An infrared sauna is a type of sauna that uses infrared heaters to emit radiant heat, which is absorbed by your body to create a warming effect. Unlike traditional saunas that heat the air around you, infrared saunas heat your body directly without significantly warming the surrounding air. Infrared saunas focus on the heat part of the experience rather than the humidity part. There is no steam, only rays of light that heat up your body without raising the overall temperature of the room. 

What is an Infrared Sauna?

Unlike a traditional sauna that uses heat to warm the air around you which in turn warms your body, an infrared sauna heats your body directly and uses waves of light to create that heat. Infrared saunas offer the same benefits of other types of sauna bathing but at lower temperatures, which makes them accessible to people who can’t tolerate the high heat of a conventional sauna. Despite their different technology, infrared sauna rays still induce the intense sweating that characterizes a sauna experience.

Scientists have established that infrared waves are beneficial to the human body as they increase our thermal energy without any of the potential harmful effects of rays of sunlight. There are two basic types of infrared saunas: far infrared and near infrared. Far infrared saunas use rays that can’t penetrate the user’s skin and deeper tissues. Near infrared saunas emit rays that can travel through the skin up to several inches deep.

All saunas, whether traditional or infrared, involve high levels of heat. Traditional sauna temperatures can get above 185 degrees F,  while infrared sauna temperatures are around 120-150 degrees F. In addition to offering a sweaty experience at a lower temperature threshold, infrared saunas only use power to run their heating elements, making them much less expensive from a power perspective than a traditional sauna. 

How Does Infrared Heat Work?

Infrared is a safe wavelength of light (or energy) which we feel as heat from sources like fire and warm sand on the beach. The largest source of infrared heat is the Sun and invisible infrared wavelengths are what makes it feel warm (ultraviolet waves make it bright). Just like visible light has a range of wavelengths, so does infrared light. 

The infrared spectrum consists of near (NIR), mid (MIR), and far (FIR) infrared waves, each with distinct characteristics and frequency ranges. Near infrared is the shortest wavelength but penetrates the deepest, and near infrared saunas tend to promote topical healing and mild pain relief. Mid infrared is a longer wavelength that can penetrate deeper into the body’s soft tissue.

Far infrared is the closest of the wavelengths to the infrared heat given off by our own body. Far infrared waves resonate with your own body’s heat generation, allowing for a deep heat that raises your core body temperature and activates sweat glands. While both near and far infrared systems can benefit overall wellness, they go about it differently. Nowadays, there are also full spectrum infrared saunas that include both NIR and FIR wavelengths, giving you the best of both infrared worlds. 

Our infrared saunas have the lowest electromagnetic radiation (EMR) and electrical field (EF) signatures of any infrared delivery system available. If you’d like to learn more about saunas for home use and which type is right for you, give us a call at 970-879-4390 or contact us here.