Using Infrared Sauna Therapy to Reduce Inflammation and Detox with Connie Zack

Infrared sauna detoxification pulls heavy metals and toxins through sweat

Alicia explains how infrared saunas cause deep detoxification, with studies showing sweat contains heavy metals and environmental toxins that don't come out through exercise or urination. She shares how firefighters use infrared saunas as part of decontamination after fires, producing grayish-brown sweat even after showering.

"Infrared just provides more layers and more dimensions and works with your molecules and your cells in a different way because it also has the spectrum of light energy. And our body must receive light energy to survive. We have to because our body is made up of mitochondria and water. And we have, we're essentially just great big solar panels, right? And when we get the light energy, when we get the infrared, that our bodies are activated and everything starts to convert into energy, and we start to be able to perform, our body starts to perform better. So that was a long answer to your question, but I want to make sure at least you give us some foundation. Yeah. And there's a great quote that says that mal illumination or basically like improper light exposure or lack of light exposure or poor light exposure is to the body what malnutrition is to the body. That light is information, it provides information to all the mitochondria, all the different cells of the body. And when we are just exposed to artificial light all day, not getting the whole spectrum of, you know, UV, infrared, red, all the different spectrum on the light spectrum on a regular basis, then we are missing critical nutrition and information that helps our cells and helps cells function well. And so, you know, it's kind of what you're talking about there. And then infrared is part of the invisible light spectrum. So you don't actually see it, whereas you see UV light and you see, you can see red light like sunrise and sunset. But with the infrared, that's where people get confused too, is that you don't see it, but you can feel it because it has a heating element to it. Right. So I like to describe the spectrum of there's heat, and then gives you as you go farther left, and it goes gets into the light."

Former smokers sweat out carcinogens stored in adipose tissue

Former smokers who quit over a decade ago report that their infrared sauna sweat smells like smoke, demonstrating that carcinogens remain stored in adipose tissue and can only be released through deep penetrating sweat.

"And found an abundance of studies, which still to this day shocks me because this is 25 years ago, right? There were so many studies about it with using infrared on helping with heart disease, coronary artery disease, congestive heart failure, and changing the endothelial lining, strengthening the endothelial cells. I mean, so many things, lowering blood pressure, changing triglycerides. And so I'm like, wait a second, there is some real great science to this that nobody knows about. And so I eventually, there's a little bit longer of a story, but I won't go into all the details, but eventually left my job and at Procter ⁇ Gamble and with my partner, Aaron Zach, who's my husband now. And we started this in our basement in Cincinnati, Ohio, and then eventually moved to Kansas City, where we are today and have spent the rest of our time committed to delving into the science of the entire spectrum and bringing forth the knowledge of infrared and the powers that it can provide to help transform your body. So that's how I fell into it."

Clinical study shows significant blood pressure reduction in six weeks

Alicia describes a clinical study conducted at UMKC showing that using an infrared sauna three times per week for 30 minutes produced a statistically significant reduction in blood pressure after just six weeks, with no side effects.

"And then mid goes deeper. And then far is really excellent. And it is the foundation of the spectrum. I mean, if you could only do one, you know, I mean, I would suggest you take advantage of all of them because there's so many different benefits. But far infrared, because of the way it is absorbed into your water molecules and how it helps your mitochondria and your whole circulatory system, it really is the key, key component of transforming all of yourselves in so many different ways. And we can go through the different benefits, you know, but especially as it relates to, I know, you know, it's important to you as far as talking about inflammation. That's the, it is the key, key, key marker for helping reduce inflammation. Yeah, let's, let's shift right into that. Let's talk about, you know, because you can get exposed to infrared and, you know, you can get exposed to far infrared, mid, near. Obviously, our ancestors were exposed to it by just being outside all day in the sun, right? But of course, you know, with the technology like with sunlight, what sunlight has, we're able to, in a sense, kind of really isolate or expand upon the benefits that we get from nature being exposed in nature. Although that's obviously extremely beneficial as well, getting a lot of nature exposure. But let's talk about the benefits of getting those wavelengths along with the heat elements of a sauna. Yeah, so the majority, just to expand on what you just said as far as the sunlight, because I love that point because we forget that our ancestors, I mean, you know, they were outside all day and they, their clock was totally controlled by the sun, right? They woke up with the sun and they went to sleep when the sun went down. And now people have crazy hours and they just work different systems, cycles, and they're just, they don't get those wonderful or that feeling that I talked about at the very beginning of feeling of emperor that comes from the sun. They're not getting it on a daily basis and people are trying to block it and, you know, lots of, lots of issues with that. And the majority of sunlight, it's important people know this, the majority, I think it's 55%-ish is the infrared wavelength. So it is really important that if you can get it naturally and out, you know, you also get with sunlight, you know, UV and you get some, you know, are there particular times a day before we get into the sun? Are there particular times a day where there's more infrared? Obviously, like UV, for example, it goes it the amount of UV increases right as we get closer to noon, right? So the hours around noon, and then it kind of decreases from there."

Infrared raises core body temperature to boost immune function

Alicia explains how infrared creates a false fever by raising core body temperature, which improves immunity by increasing white blood cell activity. She recommends using the sauna at the first sign of a cold to prevent it from developing.

"So it can be really confusing. And I understand the confusion. And my mission is to help people understand, like, to help provide clarity to this wonderful, powerful healing wavelength of infrared. And near infrared, because there's no heat, it has to be delivered by LEDs, but it's still invisible, invisible light. And then right next to that is red light, which is the first light that you can see. It's visible in the rainbow, you know, and that has healing properties as well, which we can talk about. So there's really, and then there's also I mean, there's other spectrums, but you know, the majority of benefits will be found within those four spectrums, far, mid, near, and red. And near and red are so, they're so close, they're so tight, they're really interchangeable. So, I mean, it's really, if you think about it, it's really three because you have far, mid, and then near/slash red. They're so, they're so, I mean, incredibly similar, which can talk about what makes them difference, different, but for just most people to know that they're very similar is enough. Yeah, let's talk about that because I know with red, red really hits more of the skin, gets kind of into the dermis, epidermis, but doesn't really get deeper than that into the muscle tissue, right? But it's very good for skin health, right? From my understanding. And then, you know, as you get into your infrared, that's penetrating deeper into your system, into your bloodstream, muscles, bone, visceral organs, right? And having an effect there. So can you break that down a little bit more? Yes, absolutely. And you're exactly right. And the difference between red and near is two factors. One is the color. and red is visible, near is not. So that's the big difference. And the other is a depth of penetration. So red doesn't go as deep as near, and it's really good for the skin, for helping with fine lines, for wrinkles, for wounds, any type of cell repair on a surface layer. There's also great studies with hair loss with red and near. Again, they're interchangeable."