What Is EMF, and Why Does Low-EMF Design Matters in an Infrared Sauna
If you’ve spent any time researching infrared saunas, you’ve probably come across the term “EMF” and wondered whether you should care about it. Maybe you saw a number on a spec sheet and thought, “Is that good? Bad? Should I be worried?” Fair question. And honestly, I think the answer is more interesting than most companies make it sound.
So let’s talk about what EMF actually is, why it shows up in saunas, and why some manufacturers take it seriously while others just slap the words “low EMF” on a product page and call it a day.
EMF: The Basics Without the Textbook
EMF stands for electromagnetic field. That’s it. Whenever electricity flows through a wire, it creates an invisible field of energy around it. Your phone does it. Your blender does it. The lamp on your nightstand does it. EMF is not some exotic substance that only shows up in saunas. It is literally everywhere electricity exists.
Now, there are different types of electromagnetic fields. The ones we’re talking about in saunas are extremely low frequency, or “ELF”, fields. These are non-ionizing, meaning they don’t carry enough energy to break chemical bonds or damage DNA the way something like an X-ray can (Hardell & Sage, 2008). That’s an important distinction, because the conversation about EMF sometimes gets lumped together with radiation in a way that isn’t accurate.
But “non-ionizing” doesn’t mean “irrelevant.” There’s a growing body of research looking at whether chronic, close-range exposure to fields might affect biological systems in subtler ways. Some studies suggest possible effects on cellular stress responses and calcium signaling pathways (Pall, 2013). The science isn’t fully settled, and I’m always careful to say that. But the conversation is worth having, especially when you’re sitting inside an electrical device for 30 to 45 minutes at a time, multiple days a week.
Why EMF Shows Up in Infrared Saunas
Here’s the thing people don’t always think about. An infrared sauna is, at its core, an electrical heating system built into a wooden box. The heaters need current. The wiring carries current. And wherever current flows, EMF follows.
That’s not a design flaw. It’s just how physics works. Nothing new.
The real question is what a manufacturer does about it. Because the amount of EMF a sauna produces depends on a bunch of engineering decisions. How are the heaters wired? Where are the electrical components placed relative to where you’re sitting? Is there any shielding? Are the wires twisted-pair or just run straight? These are choices that affect your exposure in a measurable way.
And this is where I see a lot of companies cut corners. Some advertise “low EMF” but never publish actual readings. Others test at distances that don’t reflect where your body actually is during a session. If a company tested their heater panels from three feet away but you’re leaning against them during your session, that number doesn’t tell you much. And those companies always say something like, “Don’t worry about it!” Or, and I love this one, “So, High Tech Health did some clever wiring, or something, but it doesn’t really matter.” Hahaha!
So What Counts as “Low”?
This is where it gets practical, and where most sauna companies only tell you half the story.
When people talk about EMF, they usually mean magnetic fields, measured in milligauss (mG). That’s the number you’ll see on most spec sheets, and it’s important. But electromagnetic fields actually have two components: magnetic fields and electric fields. Magnetic fields come from current flow. Electric fields come from voltage, and they exist any time a wire is energized, even if nothing is actively drawing power.
Most sauna companies only address the magnetic side. Some do it well, some don’t. But almost nobody talks about electric fields, measured in volts per meter (V/m). And here’s why that matters: you’re sitting inches away from energized wiring and heater panels for the duration of your session. If a manufacturer hasn’t addressed electric field exposure, you’re getting half a solution at best.
To put the magnetic side in context, the average American home has background levels between 0.5 and 4 mG depending on proximity to appliances and wiring (NIEHS, 2002). Some international guidelines suggest keeping sustained exposure below 2 to 3 mG, though recommendations vary by organization.
High Tech Health’s saunas measure at 0.36 milligauss for magnetic fields. That’s lower than what most people experience sitting in their living room. But what makes their approach genuinely different is that they also mitigate electric fields through shielding and grounding techniques built into the heater and wiring design. That’s not standard in this industry. Most brands don’t even mention electric fields, let alone engineer for them.
Both numbers come from third-party testing, not an in-house spec sheet that nobody can verify. I bring that up because in my experience working with patients, the companies willing to invite outside verification are usually the ones who actually have something worth verifying.
Why I Think It Matters (Even If You’re Not Worried About EMF)
I’ll be honest with you. When a patient asks me whether EMF in saunas is dangerous, I don’t say yes. I also don’t say “don’t worry about it.” What I say is this: if you’re using a sauna because you care about your health, it makes sense to choose one that was built with the same level of care.
Think about it this way. You probably don’t buy produce drenched in pesticides if you have a cleaner option at the same price. Not because you think one apple will hurt you, but because reducing unnecessary exposures is just a reasonable approach to long-term health. Same principle applies here.
A lot of my patients use infrared sauna therapy as part of a broader recovery or wellness plan. Some deal with chronic pain. Some are working through Lyme recovery. Some just want better sleep and less stiffness in the morning. Whatever the reason, they’re choosing to spend real time in this thing. Making sure the electrical environment is clean just seems like common sense.
What Actually Goes Into Low-EMF Design
This part is nerdy, but I think you’ll appreciate it.
Building a genuinely low-EMF sauna isn’t about sticking a piece of shielding foil behind a heater and moving on. It requires thinking about the entire system. The heater construction, the wiring runs, the power supply, the placement of every component relative to where a human body sits. It’s a whole-system engineering problem.
At High Tech Health, the approach starts at the heater level. The heating elements are designed to cancel out opposing fields, which is a technique borrowed from electrical engineering. The wiring uses configurations that minimize field propagation. And the overall layout of the sauna is planned so that the strongest field sources are positioned away from the user.
That’s different from what you see in a lot of imported saunas where heaters and wiring are installed for cost efficiency, not field management. I’ve had patients bring me spec sheets from other brands, and sometimes the EMF readings are five, ten, even twenty times higher. At that point you’re not really comparing the same category of product.
The Bigger Picture
I don’t think EMF should be the only reason you choose a sauna. Heater quality, wood selection, temperature range, session comfort, and build longevity all matter too. But EMF is one of those details that separates a company that’s thinking about your experience from one that’s just assembling parts.
And honestly? In my clinic, I’ve found that the people who ask about EMF are usually the same people who ask good questions about everything. They read labels. They want to understand what they’re putting in and around their bodies. That’s not paranoia. That’s just being a thoughtful consumer.
If you’re in that camp, look for third-party verified EMF readings taken at actual user distance. Look for companies that explain their engineering choices rather than just claiming a result. And don’t be afraid to ask questions. A manufacturer confident in their design will have no problem answering them.
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References
- Hardell, L., & Sage, C. (2008). Biological effects from electromagnetic field exposure and public exposure standards. Biomedicine & Pharmacotherapy, 62(2), 104-109.
- National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS). (2002). EMF: Electric and Magnetic Fields Associated with the Use of Electric Power. NIH Publication No. 02-4493.
- Pall, M. L. (2013). Electromagnetic fields act via activation of voltage-gated calcium channels to produce beneficial or adverse effects. Journal of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, 17(8), 958-965.
