Infrared Sauna Benefits: What the Evidence Actually Shows

Infrared saunas have become one of the most talked-about tools in modern wellness — and also one of the most over-hyped. At Elysian Solara, we would rather show you where the evidence is genuinely encouraging, where it is thin, and where the popular claims run ahead of the research. So here is an honest look at what an infrared sauna can and cannot be said to do.

One thing worth setting straight from the outset: infrared saunas and traditional Finnish saunas are not the same intervention, and their research bases are separate. Most of the headline sauna science you have read about comes from traditional Finnish sauna studies. It does not automatically transfer to infrared, and throughout this article we have kept the two apart.

What Makes Infrared Different

A traditional sauna heats the air around you, often to 80–90°C. An infrared sauna instead uses infrared light to warm your body directly, while the surrounding air stays much cooler — usually 45–60°C.

Here is the practical upshot: you still warm up, still sweat, and still get a heat response, but the experience feels gentler and more breathable. That makes infrared a popular choice for people who find traditional saunas too intense, or who want to sit comfortably for longer. If you are weighing the two formats, our traditional versus infrared comparison goes deeper on the practical trade-offs.

What People Use Infrared Saunas For

1. Relaxation and winding down

This is the most commonly reported reason people use an infrared sauna, and the one that asks least of the evidence. Warming up is a pleasant, low-demand experience: heart rate rises gently, muscles soften, and most people find the mental noise of the day quietens. That is ordinary physiology plus a quiet twenty minutes with no phone — and for many people that combination is the whole point.

We should be straight about the limits here. We are not aware of good controlled research measuring stress or nervous-system outcomes specifically from consumer infrared sauna use, so treat this as a well-liked experience rather than a demonstrated clinical effect. Our article on sauna and stress covers what the wider heat literature does and does not establish.

2. Comfort, aches and stiffness

Heat increases blood flow to the skin and superficial tissues, and many people find that warmth makes stiff joints and tight muscles feel easier. The most relevant infrared-specific research here is a small pilot study in 17 people with rheumatoid arthritis and 17 with ankylosing spondylitis, who reported statistically significant short-term reductions in pain and stiffness during infrared sessions, with good tolerance and no adverse effects (Oosterveld et al., 2009) [1].

Two important caveats. First, that study was uncontrolled and unblinded, with 34 participants in total — it is preliminary, and improvements over the four-week period did not reach statistical significance. Second, it studied inflammatory rheumatic disease, not exercise recovery in healthy people. It is reasonable to say infrared warmth was well tolerated and felt good to those patients in the short term; it is not evidence that an infrared sauna treats arthritis, and it is not evidence about post-training muscle recovery. For heat and joints more broadly, see improving joint health with heat therapy.

3. Cardiovascular effects — read this section carefully

When you heat up, your heart rate rises and your blood vessels widen. Reviews of heat therapy describe widespread effects on vascular function and argue it is a promising area for cardiovascular health, while noting the field is still establishing mechanisms (Brunt & Minson, 2021) [2].

The well-known long-term heart findings, however, come from traditional Finnish saunas. In a Finnish cohort of 2,315 middle-aged men followed for a median of 20.7 years, more frequent sauna bathing was associated with lower rates of sudden cardiac death and cardiovascular mortality (Laukkanen et al., 2015) [3]. That is an observational association in one population, not proof of cause — and critically, it was not a study of infrared saunas and should not be read as one. We cover it properly in does sauna reduce cardiovascular disease risk.

The infrared-specific clinical evidence is a separate and much smaller body of work, and it sits in hospital medicine rather than home wellness. In one Japanese study, 129 patients with severe chronic heart failure (NYHA class III or IV) were treated with a medical far-infrared dry sauna at 60°C — "Waon therapy" — under clinical supervision; over five years of follow-up, cardiac events occurred in 31.3% of the treated group versus 68.7% of a matched control group (Kihara et al., 2009) [4]. That trial was not randomised, and it describes a supervised medical protocol in seriously ill hospital patients.

To be unambiguous: none of this shows that using an infrared sauna at home treats, prevents or manages heart disease, and nothing here should be used to guide the management of a heart condition. The honest summary is that infrared's cardiovascular effects are an area of genuine research interest, not a settled or transferable benefit.

4. Evening routines and sleep

Used in the evening, the post-sauna cool-down lowers your skin and core temperature again, and a falling core temperature is one of the signals associated with sleep onset. Many people find a gentle session an easy way to mark the end of the day.

We have not found controlled research on infrared saunas and sleep outcomes, so we are describing plausible physiology and common experience rather than a demonstrated effect. Our sauna and sleep quality article sets out what has actually been measured.

5. Circulation, sweating and "detox"

Heat brings more blood to the skin, which is why you often look flushed afterwards. That part is straightforward physiology. The claim that sweating in a sauna removes meaningful quantities of heavy metals or toxins is not supported by good evidence — your liver and kidneys do that work. Similarly, if you are wondering about fat loss, sweating is water weight, and we address that directly in can infrared saunas help with weight loss.

What the Evidence Does and Doesn't Show

Summarising plainly:

• Reasonably supported (infrared-specific, but preliminary): short-term reductions in pain and stiffness in a small uncontrolled pilot of rheumatic-disease patients; good tolerance and no adverse effects in that group [1].
• Supported as general heat physiology, not as an infrared outcome: increased blood flow, vasodilation, a mild rise in heart rate [2].
• Traditional-sauna evidence that does not transfer: the long-term Finnish cardiovascular associations [3].
• Clinical-population evidence that does not transfer: supervised Waon therapy in severe heart failure [4].
• Popular but not well supported: heavy-metal detoxification, meaningful fat loss, treating or curing disease, and — for now — measurable sleep or stress outcomes specific to infrared.

An infrared sauna is best thought of as a comfortable, well-tolerated heat experience that people enjoy and stick with, used alongside good sleep, movement and nutrition rather than in place of them or in place of medical care.

Infrared vs Traditional: Which Should You Choose?

Choose infrared if you want a gentler, more breathable heat, longer comfortable sessions, lower running temperatures and a clean, modern cabin. Choose traditional if you love intense, enveloping heat, the ritual of steam (löyly), and the classic sauna experience. Neither is superior in general — they suit different people, bodies and spaces. If you are at the specification stage, our infrared sauna buyer's guide for Australia walks through what actually matters.

Who Should Be Cautious

Infrared saunas are well tolerated by most healthy adults, but this is a case for talking to your own doctor rather than reading an article.

• Pregnancy. A meta-analysis of 15 studies found maternal hyperthermia in early pregnancy was associated with an increased risk of neural tube defects, with an overall odds ratio of 1.92 (95% CI 1.61–2.29) (Moretti et al., 2005) [5]. Speak with your doctor or midwife before using any sauna while pregnant.
• Heart conditions. Unstable angina, recent myocardial infarction and severe aortic stenosis are described as contraindications to sauna bathing in a clinical review (Hannuksela & Ellahham, 2001) [6]. That review concerns sauna bathing generally; if you have any cardiac condition, ask your cardiologist before starting.
• Low blood pressure, or medications affecting heat tolerance or fluid balance. Check with your GP or pharmacist.
• Alcohol. The same review notes alcohol during sauna bathing increases the risk of hypotension, arrhythmia and sudden death [6]. Don't combine them.

For everyone: hydrate, start with shorter sessions, and stop if you feel unwell, dizzy or nauseated.

The Elysian Solara Take

The case for an infrared sauna is not that it will fix a health problem. It is that it is a comfortable, low-barrier heat experience people genuinely keep using — and a wellness habit you maintain for years is worth more than one that impresses on paper and gathers dust. That is the honest argument, and we would rather make it than a bigger one we cannot support.

FAQ: Infrared Saunas

Are infrared saunas good for you?

Most healthy adults tolerate them well, and most people use them because sitting in gentle heat is relaxing. Beyond a small preliminary study in rheumatic-disease patients, the infrared-specific evidence for health outcomes is limited, so it is best treated as an enjoyable wellness habit rather than a health intervention.

Do infrared saunas detox the body?

Sweating feels refreshing, but claims about removing heavy metals or toxins are not supported by good evidence. Your liver and kidneys handle detoxification.

Is infrared safer than a traditional sauna?

Neither has been shown to be safer than the other. Infrared runs at lower air temperatures, which many people find easier to tolerate, but the same cautions apply to both — particularly during pregnancy or with a heart condition.

How often should I use an infrared sauna?

There is no evidence-based frequency for infrared saunas. In practice most owners settle on around three to four sessions a week because it is sustainable. Start conservatively, and if you have any health condition, ask your doctor what is appropriate for you.

Ready to Explore Infrared for Your Home?

At Elysian Solara, we help Australian homeowners design premium wellness spaces — saunas, ice baths, infrared therapy and recovery technology — built around long-term value and evidence-informed design. If you would like help working out which format suits your space, we are happy to talk it through.

Request a Quote

This article is general information about wellness equipment, not medical advice. Infrared saunas are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. If you have a health condition, are pregnant, or take regular medication, speak with a qualified health professional before using a sauna.

References

1. Oosterveld FG, Rasker JJ, Floors M, Landkroon R, van Rennes B, Zwijnenberg J, van de Laar MA, Koel GJ (2009). Infrared sauna in patients with rheumatoid arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis: a pilot study showing good tolerance, short-term improvement of pain and stiffness, and a trend towards long-term beneficial effects. Clinical Rheumatology. PMID: 18685882
2. Brunt VE, Minson CT (2021). Heat therapy: mechanistic underpinnings and applications to cardiovascular health. Journal of Applied Physiology. PMID: 33792402
3. Laukkanen T, Khan H, Zaccardi F, Laukkanen JA (2015). Association between sauna bathing and fatal cardiovascular and all-cause mortality events. JAMA Internal Medicine. PMID: 25705824
4. Kihara T, Miyata M, Fukudome T, Ikeda Y, Shinsato T, Kubozono T, Fujita S, Kuwahata S, Hamasaki S, Torii H, Lee S, Toda H, Tei C (2009). Waon therapy improves the prognosis of patients with chronic heart failure. Journal of Cardiology. PMID: 19304125
5. Moretti ME, Bar-Oz B, Fried S, Koren G (2005). Maternal hyperthermia and the risk for neural tube defects in offspring: systematic review and meta-analysis. Epidemiology. PMID: 15703536
6. Hannuksela ML, Ellahham S (2001). Benefits and risks of sauna bathing. The American Journal of Medicine. PMID: 11165553