Heat Up to Heal Up From COVID/mRNA Shots?
Dry/Wet Sauna or Just a Hot Bath Can Increase Autophagy (Removes Spike Protein), Reverse Vascular Disease, Rebalance Hormones and the Autonomic Nervous System, Lower Inflammation and Improve Immunity
The FLCCC recommends stimulating autophagy to help clear out the spike protein.
Fasting and supplements like resveratrol and spermidine are usually mentioned, but in my extended 2.5 hour interview with Dr Mobeen Syed for the free Long COVID Reset Summit he mentioned that any cellular stress can trigger autophagy via stimulating heat shock proteins (HSPs) - for example heat itself, and counterintuitively cold (HSPs are poorly named).
I often recommend patients consider a cold plunge for its many psychological and physiological benefits in helping minimize symptoms and heal from long haul COVID and vaccine injuries - in fact I have personal experience with the dramatic effect it had on my own Long Haul symptoms - resolving lingering insomnia, anxiety and tachycardia within a week or so of starting.
On the plus side you only need a couple minutes at the lowest temps, but ice baths are extremely uncomfortable and a bit inconvenient to set up, especially at lower temperatures since they usually require some ice be added to the cold water coming from your tap (or setting up a DIY cold plunge unit like a chest freezer in your garage).
On the other hand a hot bath is far easier and at least initially far more enjoyable.
You do need to stay in longer for the maximum benefit - around 15 - 20 minutes - and it can get more uncomfortable towards the end, but still nothing approaching the acute discomfort of a cold plunge in freezing water.
So as long as there are no contraindications (see end of post, and discuss with your clinician) I usually recommend (obviously this is not medical advice to you) that my patients consider trying heat therapy for Long COVID and Vaccine injuries, even though in some histaminergic presentations, like Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS), it might worsen some of the symptoms.
But even if you suspect there is an element of MCAS it still may be worth a try, since in its simplest form it’s as easy as taking a bath and while it might worsen some histamine related symptoms. it might not, and it might dramatically improve other symptoms like brain fog and insomnia.
History and Types of Heat Therapies Around the World
A variety of heat therapies in the form of hot air or hot water immersion have been used for centuries as a combination of traditional preventive medicine and cultural practice in many countries around the world.
Saunas are heated enclosures and can be either wet or dry depending on the level of moisture.
Hot water immersion was traditionally done in hot springs, but can be replicated in a hot tub or even just a regular bathtub at home.
In Finland dry sauna therapy is an integral part of the culture. Saunas are found in almost every Finnish home and are considered a social activity that brings families and communities together. The Finns believe regular use of dry saunas improves circulation, relieves muscle tension, and promotes relaxation.
In Japan, heat therapies run the gamut from hot springs, to steam saunas to hot sand “baths”. The Japanese believe saunas have therapeutic properties for the skin and respiratory system as well as providing stress reduction and improved sleep.
In Russia saunas are often located near natural hot springs and cold rivers, with individuals alternating between the hot sauna and a cold plunge. Russians believe this practice can stimulate blood circulation, promote detoxification, improve the immune system and relieve symptoms of depression and anxiety.
Sauna therapy has been used by many Native American cultures for centuries as a form of purification and spiritual practice. Sweat lodges involve sitting in a tent-like structure filled with steam produced by pouring water over heated stones. Sweat lodges are believed to purify the body, mind, and spirit and are often used in healing ceremonies and rites of passage (and more recently has been used by some army vets to decompress and deal with PTSD.
In Turkey, sauna therapy involves sitting in a heated room and being scrubbed and massaged by a trained professional. Turkish hammam bathing is believed to promote relaxation, detoxification, and skin health.
So heat therapy is widespread and historically used by diverse cultures around the world for it’s purported benefits, but what does science tell us?
The Evidentiary Base For Heat Therapies
Heat therapies like sauna and hot water immersion have been studied for years and there is evidence that shows heat therapy reduces vascular disease and mortality risk, boosts the immune system (sauna baths reduce susceptibility to common colds), benefits lung conditions like asthma, relieves pain in musculoskeletal disorders like arthritis and fibromyalgia, and generally induces feelings of relaxation and well-being.
Heat therapies have been shown to work by these mechanisms:
1. reducing systemic blood pressure,
2. improving endothelial (the lining of the blood vessels) function, improving arterial wall stiffness, arterial compliance (ability to stretch), and intima media (innermost layers of the arterial wall) thickness,
3. reducing oxidative stress and inflammation,
4. beneficially modulating the autonomic nervous system,
5. positively altering levels of circulating vascular risk factors such as natriuretic peptides, total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, and triglycerides,
6. inducing beneficial hormonal changes like increased growth hormone, and β-endorphins that reduce pain,
7. improving glucose metabolism and lowering insulin resistance
8. decreasing circulating levels of inflammatory markers such as high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP), fibrinogen (a clotting factor), and leukocytes (white blood cells),
9. reducing lung congestion, and improving overall lung function.
All of these pathways are involved in the pathophysiology of Long COVID and Vaccine injuries - AKA spike protein disorders - which can be understood as some combination of vascular disease evidenced by systemic vascular inflammation and clotting, autonomic nervous system dysfunction, histamine liberation and intolerance, and immune dysfunction evidenced by tissue inflammation, autoimmunity and viral persistence.
Adverse Effects of Heat Therapies & Relative Contraindications
Heat therapies are generally safe for most people, but in the past based on scanty anecdotal evidence of sudden deaths (likely partly due to alcohol use) people with cardiovascular conditions were discouraged from having sauna baths because the hot and humid environment might impose undue stress on the cardiovascular system - similar to strenuous exercise.
However, studies suggest sauna bathing is safe and even beneficial for patients with stable cardiovascular disease.
It has been reported that heat therapy in heart failure patients leads to overall improvement in symptoms and specifically leads to: increased oxygen consumption and cardiac output, and reduced systolic blood pressure, peripheral vascular resistance and ventricular arrhythmias.
But it’s thought that heat therapy could be harmful in some patients with unstable coronary artery disease, a recent heart attack, uncontrolled hypertension, acute or decompensated heart failure and severe aortic stenosis.
People with orthostatic hypotension (does happen in some long haul and vax injury cases) or severe cardiac valvular disease should be careful during any heat therapy because of possible sudden decreases in blood pressure, which may even occur after a sauna session as your physiology adjusts back to normal temperatures, or when switching straight from heat to a cold therapies.
It wouldn’t be a good idea to utilize heat therapies if you already feel overheated - eg from sunstroke or a high fever, though limited use during chills in an acute infection could be helpful and certainly seems so in my personal experience.
And finally combining heat therapy with alcohol increases the risk of negative side effects like hypotension, cardiac complications, and even trauma - eg slips, falls, and burns.
The Upshot
Heat therapy like a hot bath or sauna could be very helpful in reversing vascular disease and injury due to spike protein, both for Long COVID and vaccine injuries.
In some people it might briefly worsen some histamine related symptoms and others may need to be careful or avoid it entirely due to severe or unstable cardiovascular disease.
Let me know here or on Twitter (@drsyedhaider) if you’ve used heat therapy to deal with spike protein related symptoms or for anxiety, insomnia or anything else.