Effects of Sauna Bathing on Sleep, Mood and Stress

Healthy Clinical Trial

Official title:

Effects of Sauna Bathing on Sleep, Mood and Stress

Clinical Trial Details — Status: Recruiting

Administrative data

• NCT number: NCT06125639
• Other study ID #: AWF_SKN_1
• Status: Recruiting
• Phase: N/A
• Start date: October 20, 2023
• Est. completion date: May 2024

Study information

• Verified date: November 2023
• Source: University School of Physical Education, Krakow, Poland
• Contact: n/a
• Is FDA regulated: No
• Study type: Interventional

Clinical Trial Summary

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.

Recruitment information / eligibility

• Status: Recruiting
• Enrollment: 40
• Est. completion date: May 2024
• Est. primary completion date: May 2024
• Accepts healthy volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers
• Gender: Male
• Age group: 18 Years to 45 Years

Eligibility

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

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Healthy

Intervention

Behavioral:
• Sauna Bathing
Participants will take part in 9 evening sauna bathing session over the course of 3 weeks

Locations

Country	Name	City	State
Poland	University School of Physical Education in Cracow	Kraków
Poland	University School of Physical Education in Cracow	Kraków

Sponsors (2)

Lead Sponsor	Collaborator
University School of Physical Education, Krakow, Poland	University of Bergen

Country where clinical trial is conducted

Poland, 

Outcome

Type	Measure	Description	Time frame	Safety issue
Primary	Objective Sleep - Time in bed	Total time spent in bed during the night assessed by sleep radar	5 weeks
Primary	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
Primary	Objective Sleep - Total sleep time	Total sleep time obtained from sleep onset to time at wake-up assessed by sleep radar	5 weeks
Primary	Objective Sleep - Light sleep	Total amount of time in light sleep assessed by sleep radar	5 weeks
Primary	Objective Sleep - Deep sleep	Total amount of time in deep sleep assessed by sleep radar	5 weeks
Primary	Objective Sleep - REM sleep	Total amount of time in REM sleep assessed by sleep radar	5 weeks
Primary	Objective Sleep - Sleep efficiency	The percentage of total sleep time to lights off and leaving bed assessed by sleep radar	5 weeks
Secondary	Subjective Sleep Quality assessed by Karolinska Sleep Diary		5 weeks
Secondary	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
Secondary	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
Secondary	Mood	Mood Adjective Check List (UMACL) will be used to assess mood (Mathews, Chamberlain & Jones, 1990, adapted to Polish by Ewa Gorynska, 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