Five Integrative Therapies for Healthy Aging

Improving Healthspan with Intermittent Thermal Stress

Many people are aware of the benefits of reducing chronic stress, but most people don’t know that there’s actually a good type of stress, said Rhonda Patrick, PhD, at the Institute for Functional Medicine (IFM) Annual International Conference (AIC) in Orlando, Florida.

Often referred to as "new stress," intermittent exposure to this form of stress can increase health outcomes and promote longevity, according to Patrick, a published scientist and health educator who studies systems biology and various non-pharmacological interventions.

In her presentation, Patrick discussed an integrative intervention growing in popularity that involves exposure to intermittent stressors, specifically thermal stress, through saunas and cold exposure.

Whether it was fasting due to food scarcity, intense physical activity to catch prey, or digestion of phytochemicals from plants consumed, “throughout human evolution, we have been exposed to intermittent types of challenges,” said Patrick. “These intermittent challenges, we have adapted to them, and we have genetic pathways that are meant to be turned on through them.”

Commonly called stress response pathways, Patrick explained that when these genetic pathways are turned on, various genes are activated. She said many of the activated genes then trigger beneficial anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects that promote repair processes.

“There's a lot of crosstalk between these genetic pathways,” said Patrick. “So, for example, the phytochemicals can activate the same pathways that food scarcity and physical activity activate.” And, Patrick explained, the same goes for thermal stress.

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