Effects of Sauna Bathing on Sleep, Mood and Stress

Study Overview
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Brief Summary
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Sauna bathing is a popular, low-cost, and easily accessible type of whole-body thermotherapy that has been used for social, religious, health, and hygienic reasons for thousands of years. There is strong evidence to support the various physiological and psychological benefits of sauna bathing. The positive effects of regular sauna use have been explained by a number of mechanisms of action, including increased cardiac output, reduced peripheral vascular resistance and other physiological changes in cardiovascular parameters such as decreased systolic and/or diastolic blood pressure. Additionally, the psychological impact of sauna bathing may occur due to a combination of factors that include the release of endorphins, relaxation, placebo effects, and psychological and social interactions that likely occur around frequent sauna activity. Taken together, it is possible that acute and regular sauna bathing may impact sleep quality.

Official Title
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Effects of Sauna Bathing on Sleep, Mood and Stress

Conditions
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Healthy

Intervention / Treatment
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* Behavioral: Sauna Bathing


Participation Criteria
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Eligibility Criteria
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Inclusion Criteria: good general health assessed by physician written consent to participate Exclusion Criteria: medication or dietary supplements, which could potentially impact the study outcomes history of sleep or neurological disorders regular sauna use professional athlete shift worker

Ages Eligible for Study
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Minimum Age: 18 Years
Maximum Age: 45 Years

Sexes Eligible for Study
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Male

Accepts Healthy Volunteers
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Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Study Plan
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How is the study designed?
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Design Details

Primary Purpose: Treatment
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention Model: Parallel Assignment
Masking: None (Open Label)


Arms and Interventions

| Participant Group/Arm | Intervention/Treatment |
| --- | --- |
| Experimental: Sauna Group<br> | Behavioral: Sauna Bathing<br>* Participants will take part in 9 evening sauna bathing session over the course of 3 weeks<br>|
| No Intervention: Control Group<br> | |

What is the study measuring?
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Primary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Objective Sleep - Time in bed | Total time spent in bed during the night assessed by sleep radar | 5 weeks | 
| Objective Sleep - Sleep-onset latency | The time it takes from when the participant intends to go to sleep and actually starts to sleep assessed by sleep radar | 5 weeks | 
| Objective Sleep - Total sleep time | Total sleep time obtained from sleep onset to time at wake-up assessed by sleep radar | 5 weeks | 
| Objective Sleep - Light sleep | Total amount of time in light sleep assessed by sleep radar | 5 weeks | 
| Objective Sleep - Deep sleep | Total amount of time in deep sleep assessed by sleep radar | 5 weeks | 
| Objective Sleep - REM sleep | Total amount of time in REM sleep assessed by sleep radar | 5 weeks | 
| Objective Sleep - Sleep efficiency | The percentage of total sleep time to lights off and leaving bed assessed by sleep radar | 5 weeks | 

Secondary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Subjective Sleep Quality assessed by Karolinska Sleep Diary |  | 5 weeks | 
| Stress level assessed by VAS scale | VAS scale is a 11-item self-report measure for stress. Answers range from 0 (no stress) to 10 (worst stress). | 5 weeks | 
| Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS) | The PANAS is a 20-item self-report measure for positive and negative affect. | baseline, after 1,3,6,9 sauna bathing, after 5 weeks | 
| Mood | Mood Adjective Check List (UMACL) will be used to assess mood (Mathews, Chamberlain & Jones, 1990, adapted to Polish by Ewa Goryńska, 2005). UMACL measures mood in three dimensions of the core affect: Tense Arousal (minimum value: 9, maximum value: 36), Energetic Arousal (minimum value: 10, maximum value: 40), and Hedonic Tone (minimum value: 10, maximum value: 40), with higher scores representing higher levels of the mood dimensions. | baseline, after 1,3,6,9 sauna bathing, after 5 weeks |