ICE COLD WELL-BEING
Whether high-performance athletics or hobby sports – intensive physical exertion can cause sore muscles and joints. The cryo-sauna promises welcome relief: a compact cabinet with just enough room for one person exposes the body to nitrogen vapor at minus 140 degrees Celsius for three minutes. Sensitive areas such as the eyes are carefully protected from the gaseous cold. During the short period in the cryo-sauna, the body temperature hardly drops at all. To many people, the cold even feels like heat. Following treatment, high-performance athletes report that cryo-sauna therapy also lowers nervous tension before their next competition and helps them sleep better.
What explains these effects? The signal triggered by the extreme cold seems to play a role: You might say that the body switches into a sort of intensive supply mode. The circulation ramps up and endorphins are released. But the actual effect that feels so soothing doesn’t start till after you leave the sauna.