Peat sauna

History

Peat is a traditional treatment ingredient in Central European spas. It has been used for treatment for hundreds of years and the oldest peat spas were active already in the 17th century. The Finnish version of peat treatment is a peat sauna. Finland is the first country where peat was used in saunas.

The Finnish peat has unique qualities, and it has been researched here more than anywhere else in the world. In the peat sauna bath, a cream like well decomposed black peat bog clay or mud is applied on the skin. This substance can no longer be identified as peat after some 5000 years of moulding.

It turns the skin velvety soft and does the same to hair as it is spread on the scalp.

In the warmth of the sauna, one gets a light feeling and the muscles are relaxed. With the peat treatment, one’s mood is raised stronger than in the common Finnish sauna.

In the peat sauna one is dressed in peat.

When?

The peat sauna is usually experienced best in the morning, after a good night’s rest or after a relaxing afternoon nap.

Sauna bathing is preferably started before 6 pm on weekdays.

Enough time should be reserved for bathing. Before, during and after a sauna bath, plenty of water should be drank to avoid dehydration.

How?

A layer of sedge peat and bog peat is applied on the skin either by the bathers themselves or assisted by the washer.

After being wrapped in peat, one is led to the gentle 50 – 60 degrees warmth of the sauna where about twenty minutes are spent relaxing. The peat is then washed away. A peat sauna is always ended by resting for at least 20 minutes enjoying more water or herbal tea.

For Whom?

Peat sauna is a powerful treatment, only recommended to healthy people. It is suitable as a treatment once or twice a month also to pregnant women or those suffering from insomnia or pains.

For a more intensive impact, one could have a bath on three consecutive days. Weight loss is starting automatically. Those suffering from chronic diseases can also enjoy a peat sauna when recommended by a doctor.

Peat sauna is not suitable if one has open wounds or an infected skin.