Regular visits to the sauna can help lower the risk of developing dementia and Alzheimer's disease as well as dying of heart ailments, a Finnish study suggests. Researchers at the University of Eastern Finland found a link between sauna visits and memory diseases after following more than 2,300 middle-aged Finnish men for more than 20 years.
In the study, men who went to the sauna four to seven times a week were found 66 percent less likely to be diagnosed with dementia, and 65 percent less likely with Alzheimer's disease, than those taking a sauna once a week.
"We have taken into account other lifestyle factors, like physical activity and socio-economic factors ... There is an independent effect of sauna on these outcomes," said Jari Laukkanen, senior researcher and a professor of clinical medicine at the University of Eastern Finland.
He noted that the study only indicated an association between the sauna and memory diseases, and the findings would have to be fleshed out through further studies with different age groups, other nationalities and women.
The findings, published in the journal Age and Ageing in December, suggested however that the health benefits of sauna could extend from the heart to the brain.