Sauna Bathing and Incident Hypertension: A Prospective Cohort Study
Zaccardi F, Laukkanen T, Willeit P, Kunutsor SK, Kauhanen J, Laukkanen JA
American journal of hypertension · 69 citations
How it was studied
- Design
- Cohort study (classified by our AI screen)
- Studied in
- People
- Main outcome
- Clinical events such as disease or death
Who paid for it
- Funding
- Independent funding
- Nonprofit
- Foundation for Cardiovascular Research
- University or hospital
- Itä-Suomen Yliopisto
- Nonprofit
- Suomen Lääketieteen Säätiö
- Nonprofit
- Sydäntutkimussäätiö
Based on 4 listed funder(s).
Publication
- Published
- 2017-05-25 · Am J Hypertens · vol. 30 · issue 11 · pp. 1120–1125
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press
- Cited
- 103 citations · more than 97% of similar papers · 5.8× the field average
- Impact
- Top 10% most cited in its field
- References
- 25 works
- Access
- Free to read
- Research areas
- Thermoregulation and physiological responses · Therapeutic Uses of Natural Elements · Textile materials and evaluations
- Keywords
- Medicine, Hazard ratio, Blood pressure, Prospective cohort study, Internal medicine, Proportional hazards model, Confidence interval, Body mass index, Cardiorespiratory fitness, Prehypertension, Cohort study, Population, Cohort, Cardiology, Environmental health
- MeSH
- humans, hypertension, steam bath, incidence, multivariate analysis, proportional hazards models, risk factors, chi-square distribution, blood pressure, time factors, adult, middle aged, finland, male, protective factors
6 authors
From GB, FI, AT
- Francesco ZaccardiUniversity of Leicester
- Tanjaniina LaukkanenUniversity of Eastern Finland
- Peter WilleitInnsbruck Medical University; University of Cambridge
- Setor K. KunutsorSouthmead Hospital; University of Bristol
- Jussi KauhanenUniversity of Eastern Finland
- Jari A. Laukkanen · correspondingUniversity of Eastern Finland; Central Finland Health Care District
Abstract
Background
Sauna bathing is associated with reduced cardiovascular risk, but the mechanisms underlying this beneficial effect are not entirely understood. We aimed to assess the relationship between sauna bathing and risk of incident hypertension.
Methods
Frequency of sauna bathing was ascertained using questionnaires in the Kuopio Ischemic Heart Disease Study, a prospective cohort study conducted in Eastern Finland that comprised a population-based sample of 1,621 men aged 42 to 60 years without hypertension at baseline. The incidence of hypertension was defined as a physician diagnosis of hypertension, systolic blood pressure (SBP) >140 mm Hg, diastolic blood pressure >90 mm Hg, or use of antihypertensive medication.
Results
During a median follow-up of 24.7 years, 251 incident cases (15.5%) were recorded. In Cox regression analysis adjusted for baseline age, smoking, body mass index, and SBP; compared to participants reporting 1 sauna session per week, the hazard ratio for incident hypertension in participants reporting 2 to 3 sessions and 4 to 7 sessions was 0.76 (95% confidence interval: 0.57-1.02) and 0.54 (0.32-0.91), respectively. The corresponding hazard ratios were similar after further adjustment for glucose, creatinine, alcohol consumption, heart rate, family history of hypertension, socioeconomic status, and cardiorespiratory fitness: 0.83 (95% confidence interval: 0.59-1.18) and 0.53 (0.28-0.98), respectively.
Conclusions
Regular sauna bathing is associated with reduced risk of hypertension, which may be a mechanism underlying the decreased cardiovascular risk associated with sauna use. Further epidemiological and experimental studies could help elucidate the effects of sauna bathing on cardiovascular function.
Abstract via Europe PMC. Copyright remains with the authors or publisher.
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