As summer months are here, and temperatures are getting higher in many regions of the Northern Hemisphere, we find ourselves in “natural saunas” – dry or wet. Here, in Texas, we are mostly in a humid heat, so our saunas are similar to Turkish hammams or Russian banyas; our readers from Arizona or New Mexico enjoy Finnish or Scandinavian style of sauna. Whatever our “sauna” type is, the main benefit of it is to allow us to sweat. Many associate sweating with being smelly and sticky and apply negative connotation to it, but, in fact, there is an array of health benefits in sweating.
Here are some reasons we should sweat:
1. Weight Loss
When we are hot, our body is working hard to cool it down by producing sweat. This sweat production is using energy and burning calories, which boosts weight loss.
2. Flushing out toxins
When we sweat, our skin removes toxic compounds from the body.
A 2012 study found that sweating plays an important role in expelling heavy metals like mercury, lead, cadmium, and arsenic from the body.
3. Lowering the risk of kidney stones
Sweating can be an effective way to sweat out the salt and retain calcium in your bones. This limits the accumulation of salt and calcium in the kidneys and urine, which is where the stones come from. It is no coincidence people who sweat tend to drink more water and fluids, which is another prevention method for kidney stones.
4. Improves skin appearance
Sweat expels impurities in our skin. Those often come from environment pollution, dirt, or makeup. No wonder after removing them by sweat first and clean-water-shower after, our skin radiates and glows.
By the way, sweating helps improve acne too. When we sweat, our pores open up and allow all the dirt, oil, bacteria, and debris in our pores a way out. But keeping our skin clean after we sweat is essential.
There are more benefits to sweating, and in the refences below you can learn more. Hopefully, the benefits we discussed today will be enough for us to change our mind about being smelly and sticky. In our next edition, we will share recipes of how Native Americans neutralize the smell of sweat naturally.
My Indigo Sun team
References:
1. Sears ME, Kerr KJ, Bray RI. Arsenic, Cadmium, Lead, and Mercury in Sweat: A Systematic Review. J Environ Public Health. 2012;2012:184745.doi:10.1155/2012/184745
2. Laukkanen T, Khan H, Zaccardi F, Laukkanen JA. Association Between Sauna Bathing and Fatal Cardiovascular and All-Cause Mortality Events. JAMA Intern Med. 2015;175(4):542-8.doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2014.8187
3. Baker LB. Physiology of Sweat Gland Function: The Roles of Sweating and Sweat Composition in Human Health. Temperature (Austin). 2019;6(3):211-259.doi:10.1080/23328940.2019.1632145
4. Rieg S, Saborowski V, Kern WV, Jonas D, Bruckner-tuderman L, Hofmann SC. Expression of the Sweat-Derived Innate Defence Antimicrobial Peptide Dermcidin Is Not Impaired in Staphylococcus Aureus Colonization or Recurrent Skin Infections. Clin Exp Dermatol. 2014;39(2):209-12.
5. Balchin R, Linde J, Blackhurst D, Rauch HL, Schönbächler G. Sweating Away Depression? The Impact of Intensive Exercise on Depression. J Affect Disord. 2016;200:218-21.doi:10.1016/j.jad.2016.04.030
6. Sakhaee K, Nigam S, Snell P, Hsu MC, Pak CY. Assessment of the pathogenetic role of physical exercise in renal stone formation. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 1987;65(5):974-979.
7. Kidney Stone Prevention- a guide from the University of California, Berkeley
https://uhs.berkeley.edu/sites/default/files/kidney-stone-prevention.pdf
This month’s challenge is related to giving ourselves more chances to sweat. Whether it is jogging outside, exercising in a gym or home, dancing, or going to a sauna or a steam room, let’s give ourselves a chance to detox and rejuvenate every day.
Don’t forget to drink plenty of water to stay hydrated!
