitis, COPD, or allergies often try salt therapy. These rooms are also calm and peaceful, like a spa, which helps people relax and feel better.

• Helps You Breathe Easier: Breathing in the salty air might help loosen mucus in your lungs, making it easier to cough and breathe. Some early studies and stories from users say it helps people with breathing problems like asthma or chronic bronchitis. One clinical evaluation found that regular halotherapy triggered anti-inflammatory and anti-allergic responses, reducing airway sensitivity in asthma patients. Scientists say we need more research to be sure.
• Good for Skin: Salt has natural minerals and is known to fight germs and reduce swelling. Some people say it helps with skin problems like eczema or psoriasis by keeping skin moist and reducing redness. While science hasn’t proven this yet, the dry, salty air may help calm irritated skin.
• Reduces Stress: Salt rooms are quiet, cool, and softly lit, which helps people relax. Breathing deeply in these rooms often helps users feel peaceful. The relaxing feeling mostly comes from the calm space, not the salt itself.

In short, salt air cave therapy may help with breathing, skin problems, and stress, but more studies are needed to know exactly how well it works.

Precautions

Salt therapy is usually safe for most people, but there are a few things to be careful about. You might cough a little during your first session because the tiny salt particles can tickle your throat as they help clear out mucus. This is normal and usually goes away quickly. Since salt therapy isn’t the same everywhere, it’s best to go to a well-known clinic, especially one with medical staff. If you have serious breathing problems or an infection, talk to your doctor before trying it. Also, if you're afraid of small spaces, be careful, salt rooms are closed-in areas. Salt therapy should never replace your regular medicine. Keep taking your prescribed treatments, and think of salt sessions as something extra to help you feel better. If you're pregnant or have a health condition, make sure to ask your doctor before starting salt therapy.

How to Use Salt Therapy the Right Way

To get the most out of your session, try to relax completely. Wear loose, comfy clothes and take off your shoes, salt can stick to fabric, especially dark colors. A session usually lasts about 40 to 45 minutes. During this time, you can read, listen to music, or just sit quietly while breathing in the salty air. It’s normal to feel a little throat tickle or need to cough, this means your body is starting to clear out your airways. To see real results, it helps to go regularly. Some people feel better after just one session, but going once a week or more often usually works best.

Mucoactive, Anti-inflammatory, & Antibacterial Effects

Some people believe that salt therapy, or halotherapy, helps your body in a few ways when you breathe in the tiny salt particles or when they land on your skin.

• How It Might Help Your Breathing: The small, dry salt particles are thought to go deep into your lungs. Since salt pulls in water, it may help bring moisture into your airways. This can make thick, sticky mucus thinner and easier to cough out. People also think salt has natural powers to reduce swelling, kill bacteria, and help with allergies. These effects might make it easier to breathe and could be helpful for people with asthma or other lung problems.
• How It Might Help Your Skin: When salt touches your skin, it may soak up dirt and germs. Some people say it can help clean the skin, balance its natural pH level, and boost blood flow just under the skin. Scientific evidence is sparse, but the salt’s antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties might theoretically soothe the skin.
• Does It Really Work? Even though people say halotherapy can help with many problems, scientists have found that there isn’t enough strong proof yet. More good-quality studies are needed to show whether it really works the way people think it does.

Primary Application: Halotherapy for Respiratory Conditions

Salt therapy, also called halotherapy, is often advertised as a way to help people with breathing conditions like asthma, chronic bronchitis, COPD, cystic fibrosis, and allergies.

• What the Research Says: Most scientific studies agree on one big thing: there's not enough strong proof that salt therapy really works. Some small or poorly done studies have shown possible benefits, but experts say we need bigger, better-quality studies to know for sure.
• Asthma: A review from 2021 looked at 18 different studies about salt therapy and asthma. It said that salt therapy might help as an extra treatment, but also warned that more research with larger groups of people is still needed. Other reports say it may improve how people feel, but the actual medical proof is still not strong.
• COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease): The research here is even weaker. A 2014 review said that the studies done so far were not well-designed. They had problems like poor randomization and unclear results. Because of this, the review said salt therapy should not be recommended as a treatment for COPD at this time. One 2007 study showed some positive effects, but it’s the exception, not the rule.
• Bronchiectasis: The evidence for this condition is both weak and mixed. A study from 2014 tested a dry salt inhaler on people with bronchiectasis (a lung problem not caused by cystic fibrosis). After two months, there was no real change in breathing tests or walking ability. However, 65% of the people in the study said they felt better and wanted to keep using the therapy.

This shows a common pattern: many people say they feel better after salt therapy, but medical tests don’t always show real improvements. This could mean that the relaxing environment or simply the act of doing therapy, like spending time together in a couples cave salt air therapy helps people feel more relaxed and connected. This could mean that the relaxing environment or just the idea of doing therapy makes people feel better, even if the salt itself isn’t doing much. This is called the placebo effect. It’s important to tell the difference between feeling better emotionally and actually improving medically.

Secondary Application: Dermatological Conditions

Salt therapy, or halotherapy, is also advertised as a way to improve skin conditions like eczema, psoriasis, dermatitis, and acne.

• What the Research Says About Skin Benefits: The scientific proof for these skin claims is even weaker than the evidence for breathing problems. Most of what people say about salt helping their skin is based on personal stories, not strong studies. One review from 2022 said salt therapy might help with skin problems, but it didn’t give clear examples of real research. It also admitted that more studies are needed. The best evidence so far comes from a study on rats, not humans. In this study, rats in a real salt mine had some improvements in skin healing. But there still aren’t enough good studies on people to say for sure if it works.
• What About Stress and Relaxation? Salt caves are often said to help reduce stress and make people feel calm. This claim makes more sense, but not because of the salt itself. Some salt caves take it further by offering massage chairs. A massage chair salt cave provides an especially tranquil experience, combining the soothing effects of massage with the peaceful ambiance of a spa-like environment. Salt caves are usually quiet, dimly lit, and free from phones or other distractions. That calming space helps people relax and unwind. Some people say the salt creates negative ions that boost mood, but scientists haven’t proven that yet. It’s more likely that people feel better because they’re in a peaceful, spa-like place, not because of something special in the salt.

Infrared Sauna vs. Salt Cave Therapy

• How They Work: Whether it’s Infrared couple saunas or individual sauna it use special heat lamps to warm up your body and help your blood flow better. Salt caves don’t use heat. Instead, they fill the air with tiny salt particles for you to breathe in.
• Main Benefits: Infrared saunas are great for helping your muscles and heart. They can relax your body, ease sore muscles or joints, and may even help your heart stay healthy. Salt caves are more focused on your breathing and skin. Breathing in salt might help clear your lungs, and the salt minerals may be good for some skin problems like dryness or irritation. Both can help improve your mood, saunas do this by boosting feel-good chemicals, and salt rooms help you feel calm and peaceful.
• What It Feels Like: Sauna sessions are usually short (10 to 30 minutes) and get pretty warm, some people say it feels like light exercise. Salt cave sessions are longer (about 40 to 45 minutes) but happen at room temperature. Both places are quiet, with soft lighting, to help you relax and unwind.

What Science Says: Infrared saunas have some good research backing them up. Studies show they can help lower blood pressure and boost metabolism. Salt therapy has less research, but some small studies and personal stories say it helps with breathing and skin. One study even showed it might reduce swelling in the lungs for people with asthma. Doctors say both are safe when used the right way. Which one is better for you depends on what your health goals are.