Our health committee meetings are held on the 4^th Mondays of the month unless there is a conflict or a holiday. Our next meeting with be September 20, 2025 at 4pm ET.

If you are a former member of the health committee or would like to find an area where you could be involved, please contact me at health@nfbpwc.organd I will put you on my list. The more you can contribute, the easier it makes it for me. I’d love to have you.

Notes from the Chair:

Health Event Information:

Speakers included at this event are our own Marsha Riibner-Cady, Secretary Nermin Ahmad, L3P Chair Nicole Mpouli and more. You can register for the whole event and come when you are able. It all depends on you. Looking forward to seeing you at this healthyevent.Registerat: https://www.nfbpwc.org/event-6312511

From Bindu Cherbeolu, Houston Methodist Hospital, a featured speaker of Health Committee Online event:

Sauna bathing features exposure to high environmental temperatures for brief periods. Infrared saunas are one of the most widely available types. Multiple cultures around the world use heat therapy for its benefits and rejuvenating and recharging qualities referencing the saunas of Finland, Turkish hammams, the sweat lodges enjoyed by American Indian, Russian Banya, and hot springs. “In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) heat therapy can help correct imbalances that lead to physical, mental, and even spiritual pain, Infrared saunas are believed to have several health benefits, including the potential to widen blood vessels and increase blood flow. The idea behind this is that the heat generated by the infrared sauna can cause vasodilation, which is the widening of blood vessels. When blood vessels widen, it can lead to increased blood flow.

However, it's important to note that the extent and speed of this effect can vary from person to person. Some individuals may experience a noticeable increase in blood flow within a few minutes of entering an infrared sauna, while others may take longer. The heat and duration of sauna sessions can also influence the degree of vasodilation and increased blood flow.

Sauna bathing is thought to positively affect vascular disease and mortality risk through various pathways. These include lowering blood pressure; improving the function of the inner layer of blood vessels; reducing oxidative  stress  and  inflammation;  positively influencing the nervous system that controls involuntary bodily functions; altering levels of blood substances that affect vascular risk; causing hormonal changes; improving arterial flexibility, compliance, and wall thickness; and enhancing both cardiorespiratory and overall heart function.

It's advisable to consult with a healthcare professional before using an infrared sauna, especially if you have any underlying medical conditions or concerns about its effects on your cardiovascular system. Additionally, be sure to follow recommended safety guidelines when using saunas to avoid any potential risks or adverse reactions.

Infrared saunas, recognized for brief high-temperature exposures, are part of a global tradition of heat therapy, valued for health and rejuvenation. This therapy is embraced in various forms across various cultures like hot spring baths, Russian Banya, Finnish saunas, Turkish hammams, and also used in Traditional Chinese Medicine to alleviate physical, mental, and spiritual discomfort.

Infrared saunas are thought to offer health benefits, primarily by causing vasodilation - the expansion of blood vessels due to heat exposure. This process can enhance blood circulation. It's key to recognize, though, that individuals may respond differently to this effect. While some might quickly notice increased blood flow after entering an infrared sauna, others may have a slower response. The temperature and length of sauna sessions are also factors that can affect how much and how quickly blood vessels widen and blood flow increases. There are other potential beneficial mechanisms as well for overall cardiovascular health which include decreasing oxidative stress and inflammation, autonomic regulation, and better arterial compliance.

However, it's essential to consult healthcare professionals before sauna use, especially for those with health concerns, and to adhere to safety guidelines.

In sauna bathing, unlike during physical exercise, there is no active movement or engagement of your muscles. This contrasts with physical activities where muscle movement plays a key role in the body's response.

From a physiological standpoint, infrared saunas and exercise like taking a walk can have some similar effects on the body, but they work in different ways and have distinct benefits.

Sweating: Both infrared saunas and exercise can make you sweat. Sweating is the body's way of cooling down and getting rid of toxins. In this regard, they are somewhat similar.

Heart Rate: Exercise significantly increases your heart rate, while infrared saunas typically do not raise your heart rate as much. Exercise is a cardiovascular activity that strengthens the heart and improves overall fitness.

Calorie Burn: Exercise, especially moderate to intense forms like walking, burns calories, which can help with weight management. Infrared saunas may increase calorie expenditure to some extent due to the heat, but it's not a substitute for exercise in terms of calorie burning.

Muscle Engagement: Exercise involves the use of muscles and can lead to muscle strengthening and toning. Infrared saunas do not provide this benefit.

Endorphin Release: Exercise is known to release endorphins, which are natural mood lifters. Infrared saunas may also promote relaxation and a sense of well-being, but they don't trigger the same level of endorphin release as exercise.

Detoxification: Both exercise and sweating in an infrared sauna can help with detoxification by flushing out toxins through the skin. However, the mechanisms differ.

In summary, while both infrared saunas and exercise can have positive effects on the body, they serve different purposes. Exercise is crucial for cardiovascular health, muscle strength, and weight management, while infrared saunas are often used for relaxation, stress relief, and detoxification. It's important to note that individual responses may vary, and incorporating both into a wellness routine can provide comprehensive benefits. Always consult with a healthcare professional before making significant changes to your health regimen.

Well-designed RCTs with long-term follow-up will still be needed to confirm whether the observed associations reflect a true causal effect of frequent sauna bathing on these health conditions, and more studies are warranted to find whether regular sauna bathing could produce longer-term changes in cardiovascular health.

These findings suggest the physiological effects of infrared sauna bathing are underpinned by thermoregulatory-induced responses, more so than exercise-mimetic cardiorespiratory or cardiovascular activations.

From a physiological standpoint, saunas and exercise like taking a walk do have some similarities in their effects on the body, but they are not identical.

1. Increased Heart Rate: Both saunas and exercise can increase your heart rate. In a sauna, the heat causes your heart rate to rise as your body attempts to cool itself down. During exercise, your heart rate naturally increases as you engage in physical activity.

2. Sweating: Saunas induce sweating, which can help in detoxification and cooling the body. Exercise also causes sweating as the body tries to regulate its temperature.

3. Improved Circulation: Both saunas and exercise can improve blood circulation. Saunas cause blood vessels to dilate, increasing blood flow, while exercise enhances circulation through physical activity.

4. Stress Reduction: Saunas are known for their relaxing effect, reducing stress and promoting a sense of well-being. Exercise can also reduce stress and improve mood through the release of endorphins.

5. Detoxification: Saunas are often associated with detoxification benefits, as sweating helps eliminate some toxins. Exercise can also aid in the removal of waste products from the body through increased circulation.

However, there are significant differences:

1. Muscle Engagement: Exercise involves physical activity that engages muscles, leading to strength and endurance gains. Saunas do not provide the same muscular benefits.

2. Calorie Burn: Exercise burns calories, helping with weight management, while saunas primarily cause water weight loss through sweating, which is temporary.

3. Aerobic Fitness: Exercise, especially activities like walking, improves aerobic fitness, while saunas do not provide the same cardiovascular conditioning.

4. Hydration: Saunas can lead to dehydration due to excessive sweating, whereas exercise encourages water intake to replace lost fluids.

In summary, while saunas and exercise share some physiological responses, they are distinct in their effects on the body. Exercise offers a broader range of health benefits, including improved fitness, while saunas are primarily used for relaxation and temporary detoxification through sweating. It's important to consult with a healthcare professional before incorporating either into your routine, especially if you have any underlying health conditions.

• Heart Rate Increase: Both saunas and walking can raise heart rate, but exercise does so more significantly due to physical exertion.

• Sweating: Saunas and exercise both induce sweating for body temperature regulation.

• Circulation: Both improve blood circulation, with saunas causing vasodilation and exercise enhancing it through movement.

• Stress Reduction: Exercise is known to release endorphins, which are natural mood lifters. Infrared saunas may also promote relaxation and a sense of well-being, but they don't trigger the same level of endorphin release as exercise.

• Detoxification: Both methods aid detoxification via sweating, but the mechanisms are different.

• Muscle Engagement: Exercise strengthens and tones muscles, an effect not provided by saunas.

• Calorie Burn: Walking burns more calories than saunas, which mainly induce water weight loss. Infrared saunas may increase calorie expenditure to some extent due to the heat, but it's not a substitute for exercise in terms of calorie burning.

• Overall Fitness: Exercise offers aerobic fitness benefits, unlike saunas.

In summary, while saunas and walking share some physiological effects like increased heart rate and sweating, they differ in key areas. To truly understand the impact of regular sauna bathing on health conditions and long-term cardiovascular health, well-designed randomized controlled trials (RCTs) are warranted.

Food for Thought:

Raise your hand if you know someone who has been diagnosed with cancer. Raise your hand if you know someone that’s had a heart attack, stroke or heart disease. Raise your hand if you know anyone that’s been involved in any kind of accident. I guarantee every reader raised their hand at least once and unfortunately, many of us just raised our hand three times.

News flash, bad things happen to good people.

The American Cancer Society says that 1 out of 3 women will be diagnosed with cancer. The American Heart Association says that heart attacks and strokes cause 1 out of 3 deaths in the US. The National Safety Council says that there are approximately 5400 disabling accidents every hour.

I know! The stars are frightening, and it leaves us feeling vulnerable. And it should prompt the question “What’s going on?”. Is it our food? Yes. Is it hereditary? Yes. Is it our environment, stress, inactivity? Yes, yes and yes.

It’s no surprise that Gallup News reported that Americans borrowed an estimated $74 billion for healthcare expenses last year (and this is one of the moremodestestimates).So,isour healthcare industry broken? Possibly.

There are two costs that we face when dealing with any major accident or illness. The first is direct costs. These costs are covered by your major medical provider. Things like hospital charges and doctors’ bills. The second is indirect cost. These are expenses that your major medical insurance will not cover because they simply weren’t designed to. Things like lost income, mortgage, car payments, cell phones, utilities and basic living expenses. We can also include insurance limitations like deductibles, copayments, ambulances and other uncovered expenses.

When we get sick or hurt, our balance of life is disrupted. This thing that we all work so hard to perfect can be instantly (or in some cases slowly) ruined. You want to know how it happens? The sickness or accident happens. You can’t work as much, if at all. Income goes down, expenses go up, and that leaves most people in a really tough situation. When you should be somewhere focusing on healing- you’re scrambling to find extra funds just to make ends meet. So, some people use their retirement funds. Many will sell their personal assets and others are forced to start Go Fund Me accounts. None of these are great options, for obvious reasons.

Let’s take a moment and consider your situation. You’ve got major medical insurance. Fantastic. That pays hospitals and doctors. Most of you have a life insurance policy. Spectacular, but your love ones will see this money after you die. Disability insurance doesn’t last forever, and it typically pays about 60% of what you need to survive. What’s missing for most working-class Americans is a benefit that will assist with living expenses, WHILE YOU ARE ALIVE and on the road to recovery. Some people call it supplemental insurance, but I like to call it LIVING INSURANCE and it’s worth looking into.

Juanita Curtis, Licensed Insurance Producer Globe Life, Family Heritage Division

juanita.globelife@gmail.com 919-584-7091

Healthy Thinking of the Month:

Health Awareness Dates:

September is –

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Month; Atrial Fibrillation Month; Mold Awareness Month; National Alcohol & Drug Addiction Recovery Month; National Be A Food Hero Month; National Cholesterol

Education Month; National DNA, Geonomics & Stem Cell Education Month; National Head Lice Prevention Month; National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month

(Gov't) ; National Service Dog Month; National Skin Care Awareness Month; September Is Healthy Aging Month; Sports and Home Eye Health & Safety Month; World Alzheimer's Month

Blood Cancer Awareness Month - https://bloodcancermonth.org/

Childhood Cancer Awareness Month - https://childrenscancer.org/childhood-cancer-awareness-month/

Cholesterol Education Month - https://tinyurl.com/57k7mek7

Gynecology Cancer Awareness Month - https://histio.org/get-involved/raise-awareness/

Histiocytosis Awareness Month - https://www.hydroassoc.org/

National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month - https://wicworks.fns.usda.gov/topic/health-observances/national-childhood-obesity-awareness-month

National Suicide Prevention Month - https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/promote-national-suicide-prevention-month/

Pediatric Cancer Awareness Month - https://bearnecessities.org/

Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome Awareness Month - https://www.pcosaa.org/

Self-Care Awareness Month - https://www.theriverbendhouse.com/

Other Articles Related to the Theme of Young BPW:

We Don't Actually Know Anything About Video Games - The biggest problem with research on video games. - https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/video-game-health/202507/we-dont-actually-know-anything-about-video-games

A surprising connection for Gen Z: mental health and retirement benefits - https://tinyurl.com/3xtxve2nv

Social media still pushing suicide-related content to teens despite new UK safety laws - https://tinyurl.com/3bhvbemk

If you are a former member of the health committee or would like to find an area where you could be involved, please contact me at health@nfbpwc.org and I will put you on my list. The more you can contribute, the easier it makes it for me. I’d love to have you.

We will meet on the 3^rd or 4^th Monday of the month unless there are any conflicts or holiday forthcoming. Next meeting is September 20, 2025.

Health:

During the UN General Assembly High-level week 2025, there will be a “High-level Meeting on the Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases and the Promotion of Mental Health and Well-Being” on September 25^th from 10am to 6pm This is available for viewing via UN WebTV https://webtv.un.org/en/schedule