You may have enjoyed steam rooms in many locations, from your local fitness center to hotels and at friends’ homes, but the warm and humid environment that induces relaxation can also be harmful. Using a steam room improperly or sitting in a steam room that has been tended to poorly can increase your risk of developing health problems. Being aware of potential dangers before you step into another steam room will help you stay as safe as possible.
Heat Cramps and Heat Exhaustion
A hot and humid environment can cause a body’s temperature to elevate to a dangerous level. Heat cramps, which include signs and symptoms such as profuse sweating, thirst, fatigue and muscle cramping, are typically the first sign that you should get out of the heat, drink some cool beverages or take a cool shower, according to the Mayo Clinic. If you don’t act on those signs and symptoms, your condition may escalate to heat exhaustion and have signs and symptoms such as headaches, lightheadedness or dizziness, nausea, muscle cramping and skin that feels moist and cool. Typically, you can remedy heat exhaustion with the same methods used to treat heat cramps, says the Mayo Clinic.
Heatstroke
Heatstroke, a potentially fatal condition that occurs when body temperature reaches or exceeds 104 degrees Fahrenheit, is likely to happen if heat cramps and heat exhaustion aren’t treated soon, says the Mayo Clinic. Besides a high body temperature, signs and symptoms of heatstroke may include lack of sweating, rapid breathing, flushed skin, a rapid heart rate and strong pulse, headache, muscle cramping or weakness and neurological symptoms such as seizures, hallucinations, loss of consciousness and coma, according to the Mayo Clinic. Heatstroke should be treated as an emergency. To reduce your body temperature, a physician may immerse your body in cold water, spray cool mist on your body and fan your skin or pack your body in ice and cooling blankets, says the Mayo Clinic.
Infections
Because bacteria thrive in warm, wet environments, you are more susceptible to infections sitting in a steam room. For example, a 2008 study published in Emerging Infectious Diseases linked steam bathing to an outbreak of a potent staphylococci bacteria known as MRSA. This infection ranges from minor, with signs such as boils and pimples, to serious, causing blood infections or leading to conditions such as pneumonia, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Regular cleaning of the steam room seating area with a diluted bleach solution helps to reduce risks of infection, as does using a personal towel as a barrier between your body and communal seating areas, says the California Department of Health Services Division of Communicable Disease Control.
Pregnancy Risks
High temperatures in steam rooms endanger growing babies, according to the March of Dimes. If you are pregnant and your body reaches a temperature higher than 102.2 degrees Fahrenheit for over 10 minutes, your blood pressure may fall and cause less oxygen and nutrition to reach your baby, says the March of Dimes. Another risk associated with a high body temperature during pregnancy is birth defects. As a result, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends never using a steam room during pregnancy. If you choose to use a steam room, check the thermometer before you enter and check for signs that your body may be overheating, including feeling too hot, clammy, dizzy faint, chilled, thirsty and nauseated, says the March of Dimes.
References
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: MRSA
- Mayo Clinic: Heat Stroke
- March of Dimes: Are Hot Tubs, Saunas and Steam Rooms Safe During Pregnancy?
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Molecular Epidemiology of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus, Rural Southwestern Alaska
- California Department of Health Services Division of Communicable Disease Control: Using Towels and Soap in Steam Baths Could Reduce Infection
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