Psoriasis and sauna

People with psoriasis can visit the pool and beach, fitness room and cosmetologist's office, eat delicious food and travel. Everything is the same, but with its own characteristics. Visiting the sauna and bathhouse is also no exception.

Psoriasis imposes restrictions under which a person is forced to adjust his lifestyle. Psoriatic plaques cause aesthetic discomfort. Unpleasant sensations arise in the skin, and any contact with the environment must be deliberate.

Scientists have long noticed that in most cases, psoriasis makes itself less noticeable during the summer months. During the cold season, the skin is damaged by frost and dried out by the wind, causing it to crack more often. Warmth and adequate air humidity, on the contrary, have a beneficial effect. The sauna helps to recreate conditions with increased temperature and humidity even in the coldest winter. For most patients with psoriasis, visiting her is possible and even beneficial, but caution must be exercised.

What types of baths and saunas are there?
Studies of harm and benefits for people with psoriasis have mainly been conducted on Finnish saunas. Among all others, it has the highest temperature and low humidity. Probably, the effect of other saunas and baths will be similar. However, before visiting a particular sauna, you should consult your doctor.

The most common types of saunas and baths:

1 The Finnish sauna is dry and hot. The air temperature at the level of a person’s face is 80–100 °C, at the level of the feet - 30 °C. Relative humidity is low, from 10 to 20 percent. The expected duration of soaring periods is from 5 to 20 minutes followed by cooling. The skin should not lose a lot of moisture due to increased sweating. If the air starts to dry out your skin too much, it's best to take a break.

2 The Russian bath is quite variable in temperature and humidity. Usually it is heated to 50–90 °C, the humidity is maintained at about 20–65% by adding water to the hot stones.

3 The Turkish bath (hamam) has low temperatures of about 39–45 °C, although in some cases it is heated to 60 °C. A distinctive feature of the hammam is its very high humidity, from 80% to 100%.

4 An infrared sauna produces heat using far infrared light waves. This means that the range partially includes waves of the visible spectrum. The temperature is usually kept between 37–47 °C. We allow heating up to 60 °C. The humidity in infrared saunas is slightly less than outside, which is why the heat is called dry.

The effect of an infrared sauna is observed at lower temperatures, which is why visiting infrared cabins is recommended for people who cannot tolerate heat. No negative effects have been reported with adequate use of infrared saunas.

What are the benefits of a sauna?
From a physiological point of view, the effect of a sauna is similar to that of intense exercise. The sauna helps to train blood vessels and lungs; with regular use, it helps normalize blood pressure. It is associated with a reduced risk of mortality from cardiovascular diseases and reduces the likelihood of respiratory diseases. Infrared cabins also promote the growth of new capillaries.

The Finnish sauna, by strengthening the blood vessels of the brain, helps resist cognitive disorders, including dementia and Alzheimer's disease.

The sauna has been found to stimulate hormonal levels and the autonomic nervous system.

For people with psoriasis, the following effects of sauna and steam baths are especially important:

• softening of flaky scales and cleansing the epidermis from them;
• strengthening of metabolic processes - promotes better regeneration and nutrition of the skin, and due to the strengthening of capillaries, its tone increases;
• inhibition of the growth of pathogenic skin microbiota due to changes in pH and temperature;
• reduction of inflammation - circulating markers such as C-reactive protein, fibrinogen and white blood cells.
• increased resistance to colds;
• reducing stress, improving mood and well-being, counteracting mild depression. For the infrared sauna, in addition to its auxiliary effect in the treatment of depression, beneficial effects were also observed in chronic fatigue and loss of appetite.

For psoriatic arthritis, a sauna can also be beneficial. There is little scientific evidence, but there is evidence that a sauna increases joint mobility and reduces joint pain. The analgesic effect appears to be associated with increased production of beta-endorphins.

Patients with chronic neuropathic pain also report improvement. Joint pain may worsen the next day, but according to study participants, this can be prevented by a cool shower after a sauna.

Contraindications
In each specific case of psoriasis, you should consult your doctor. Some people do not tolerate high temperatures well due to the effects on the heart, blood vessels, or lungs. With so-called “summer” psoriasis, the skin responds negatively to heat and increased sweating. This may cause irritation in the sauna and bathhouse.

Contraindications when visiting the sauna:
• exacerbation of psoriasis and other chronic diseases;
• infectious diseases, fever;
• infectious diseases - when visiting public baths and saunas;
• cardiovascular diseases and type II diabetes can become an obstacle to visiting the sauna in severe stages and during exacerbations. However, the sauna also has a therapeutic effect for diseases of this type, so it is important to correctly assess the risks and consult a doctor. The risk of worsening diabetes symptoms when using an infrared sauna is minimal;
• pregnant women who do not have the habit of taking a steam bath should avoid it and prefer an infrared sauna [12];
• multiple sclerosis, most cases of cancer, stomach ulcers, hyperthyroidism. You should not visit the sauna or steam bath if you have open lesions on the skin or weeping wounds. Severe forms of psoriasis - gouty psoriasis, pustular form and psoriatic erythroderma are also contraindications.

Tips for people with psoriasis on visiting the sauna and steam baths The most important thing is to prevent damage to the epidermis, mechanical and thermal, not to dry out the skin and not introduce infection into it. To protect yourself, exercise reasonable caution:

1 Some molds and other pathogens survive at moderate steam temperatures, below 50°C. They prefer high humidity, but can also live on the floor of a Finnish sauna. Usually they are destroyed by high temperatures, but it is not hot enough at the door, in the dressing room and on the floor. Visit a bathhouse or sauna, where regular and thorough sanitization is carried out.

2 Don’t forget to wear flip-flops and cover the bench with a towel.

3 Select the optimal mode for visiting the bathhouse and “your” temperature.

4 Rubbing and stretching the skin is contraindicated.

5 After a bath or sauna, you should definitely use moisturizing lotions or body creams.

6 Visiting a sauna or steam bath is not only body care, but also a means of finding spiritual harmony. You can use essential oils or herbal infusions that do not cause allergies or irritation. In addition to the effects of herbal medicine, it can help you relax. In addition, when visiting a sauna, endorphins are produced, which reduce stress levels, which is important for psoriasis.