Far Infrared Therapy (FIRT)

[Guest guest]

Dear Group,

 

This article is on the infra red light.

 

Most of the information on the web is in the far part of the infra red spectrum

and concerns saunas.

 

Most of the infra red lamps in Asia are lamps and not saunas and seem to cover

most or all of the infra red spactrum and no just the far part of infra red.

 

I am still trying to find information of any relevent nature.

 

Frank

 

http://www.fyh.com/sauna/Far%20Infrared%20Therapy.htm

 

Far Infrared Therapy (FIRT)

What is Infrared Heat?

Radiant heat is simply a form of energy that heats objects directly, without

having to heat the surrounding air. Radiant heat is also called infrared energy

or IR. The electromagnetic spectrum is divided into three segments by

wavelength, measured in microns or micrometers (a micron = 1/1,000,000 of a

meter): 0.076 to 1.5 microns = near or close, 1.5 to 5.6 = middle or

intermediate, 5.6 to 1000 = far or long wave infrared. The far infrared segment

of the electromagnetic spectrum occurs just below, or " infra " to, red light as

the next lowest energy band. This band of light is not visible to human eyes but

can be seen by special cameras that translate infrared into visible colors. We

can, however, feel this type of light, which we perceive as heat. The sun

produces most of its energy in the infrared segment of the spectrum. Our

atmosphere has a " window " in it that allows infrared rays-in the 7 to 14 micron

ranges-to safely reach the earth's surface. When warmed, the earth radiates

infrared rays in the 7 to 14 micron bands, with peak output at 10 microns.

 

Our tissues normally produce infrared energy for warmth and tissue repair.

Tissue production of infrared energy is associated with a variety of healing

responses. At times, the infrared energy in our tissues may require a boost to a

higher level to ensure the fullest healing possible for tissue repair. Body

tissues that need an infrared boost selectively absorb infrared rays; after

boosting a tissue's infrared energy, the remaining rays pass onward harmlessly.

This phenomenon is called " resonant absorption. " Our bodies radiate infrared

energy through the skin at 3 to 50 microns, with most output at 9.4 microns. Our

palms emit infrared energy too, from 8 to 14 microns. Palm healing, an ancient

tradition in China, has used the healing properties of infrared rays for 3,000

years. Yogis in India also employ palm healing and recommend it especially for

relieving eyestrain.

Far Infrared Therapy and Electromagnetic Fields

Energy Band of Far Infrared Therapy

Heaters used in infrared saunas emit about one-third of their output in the

middle infrared band-from 2 to 5.6 microns-for deep penetration and the other

two-thirds in the long band-from 5.6 to 25 microns. The output is evenly spread

around the 9.4-micron pivot point of peak human output. This distribution

maximizes the higher penetration of the middle band waves and combines them with

the long waves that produce resonant absorption for healthy tissue output.

Chinese researchers consider a band between 2 to 25 microns the most

therapeutic.

 

 

Recently there have been reports detailing the hazards of exposure to certain

kinds of electromagnetic fields, such as those from high-tension power lines,

cell phones, or from computer display terminals. Infrared heating systems have

been tested in Japan and found free of toxic electromagnetic fields. The Swedish

National Institute of Radiation Protection has also concluded that infrared

heaters are not dangerous. Instead, Japanese researchers have reported that

infrared radiant heat antidotes the negative effects of toxic electromagnetic

sources.

 

Infrared energy penetrates tissues to a depth of over one inch. Its energy

output is tuned to correspond closely to the body's own radiant energy so that

body tissues absorb close to 93 percent of the infrared waves that reach the

skin. A conventional sauna, in comparison, must rely on an indirect means of

heat to produce its heating effect on the body (convection - air currents, and

conduction - direct skin contact with hot air). An infrared heater heats only 20

percent of the air, leaving over 80 percent of the heat available to directly

heat the body. Thus, an infrared heated sauna can warm its users to a greater

depth and with more efficiency than a conventional sauna.

 

Infrared heater output creates penetrating heat and mildly warm air (which only

heats the skin superficially). This crucial difference between it and

traditional saunas explains the many unprecedented benefits that come from its

use that are not attainable in conventional saunas.

 

Another difference lies in the process of sweating. Infrared energy created in

the sauna may induce up to two to three times the volume of sweat produced in a

traditional sauna, while operating at significantly cooler temperatures (100-130

degrees Fahrenheit - 37-55 degrees Celsius, compared to 180-235 degrees

Fahrenheit). The lower heat is safer for those concerned with cardiovascular

risk factors that might be adversely affected by high temperatures encountered

in more traditional saunas. In fact, German researchers have reported beneficial

effects from hour-long whole-body infrared exposure in two groups of

hypertensive patients studied in 1989, including a 24-hour long increase in

peripheral blood flow and decrease in high blood pressure. One issue for

traditional sauna users has been breathing exceptionally hot air. Unlike

traditional saunas, which require a closed atmosphere to maintain the levels of

heat required for therapeutic results, Infrared saunas can be used with the door

or window fully open if the only desired effect is infrared penetration. It is

distinctly more pleasant to breathe air that is 50-125 degrees Fahrenheit (10-60

degrees Celsius); in an infrared sauna, patients breathe cooler air while

maintaining a feeling of warmth.

Therapeutic Effects of Far Infrared Therapy

History of the Sauna and Development of Far Infrared Therapy

The Finns first popularized sauna use in Europe. Their ancient religious

ceremonies used it for mental, spiritual, and physical cleansing. Use of the

sauna in their religion stayed with them when they migrated between 5,000 and

3,000 B.C. from an area northwest of Tibet to their present location in Finland.

Similarly, Native Americans have used sweat lodges for cleansing and purifying

since prehistoric times, recognizing the health benefits, as well.

 

Dr. Tadashi Ishikawa, a member of the Research and Development Department of

Fuji Medical, received a patent in 1965 for a zirconium ceramic infrared heater

used in the first healing infrared thermal systems. Medical practitioners in

Japan were the only ones using infrared thermal systems for 14 years. In 1979,

they were finally released for public use. The technique has been further

refined into infrared thermal systems that have been sold in the United States

since 1981. One use of infrared heat in the United States has been in the form

of panels used in hospital nurseries to warm newborns.

 

Increases extensibility of collagen tissues

Tissues heated to 45 degrees Celsius and then stretched exhibit a non-elastic

residual elongation of about 0.5 to 0.9 percent that persists after the stretch

is removed. This effect does not occur in these same tissues when stretched at

normal tissue temperatures. Therefore, 20 stretching sessions can produce a

10-18% increase in length of tissues heated and stretched. Stretching of tissue

in the presence of heat would be especially valuable in working with ligaments,

joint capsules, tendons, fasciae, and synovium that have become scarred,

thickened, or contracted. Such stretching at 45 degrees Celsius causes much less

weakening in stretched tissues for a given elongation than a similar elongation

produces at normal tissue temperatures.

 

Experiments have clearly shown that low-force stretching could produce

significant residual elongation when heat is applied together with stretching or

range-of-motion exercises, which is much safer than stretching tissues at normal

tissue temperatures.

Decreases joint stiffness

There is a 20% decrease in rheumatoid finger joint stiffness at 45 degrees

Celsius (112 degrees Fahrenheit) as compared to 33 degrees Celsius (92 degrees

Fahrenheit), which correlates perfectly to both subjective and objective

observation of stiffness. Speculation has it that any stiffened joint and

thickened connective tissues may respond in a similar fashion.

Relieves muscle spasm

Muscle spasms have long been observed to be reduced through the use of heat, be

they secondary to underlying skeletal, joint, or neuropathological conditions.

This result is possibly produced by the combined effect of heat on both primary

and secondary afferent nerves from spindle cells and from its effects on Golgi

tendon organs. Results produced demonstrate their peak effect within the

therapeutic temperature range obtainable with radiant heat.

Leads to pain relief

Pain may be relieved via the reduction of attendant or secondary spasms. Pain is

also at times related to ischemia (lack of blood supply) due to tension or spasm

that can be improved by the hyperemia that heat-induced vasodilatation produces,

thus breaking the feedback loop in which the ischemia leads to further spasm and

then more pain.

 

Heat has been shown to reduce pain sensation by direct action on both free-nerve

endings in tissues and on peripheral nerves. In one dental study, repeated heat

applications led finally to abolishment of the whole nerve response responsible

for pain arising from dental pulp.

 

Heat may lead to both increased endorphin production and a shutting down of the

so-called " spinal gate " of Melzack and Wall, each of which can reduce pain.

 

Localized infrared therapy using lamps tuned to the 2-25 micron waveband is used

for the treatment and relief of pain by over 40 reputable Chinese medical

institutes.

 

International Reports on Far Infrared Therapy Use

Over the last 25 years, Japanese and Chinese researchers and clinicians have

completed extensive research on infrared treatments and report many provocative

findings. In Japan, there is an " infrared society " composed of medical doctors

and physical therapists dedicated to further infrared research. Their findings

support the health benefits of infrared therapy as a method of healing.

 

There have been over 700,000 infrared thermal systems sold in the Orient for

whole-body treatments. An additional 30 million people have received localized

infrared treatment in the Orient, Europe, and Australia with lamps, which emit

the same 2-25 micron wave bands as employed in a whole-body system. In Germany,

physicians in an independently developed form have used whole-body infrared

therapy for over 80 years.

 

Increases blood flow

Heating one area of the body produces reflex-modulated vasodilators in

distant-body areas, even in the absence of a change in core body temperature.

Heat one extremity and the contralateral extremity also dilates; heat a forearm

and both lower extremities dilate; heat the front of the trunk and the hand

dilates.

 

Heating muscles produces an increased blood flow level similar to that seen

during exercise. Temperature elevation also produces an increased blood flow and

dilation directly in capillaries, arterioles, and venules, probably through

direct action on their smooth muscles. The release of bradykinin, released as a

consequence of sweat-gland activity, also produces increased blood flow and

vasodilatation.

 

Whole-body hyperthermia, with a consequent core temperature elevation, further

induces vasodilatation via a hypothalamic-induced decrease in sympathetic tone

on the arteriovenous anastomoses. Axonal reflexes that change vasomotor balance

also produce vasodilatation.

Assists in resolution of inflammatory infiltrates, edema, and exudates

Increased peripheral circulation provides the transport needed to help evacuate

edema, which can help inflammation, decrease pain, and help speed healing.

Introduced in cancer therapy

More recently, infrared heat has been used in cancer therapy. This is a new

experimental procedure that shows great promise in some cases when used

properly. American researchers favor careful monitoring of the tumor

temperature; whereas, the successes reported in Japan make no mention of such

precaution.

Affects soft tissue injury

Infrared healing is now becoming a leading edge care for soft tissue injuries to

promote both relief in chronic or intractable " permanent " cases, and accelerated

healing in newer injuries.

Therapeutic Applications of Far Infrared TherapyCardiovascular Conditioning and

Weight Loss

The August 7, 1981 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association

(JAMA) reported what is common knowledge today: Many people who run do so to

place a demand on their cardiovascular system as well as to build muscle. What

isn't well known is that it also reported the " regular use of a sauna may impart

a similar stress on the cardiovascular system, and its regular use may be as

effective as a means of cardiovascular conditioning and burning of calories as

regular exercise. " It has been found that the infrared sauna makes it possible

for people in wheelchairs, those who are otherwise unable to exert themselves,

and those who won't follow an exercising/conditioning program to achieve a

cardiovascular training effect. It also allows for more variety in any ongoing

training program.

 

Blood flow during whole-body hyperthermia is reported to rise from a normal five

to seven quarts a minute to as many as 13 quarts a minute. Due to the deep

penetration of infrared rays, there is a deep heating effect in the muscle

tissue and internal organs. The body responds to this heat with a

hypothalamic-induced increase in both heart volume and rate. Beneficial heart

stress leads to a sought-after cardiovascular training and conditioning effect.

Medical research confirms the use of a sauna provides cardiovascular

conditioning as the body works to cool itself, and involves substantial

increases in heart rate, cardiac output, and metabolic rate. As a confirmation

of the validity of this form of cardiovascular conditioning, extensive research

by NASA in the early 1980's led to the conclusion that infrared stimulation of

cardiovascular function would be the ideal way to maintain cardiovascular

conditioning in American astronauts during long space flights.

 

Contraindications for Far Infrared Therapy

Prescription Drugs

If you are using prescription drugs, check with your physician or pharmacist for

possible changes in the drug's effect due to an interaction with infrared

energy.

 

Certain Ailments

According to some authorities, it is considered inadvisable to raise the core

temperature of someone with adrenal suppression, systemic lupus erythematosus,

or multiple sclerosis.

 

Joint Problems

If a person has a recent (acute) joint injury, it should not be heated for the

first 48 hours or until the hot and swollen symptoms subside. Joints that are

chronically hot and swollen may respond poorly to vigorous heating of any kind.

Vigorous heating is strictly contraindicated in cases of enclosed infections be

they dental, in joints, or in any other tissues.

 

Pregnancy

In pregnancy or the suspicion of pregnancy, discontinuation of sauna use is

recommended. Finnish women use traditional saunas that don't heat the body as

deeply as an infrared sauna for only six to twelve minutes and reportedly leave

at that time due to perceived discomfort. Their usage of traditional saunas at

this low level of intensity is not linked to birth defects. Infrared sauna use

may be two to three times more intense due to deep tissue penetration, and

comparatively shorter two to six minute sessions hardly seem worth any minimal

risk they may present.

 

Surgical Implants

Metal pins, rods, artificial joints, or any other surgical implants generally

reflect infrared rays and are not heated by an infrared heat system.

Nevertheless, a person should consult his or her surgeon before receiving such

therapy. Certainly infrared therapy must be discontinued if a person experiences

pain near any implants.

 

Silicone

Silicone does absorb infrared energy. Infrared rays may warm implanted silicone

or silicone prostheses for nose or ear replacement. Since silicone melts at over

200 degrees Celsius, it should not be adversely affected by an infrared heat

system, however. It is still advised that a person checks with his or her

surgeon to be certain.

 

Menstruation

Heating of the low-back area of women during the menstrual period may

temporarily increase menstrual flow. Once a woman is aware that this is

occurring, she can choose to allow herself to experience this short-term effect

without worry, or she may simply avoid using an infrared heat source at that

time in her cycle.

 

Hemorrhage

Hemophiliacs and anyone predisposed to hemorrhage should avoid infrared usage or

any type of heating that would induce vasodilatation that can lead to the

tendency to bleed.

 

Worsened Condition

Should any condition worsen with the use of an infrared heat system, the use of

the system should be discontinued.

 

Pain

Pain should not be experienced when using an infrared heat system. If one does,

the use of radiant heat is clearly inappropriate for the person at that time.

 

 

In it's Wellness Letter, October 1990, the University of California Berkeley

reported, " the 1980's was the decade of high-impact aerobics classes and

high-mileage training. Yet there was something elitist about the way exercise

was prescribed: only strenuous workouts would do, you had to raise your heart

rate to between X and Y, and the only way to go was to " go for the burn. " Such

strictures insured that most 'real' exercisers were relatively young and in good

shape to begin with. Many Americans got caught up in the fitness boom, but

probably just as many fell by the wayside. As we've reported, recent research

shows that you don't have to run marathons to become fit - that burning just

1,000 calories a week...is enough. Anything goes, as long as it burns these

calories. "

 

Guyton's Textbook of Medical Physiology reports that producing one gram of sweat

requires 0.586 kcal. The JAMA citation above goes on to state " A moderately

conditioned person can easily sweat off 500 grams in a sauna, consuming nearly

300 kcal - the equivalent of running two to three miles. A heat-conditioned

person can easily sweat off 600 to 800 kcal with no adverse effect. While the

weight of water loss can be regained by rehydration, the calories consumed will

not be. " Since an infrared sauna helps generate two to three times the sweat

produced in a conventional hot-air sauna, the implications for increased caloric

consumption are quite impressive. Assuming one takes a sauna for 30 minutes,

some interesting comparisons can be drawn. Two of the highest calorie output

exercises are rowing and running marathons. Peak output on a rowing machine or

during a marathon burns about 600 calories in 30 minutes. An infrared sauna may

better this up to 250% by burning 900-2400 calories in the same period of time.

It might in a single session simulate the consumption of energy equal to that

expended in a six- to nine-mile run.

 

Far Infrared Therapy can, therefore, play a pivotal role in both weight control

and cardiovascular conditioning. It is valuable for those who do not or cannot

exercise, but who want an effective weight control and fitness maintenance

program.

Coronary Artery Disease, Arteriosclerosis, and Hypertension

Finnish researchers, reporting the regular use of conventional saunas, state

that " there is abundant evidence to suggest that blood vessels of regular

sauna-goers remain elastic and pliable longer due to the regular dilation and

contraction " of blood vessels induced by sauna use.

 

In 1989, German medical researchers reported that a single whole-body session of

infrared-induced hyperthermia lasting over one hour had only beneficial effects

on subjects with State I and II essential hypertension. Each subject experienced

a rise in core body temperature to a maximum level of 35.5 degrees Celsius

(100.5 Fahrenheit). All of the subjects in one experiment had significant

decreases in arterial, venous, and mean blood pressure that lasted for at least

24 hours and linked, according to researchers, to a persistent peripheral

dilation effect. An improvement in plasma viscosity was also noted.

 

Another group of similar hypertensive patients was also studied under the same

conditions of hyperthermia, with an eye toward more carefully evaluating the

circulatory system effects induced by this type of whole-body heating. During

each infrared session, there was a significant decrease of blood pressure,

cardiac ejection resistance, and total peripheral resistance in every subject.

There was also a significant increase of the subjects' heart rates, stroke

volumes, cardiac outputs, and ejection fractions. The researchers cite these

last three effects as evidence that the stimulation of the heart during

infrared-induced hyperthermia is well compensated, while the prior list of

effects show clear detail of the microcirculatory changes leading to the desired

result of a lowering blood pressure.

Environmental Toxin Overload

Each day, we are exposed to numerous chemicals and toxins from the environment,

which deposit in our tissues and cells. They come from the air around us, the

water we use to drink and bathe, the food we eat, the soil in which our food is

grown, and the household products we use. Toxic overload has been implicated in

many health conditions, from Fibrocystic Breast Disease (FBD) in women to

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in children. Physical symptoms

of overload include: fatigue, headache, joint or muscle pain, frequent colds and

flus, allergies, hormonal imbalance, chemical sensitivity, sinus congestion,

psoriasis and other skin conditions, loss of dexterity, insomnia, and more.

Psychological symptoms include poor concentration, memory loss, mood changes,

mental confusion, and changes in behavior.

 

Heavy metals impair the immune system and neurological function. Organic

solvents and pesticides increase our risk of certain cancers. Carbon monoxide

pollution is increasing with more vehicles on the road, affecting our nervous,

immune, and respiratory systems. Numerous other chemicals have also been shown

to injure our bodies, building up in our tissues and causing organ dysfunction.

Treating the damage alone cannot stop the process; we must also address the

cause, specifically this toxic residue in our tissues.

 

It is to this end that Far Infrared Therapy is effective. By its direct heating

effects on the tissues, Far Infrared Therapy mobilizes toxins from fat cells and

increases circulation, thus aiding in elimination of these toxins through

perspiration. 30-50% of the population does not adequately or effectively

mobilize and eliminate the toxins in their bodies that they are exposed to each

day. Normal sweat is 97-99% water; sweat induced by Far Infrared Therapy is only

80-85% water. The rest is composed of environmental toxins that are being

mobilized, some heavy metals, urea, cholesterol, and lactic acid. Removal of

such toxic residues from the body provides increased and improved cellular

function, thus enhancing overall health and well-being.

 

 

Gettingwell- / Vitamins, Herbs, Aminos, etc.

 

To , e-mail to: Gettingwell-

Or, go to our group site: Gettingwell

 

 

 

 

Send Flowers for Valentine's Day