A new study, published online in the journal Age and Ageing, found a strikingly large protective effect for regular sauna bathing. Researchers found that men who regularly used the sauna were far less likely to develop dementia or Alzheimer’s disease. Compared to men who went to the sauna once per week or less, men who bathed in the sauna 2-3 times per week were 22% less likely to develop dementia and 20% less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease. Men who frequented the sauna 4-7 times a week were 66% less likely to develop dementia and 65% less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease. Put another way, those who went to the sauna only once per week were three times as likely to develop dementia or Alzheimer’s disease than those who went almost every day.