What's the deal with near infrared saunas?

I have long been aware of the healing power of infrared saunas and am especially interested in detoxification and a healthy lifestyle. I began this year to look into purchasing an infrared sauna and it quickly became much more of an ordeal than I had anticipated. What I didn't know is that infrared saunas come in 2 types: "Near Infrared" and "Far Infrared." So, I've spent a lot of time investigating and have some reviews of both types.


First I looked at far infrared. There are tons of sites selling far infrared saunas. I found it a little funny that so many of them look the same. There isn't much diversity in style. I learned that about 90% of them come from 3 or 4 factories in China. In fact, I found only 2 companies that build their far infrared saunas in the US. Cedrus Saunas, which makes several lines, and Clearlight. Everything else is made abroad, as far as I can tell.


Here are a few links to the factories abroad. You can see what I mean. I think this is main reason that far infrared is so much more widely known than near infrared. The market is flooded with imports and there are tons of sites selling them because it's cheap and easy to me a middleman internet business.

www.goldenphoenixsauna.com

www.josensauna.com

http://www.sunnyspringsauna.com

www.royalsaunas.com.cn

Which brings me to the other infrared sauna: near infrared. The first thing I learned is that almost no one makes near infrared saunas. I have a theory why and I give that theory in a bit. But, it's has nothing to do with their effectiveness.

Near infrared saunas have a totally different heater type and set-up. They use infrared heat lamps and you have to sit far away from them because they are very hot. This means that the sauna designs look very different. In far infrared, you can sit right next to the heater. 

I began to investigate....

After talking to the companies, I realized that I couldn't get a straight answer from them. After all, they all say that their product is the best. So I went to the science sites and did some digging about the properties of far infrared and near infrared. Here is what I found.

1. Far infrared is a long wavelength. In the electromagnetic scale, it is next to microwaves. Some doctors think it might be unsafe over time and damage the tissues, like microwaves. There are also EMF concerns.

2. Far infrared penetrates mildly into the body and is good for delivering heat.

3. I found no independent verification of far infrared's healing power as stated by the sauna makers.

4. Sauna makers claim that far infrared heaters should give off far infrared rays that are the same frequency as the heat coming off the human body. Our bodies give off heat with a wavelength of about 7 microns. So, the sauna makers  try to make their heaters give off heat at 7 microns. They call it "bio-resonance." 

Here is my question: aren't the things that come off the body considered waste? Isn't heat just a byproduct of cellular metabolism that we are getting rid of? Consider the other things that come off the body: urine, feces, sweat, skin cells, and carbon dioxide. I don't think anyone considers them therapeutic. So, I don't get the thinking or logic behind the claim. Why give the body more of what it's trying to excrete? Seems counter intuitive.

Then to near infrared....


1. Near infrared is a short wavelength and is next to the visible spectrum on the electromagnetic scale.


2. Near infrared penetrates deeply into the body, as far as 23 cm according to NASA. I tend to trust NASA research because it has nothing to do with selling products.


3. Near infrared causes cells to improve, increase and enhance their metabolism. We actually have a light receptor, called a chromophore, in every cell that responds to near infrared light. NASA showed that near infrared improved skin regneration, wound healing, collagen synthesis and cell metabolism. NASA found no such properties with far infrared.


4. Near infrared reduces inflammation and pain. It is FDA approved for both. Far infrared is not. 




So, if they both deliver the heat and both make you sweat hard to detoxify, I think near infrared sounds better. Now I am going to call around and see what I can find from the near infrared sauna makers. Stay tuned!