Sauna is an invention from Finland. Every Finnish, rich or poor, must take a sauna bath once or twice a week. For centuries the Finns have learnt to keep themselves healthy with the help of sauna which is a place for relaxation with one’s family. Of course, the sauna is taken in the nude. When an important guest comes they are honoured taking the sauna together. The sauna is almost a place of reverence for them, they feel that there are only two holy places for the Finns: the church and the sauna, and in both places people keep quiet.
There is no immediate record available of when the sauna was born in Finland. It spread all over the world as Finns came in contact with soldiers during the wars or during Olympics when all the athletes of the world collected at one site. The sauna is made with the help of logs, in room without windows. The gaps between logs are closed with the help of mud and moss.
The smoke and the steam passes out through the gap between the doors and the legs. The desired effect of sauna can be achieved only if the facility allowed moisture content of the air inside sauna to remain constant or if the original condition is restored in the shortest possible time after the water is sprinkled on hot stones. Nowadays mostly bricks are used. Special attention has to be paid to moisture escape and air regulation.
The modern sauna which does not have proper ventilation will increase the humidity above the prescribed limit. This can have a deleterious effect on heart and circulation. The humidity in sauna should be 3-6% and on no account it should rise to more than 15%. In a sauna room, benches are arranged at different heights. On the highest bench the temperature remains the highest. One starts with the lowest bench at the different levels and at higher. The time taken to adapt oneself at the different levels and at higher temperature differs from person to person. By progressing slowly from one bench to the next higher bench, the stimulating effect can progressively be regulated.
It is better to put your leg up if you are sitting on a bench and after sitting for a while when the perspiration starts it is better to recline on the bench. It is better to raise the level of your feet to help the circulation to the heart, since in a sauna room there is provision for leg support. When one goes to the sauna for the first time, it is better not to go to the high benches and one should not perspire for more than 5 minutes. Later, gradually it may be increase to 10 and 15 minutes.
Just before coming out of the sauna put a little water on the heated stone so that the temperature rises and one perspires heavily before coming out. During the last one or two minutes one should sit up and allow the legs to hang down, in order to adapt to circulation, to an upright posture. Then one steps down quietly leaving the room along with the towel one was sitting on.
The sauna is a combination of hot air bath steam bath interrupted by cooling. It has a great stimulating effect on the body. Circulation and metabolism are enhanced. The skin is stimulated and the secretion of the skin is strong. The immunity of the body and supportive action of the body are enhanced. A sauna bath may be taken for two hours. The stomach should neither be too full or empty. The bowels and bladder should be emptied before entering the sauna. If the feet are cold before entering the sauna it is better to take a hot foot bath before entering sauna room. One should enter the sauna with the body completely dry.
There is a lot of perspiring, in the sauna, which is followed by cooling off. there is fear of catching a cold during the cooling off process. One need not to be afraid as long as the body is completely warmed up. This will be the case if the sauna bath is taken properly.
The cooling off phase begins with the cold air bath. One walks slowly back and forth in the open air. This may be followed by a short swim or a dive or a cold shower. Even better is Kneipp’s affusion. It is very pleasant as it has a prickling effect. One starts with a douche away from the heart at the hips. Start again from the left heel upto the seat then go round the abdomen. Repeat the same with right leg. Then to the right finger upto the shoulder and from the left finger upto the shoulder, move around in circles round the chest. At the end let the water run down over the back.
The cooling off should be practised with moderation. After 10-15 minutes the body is cooled off. Take a warm foot bath. Rub the body completely dry and enter the sauna for the second time The second bath is the same as first bath and the body is cooled off again after 8-15 minutes in sauna for the second time following the same procedure as the first. Those who use the sauna regularly may enter again and cool off for the third time.
At the end of each bath the head and the body are well cooled and the feet are very cold. Therefore it is always recommended to take a hot foot bath at the concluding stage. Normally one fresh after a sauna. If you want to rest for a while, you should wrap the feet tightly and cover the body lightly.