Interesting tweet from David Sinclair

[jon-nyc]

He’s a longevity researcher at Harvard.

Longevity is earned in the gym, the sauna, and the kitchen

I asked Horace’s buddy why sauna.

Sauna is included because regular heat exposure has been associated with significant health benefits:

Evidence-based reasons:
1. Cardiovascular health
• Sauna use mimics moderate-intensity exercise in terms of heart rate and blood flow.
• Finnish studies show a dose-dependent reduction in cardiovascular and all-cause mortality with regular sauna use.
2. Improved recovery
• Increases blood flow and can reduce delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMS), aiding athletic recovery.
3. Hormesis
• Like exercise, sauna introduces controlled stress that activates repair pathways (e.g., heat shock proteins, autophagy).
4. Metabolic effects
• Can improve insulin sensitivity, blood pressure, and inflammation markers.
5. Mental health
• Regular sauna users report improved mood, reduced anxiety, and better sleep — potentially via endorphin release and nervous system modulation.

[jon-nyc]

I followed up asking how often one should use the sauna.

The optimal sauna frequency depends on your goals, health status, and tolerance — but the best evidence for longevity and cardiovascular benefit comes from the Finnish sauna studies, which found:

⸻

Best Outcomes: 4–7 Sessions per Week
• A 2015 JAMA study of 2,315 middle-aged men found:
• 2–3 times/week → 24% lower all-cause mortality
• 4–7 times/week → 40% lower all-cause mortality
• Similar reductions were seen for heart disease, stroke, and dementia.

[jon-nyc]

It would be easy enough for me to add. My gym has a sauna. Unfortunately they separate men and women so I’d have to be in there with a bunch of sweaty blokes.

[Mik]

I don't think they are all that expensive. My adopted family had one. It was quite nice, but my best friend got in trouble when he and his brothers all peed on the lava rocks as kids. I guess that took a long time to get the smell out.

[jon-nyc]

Ha. They’re very common in Finland. I stayed at an airport hotel in Helsinki and all the rooms had tiny saunas.

[Klaus]

David Sinclair is a very mixed bag. He has some impressive achievements but he is also known for ridiculously overselling his concepts.

[Renauda]

@jon-nyc

The optimal sauna frequency depends on your goals, health status, and tolerance — but the best evidence for longevity and cardiovascular benefit comes from the Finnish sauna studies, which found…

In the 80’s and 90’s I travelled at least a dozen or so times to Finland for both business and pleasure. I can’t count the number of Finnish saunas I attended. Without a doubt the Finnish sauna is an invigorating and healthy experience.

What is not healthy is the Finnish post sauna tradition of eating salted fish and drinking your face off with beer and vodka.

[jon-nyc]

Yeah but that part’s more fun.

[Doctor Phibes]

@jon-nyc said in Interesting tweet from David Sinclair:

It would be easy enough for me to add. My gym has a sauna. Unfortunately they separate men and women so I’d have to be in there with a bunch of sweaty blokes.

Mixed sex saunas might extend a number of things, however longevity probably isn’t one of them