Fir Sauna and metal excretion

[Guest guest]

Hey listmates!!  I  have an infrared sauna....not exactly sure why we got it. I

know that is helps with detoxing toxins and what not, but I'm not exactly sure

if it is supposed to help with metal excretion. I know when you read on the

websites that are selling the saunas it says it does, but I would really like an

unbiased opinion. Anyone out there using one as well and seeing positive

results??

Thanks!!!!

Kate

[Guest guest]

--- Kate Dorn <katedorn@...> wrote:

> I have an infrared sauna....

> know that is helps with detoxing toxins and what not, but I'm not

> exactly sure if it is supposed to help with metal excretion.

Kate,

These particular citations below are study abstracts and excerpts

from abstracts that pertain to metal excretion via sweat. There are

others that relate to toxic chemical excretion. Emphasis was added.

Whether your sauna will be beneficial is another question. If it's

built in a reasonably safe & non-toxic manner it could be, if it

isn't, it may not be worth the try.

1. Clinical response to therapeutic agents in poisoning from

mercury vapor.

Ann Clin Lab Sci. 1978 Jul-Aug; 8(4):259-69. Sunderman FW. PMID:

210702

Exposure to mercury vapors for an hour per working day over a period

of 13 years produced in a thermometer manufacturer severe signs and

symptoms of mercury poisoning. Complete disability developed

insidiously over the last six months of employment.

Analyses of the patient's sweat indicated that appreciable amounts

of mercury were excreted by this route. Following the alleviation of

the severe symptoms by BAL, the patient was placed on a regimen of

daily sweats and physio-therapy for a protracted period of several

months.

On this latter regimen, the mercury levels in the urine, blood serum

and sweat were decreased to within the normal ranges of values. The

patient made a complete and uneventful recovery. In patients

encountering psychotic and neurological disorders of undetermined

etiology, consideration should be given to unsuspected or masked

chronic exposure to mercury vapors as a possible cause.

2. The excretion of trace metals in human sweat. Cohn JR and EA

Emmett

ls of Clinical and Laboratory Science, Vol 8, Issue 4, 270-275

The concentrations of zinc, copper, iron, nickel, cadmium, lead,

manganese, sodium and chloride in the sweat of six males and three

females were determined after collections utilizing a total body

washdown technique. From our results, sweat appears to be an

important excretory pathway for zinc and copper.

The mean concentrations of nickel and cadmium in sweat were higher

than those reported for urine; that of lead was similar to urine.

The loss of manganese in sweat is significant.

3. Downtown Medical: A Detoxification Program for WTC Responders, by

E. Root, M. D.

Fire Engineering, June 2003

World Trade Center (WTC) - The first rescue workers started the

program (sauna detox) on September 28, 2002. From the beginning, it

was apparent that the program was causing changes. " One of the men

was in the sauna, and he touched his towel to his skin and it turned

blue. " said Dr. Dahlgren. " His sweat was really blue, a bright blue

color. We cut out a section of the towel and sent it to the

laboratory for analysis, and it came back with very high levels of

manganese and other metals, too. "

The finding had considerable interest for Dr. Dahlgren. " Manganese

is present in structural steel—about three percent of the steel is

manganese, " he said. " So when the Trade Towers came down, they

undoubtedly exposed people to manganese vapor and dust. Manganese

has some interesting characteristics—it causes a disease identical

to Parkinson's that usually ends up appearing anywhere from 5 to 10

years after the exposure. "

4. Trace elements in the sweat of acclimatized persons. Omokhodion

FO, JM.

Department of Preventive and Social Medicine, University College

Hospital, Ibadan, Nigeria.

Clin Chim Acta. 1994 Nov; 231(1):23-8. PMID: 7704945

Sweat samples were collected from the arms of 15 normal, healthy

subjects while they exercised on a cycle ergometer at room

temperature. Samples were analysed for copper, zinc, manganese,

nickel, cadmium and aluminium by atomic absorption

spectrophotometry. Mean sweat levels determined for each element

were as follows: 358.1 micrograms/l for Zn; 486.8 micrograms/l for

Cu; 3.10 micrograms/l for Mn; 1.91 micrograms/l for Cd; 69.9

micrograms/l for Ni; 15.0 micrograms/l for Al

It appears that substantial quantities of trace elements are

excreted in the sweat of those sweating habitually.

5. Industrial exposure to mercury. Dr. Woodhall Stopford

Duke University Medical Center. In J.O. Nriagu, Ed.,

Biogeochemistry of Mercury, Amsterdam Elsevier/North Holland), 1979.

a. " With prolonged or repeated severe exposures (to mercury), such

that removing the patient from further exposure does not result in

improvement in the clinical picture, further intervention to enhance

excretion is called for. By far the earliest known form of therapy,

and possibly still the most effective, is the induction of sweating

by the use of sauna or steam baths. "

b. " Lovejoy et al. 1973* suggested that sweating might be a

reasonable form of therapy when they noted that sweat levels of

mercury were higher than those found in urine of workers in the cell

rooms of a chloralkali plant. As noted, sauna therapy of an

individual with evidence of chronic mercurialism was effective at

inducing a remarkable excretion of mercury via the sweat. "

6. From " Mercury Study Report to Congress, Volume V: Health Effects

of Mercury and Mercury Compounds " , 1997, U.S. Environmental

Protection Agency.

" Excretion of mercury after exposure of elemental mercury vapor may

occur via exhaled air, urine, feces, sweat, and saliva. Excretion

via sweat and saliva are thought to contribute only minimally to

total excretion under normal circumstances. In workers who have

perspired profusely, however, the total amount of mercury excreted

in the sweat during 90 minutes ranged from 50% to 90% of that found

in a 16-hour composite sample of urine (Lovejoy et al. 1974).

* Mercury exposure evaluations and their correlation with urine

mercury excretions. 4. Elimination of mercury by sweating. Lovejoy

HB, Bell ZG Jr, Vizena TR., J Occup Med. 1973 Jul;15(7).

Bob