Five Ways Steam Rooms Help Improve Sleep

Lack of sleep seriously impacts health in negative ways. If you’re having trouble getting your 7-9 hours per night, maybe it’s time you turned up the steam heat.

We are in the midst of a national sleep crisis. Our distracted, 24/7 lifestyles are keeping us from shutting down long enough to restore our bodies and minds through recuperative rest. Not only are we not performing at our best from lack of sleep, we’re risking our overall physical and mental wellness.

The sleep-deprived have plenty of company. According to research by the National Sleep Foundation, 35% of Americans say that their sleep quality is insufficient or “poor” on a regular basis, and a snap study found that 45% of Americans admitted that they suffered from inadequate sleep at least once in a typical one-week period.

Here are some of the other ways that steam therapy can contribute to better sleep.

1) Stress relief

This is where it all begins. Stress and its attendant effects do a number on multiple physiological systems in the body. Stress hormones, such as cortisol, negatively affect immunity, cardiovascular function, blood pressure, cognitive function, and more. Cortisol, also known as the “fight-or-flight” hormone, can increase dramatically just on your commute home. (Road rage is particularly bad for your overall wellness.)

Steam rooms are a great way to de-stress after a difficult day. It starts with the tranquil environment of a steam session that clears the mind and blocks out distractions. This calming effect can be enhanced by soothing music or aromatherapy. Some say that a session in a steam room is like getting a relaxing massage inside and outside the body.

But besides the obvious benefits of spending peaceful “me” time in a pleasurable space, steam therapy can help release endorphins, hormones that interact with the body’s opiate receptors. Endorphins can have a pleasurable effect, and help reduce pain and discomfort.

Research also shows that steam therapy can increase the release of aldosterone, a hormone that can help lower blood pressure and enhance relaxation. These biochemical effects help recalibrate your body and calm you down after a crazy day.

2) Improved breathing

Breathing disorders during sleep, including obstructive sleep apnea, are one of the main causes of poor sleep quality. Steam rooms won’t have an effect on the structure of your breathing anatomy, of course, but steam therapy can help clear out your lungs and sinuses, helping you breathe better during sleep, and this can help sleep apnea patients get better use out of their CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure) machines.

Steam is a natural expectorant, and can help clear up the entire respiratory system of phlegm and mucus.]  Research has discovered that steam therapy has the ability to assist in decreasing the symptoms of bronchitis and asthma in both adults and children. And an Indian study found that steam can help reduce acute lower respiratory tract infections.

You know how a stuffy nose or a persistent cough can keep you up at night. A session in a steam room can help relieve you of those symptoms and help you get some quality shut-eye.

3) Enhanced Mood

Depression and insomnia are very much linked, and those suffering from mood disorders often find themselves too troubled to sleep. Research has found that heat therapy can help increase levels of the neurochemical serotonin in the brain. Serotonin is the “feel good” hormone, and the target of many antidepressant drugs. Heat therapy can also help increase melatonin, a neurohormone that promotes relaxation and sleep. 

A different study in the JAMA Psychiatry found that sessions in steam rooms can help lessen the effects of depression. This was after subjects engaged in “whole-body heating,” leading the researchers to conclude: “Whole-body hyperthermia holds promise as a safe, rapid-acting, antidepressant modality with a prolonged therapeutic benefit.” 

4) Improved Circulation

Better circulation can help you feel calmer by promoting better regulation of your heart rate. Increased vasodilation (blood flow) helps open up arteries and veins, increasing the supply of oxygen, neurohormones, and other nutrients to the brain. This helps you achieve a deeper sleep, which is crucial for overall health.

According to experts, the blood flows out of the heart “increases by two or more times after a 10-to-15-minute steam room exposure.” This has a lasting effect on circulation that will help you get a deep sleep your body and brain needs. Better blood flow also helps decrease inflammation, which contributes to pain relief and overall health.

Which brings us to…

5) Reduced Inflammation

Pain and inflammation can plague you any time of the day, but it’s worse when you’re trying to eliminate distractions as you try to fall asleep. Inflammation is also a root cause of a number of chronic health conditions, so overall wellness depends on lessening inflammation whenever possible.

Research has shown that systemic thermal therapy can decrease inflammation and reduce chronic pain. This makes sense if you’ve ever put a heat pack on sore muscles.

Some fitness experts swear by the steam room’s ability to relieve pain and stiffness after workouts. Athletes are increasingly choosing steam therapy as a regular part of their postworkout regimen due to steam’s ability to help facilitate healing of damaged tissue after intense exercise.[18] Heat therapy has shown the ability to protect against oxidative stress in muscular tissue. Even arthritis sufferers claim to have obtained relief after sessions in a steam room.

All in all, spending time in a steam room just feels damn good. It revives you even as it contributes to your overall physical and psychological wellness in more complex ways. The healthier your overall wellness profile, the better you’ll sleep.   

Spending time in a steam room just feels damn good.

Make Steam Part of Your Sleep Routine

If you really want to increase your chances of improving your quality of sleep, consider adding steam rooms to your nighttime routine. Sleep experts say that having a regular routine before bedtime helps immeasurably in creating a better sleep environment, so integrating steam therapy into your nightly “power-down” is a true win-win.

Steam rooms are a controlled environment with minimal distractions, and you won’t be tempted to bring your smartphone into a steam room (we certainly don’t advise it). As noted earlier, avoiding electronic screens on smartphones and computers an hour before bedtime is another common suggestion by sleep experts, though it’s often ignored.

One more thing: We know a steam room can be heavenly tranquil, but don’t become too relaxed and fall asleep in the steam room. Limit your steam room exposure to 10-15 minutes, especially if you’re not used to steam therapy. As you become acclimated over time, you can prolong it to 20 minutes, but don’t exceed that in a single sitting.

That’s a short amount of time for the amazing benefits you get from steam therapy. Time your steam room session right, and you’ll never again worry about getting your 7-9 hours of great sleep per night.

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