Jos ei viina, terva tai sauna auta, tauti on kuolemaksi.

I went to the gym today, after staying up waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too late last night, and after my workout, I was sitting in the sauna (not with these guys!) when I started thinking,  what am I actually doing here?  What IS this sauna thing?  What does it really, actually do?  I know it's supposed to make me sweat and relax, but does it actually have any therapeutic value?

So here's a few things I learned on wikipedia:

• Records and other historical evidence indicate that the Finns built the first wooden saunas in the 5th or 8th century. 

• It used to be a holy place, a place where women gave birth, and where the bodies of the dead were washed. 

• In Finland, the sauna was thought of as a healing refreshment. The old saying goes: "Jos ei viina, terva tai sauna auta, tauti on kuolemaksi." ("If booze, tar, or the sauna won't help, the illness is fatal.") 

• Therapeutic sauna is the use of sauna for health purposes. It requires cycles of both hot and cold, in a predetermined manner to bring about therapeutic change.

• Sauna has also been found to reduce levels of stress hormones adrenalin and noradrenalin and to increase levels of ACTH, cortisol and beta endorphin. Sauna has been found to increase the hormone testosterone in men. Sauna also found to reduce prostaglandin F2alpha and protect against oxidative stress. It enhances activation of monocytes to bacteria and endotoxins.

• Sweat tests have shown pharmaceutical drugs are eliminated in sweat.  Narcotics, alkaloids, and barbiturates are eliminated in sweat, and elimination increased with heat.

So there you have it.  I don't imagine that my sitting in the sauna for 10 minutes once or twice a week is really doing anything for me, but I can pretend it does...