The one reason why you don't need a hit in infrared saunas

Hi, I’m Johannes Kettelhodt, the founder and CEO of Clearlight® Infrared Saunas in the UK and EU.

I’m sometimes asked whether I see any value in sauna hats, and I do in some instances. In this blog post, I’ll explain why sauna hats can be very beneficial for a traditional sauna but why you don’t necessarily need one in an infrared sauna.

Let’s learn why:

The Problem with Traditional Saunas and Why Sauna Hats Can Help

Traditional saunas can become extremely hot, reaching temperatures of over 100 degrees Celsius (212 Fahrenheit).

The goal of sessions in traditional saunas is to raise what is called your “core body temperature” - the temperature measured in the centre of your body. To higher your core body temperature, the more you’ll start sweating. And the more you sweat, the more you detoxify, stimulate blood flow, and build up heat tolerance, for instance.

But, there’s a downside to this process:

Recent studies show that your head is the first to give out during sauna sessions (1; 2). The head, in fact, prevents you from raising your core body temperature enough so that you gain all sauna benefits, such as a depression-countering effect.

That problem is where sauna hats come in:

Sauna hats insulate your head from the exterior environment, preventing it from heating up too much. Also, your hair is protected by a sauna hat, which is nice if you’ve artificially dyed it. The same is true for your ears if you’ve got a big sauna hat.

But there’s more:

In a traditional sauna, the air temperature is the highest at the top of the sauna. The difference in temperature, between the bottom part where your legs are located, and your head, can be as much as 20 degrees Celsius.

And hence, in a traditional sauna, a sauna hat can not only protect your hair but actually make your sauna sessions more effective so that you reap more benefits.

But, infrared saunas are a different story:

Infrared Saunas Use Far Lower Temperatures than Other Models

Many different types of infrared saunas exist. All of the high-quality brands of infrared saunas, however, have one thing in common: they let heater panels only heat up your core and extremities, never your head.

Also, the infrared heat emitted by different types of heater panels also penetrates into your body, heating up your cells from the inside out. Infrared saunas don’t rely on hot air as much as traditional saunas, and frequently, the indoor temperature approximates 60 degrees Celsius at the very hottest.

As a result, there’s a twofold effect:

First, your head is not exposed to the infrared light to a great extent in the first place. Secondly, the head is not heated as much as with traditional saunas. A sauna hat in an infrared sauna will thus have far less of an effect than it will in a traditional one.

Also, if you’re really worried about overheating your head - which can be a problem if you’re trying to reach very high internal temperatures - then a hat alone isn’t enough.

The studies I’ve cited before actually use cooling methods for the head with cold and wet towels in combination with heating the core, legs and arms. Having a bottle of ice water ready, that you pour over your head without touching other body parts, is a similar idea you could implement to last longer inside a sauna.

Conclusion: Sauna Hats are Mostly a Traditional Sauna Tool

Sauna hats are great if you’re spending time in a traditional sauna - such as a Finnish sauna - because they tend to overheat your head before you can maximally heat your core and extremities.

Infrared saunas don’t rely on hot air, however, and don’t directly heat up your head, thereby making a sauna hat almost always unnecessary.

Johannes Kettelhodt

References:

[1] Hanusch KU, Janssen CW. The impact of whole-body hyperthermia interventions on mood and depression - are we ready for recommendations for clinical application? Int J Hyperthermia. 2019;36(1):573-581. doi: 10.1080/02656736.2019.1612103. PMID: 31159624.

[2] Janssen CW, Lowry CA, Mehl MR, Allen JJ, Kelly KL, Gartner DE, Medrano A, Begay TK, Rentscher K, White JJ, Fridman A, Roberts LJ, Robbins ML, Hanusch KU, Cole SP, Raison CL. Whole-Body Hyperthermia for the Treatment of Major Depressive Disorder: A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Psychiatry. 2016 Aug 1;73(8):789-95. doi: 10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2016.1031. Erratum in: JAMA Psychiatry. 2016 Aug 1;73(8):878. PMID: 27172277.