8 Matching Annotations
  1. Apr 2026
    1. Saunas Lower Your Heart Rate More Than Exercise
      • Nighttime Heart Rate Reduction: Research indicates that sauna use is associated with a ~3 bpm (approximately 5%) drop in minimum nighttime heart rate.
      • Recovery Signal: This drop is considered a physiological recovery signal, likely driven by increased parasympathetic nervous system activity during the post-sauna cooling phase.
      • Independent of Exercise: The effect remains significant even after controlling for physical activity, suggesting the heart rate drop is not merely a byproduct of the workouts often paired with sauna sessions.
      • Gender Differences: The recovery signal is more pronounced in men than in women.
        • In women, the heart rate benefit is primarily observed during the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle, with little to no effect during the follicular phase.
      • Immediate Impact: The heart rate gap between sauna and non-sauna days begins almost immediately after sleep onset.

      Hacker News Discussion

      • Methodology & Controls: The study's author (kyriakosel) clarified that the research used a within-person design (users as their own controls) and wearable data, though they acknowledged limitations such as not knowing sauna temperature, type (dry vs. infrared), or duration.
      • Sauna vs. Exercise: Users debated whether sauna "cardio" (elevated heart rate due to heat) offers the same long-term health benefits as physical exercise. The consensus leaned toward saunas being a beneficial supplement rather than a replacement for traditional cardio, as saunas do not improve VO2 max or muscle efficiency.
      • The "Silent" Benefit: Many commenters highlighted that the lack of electronic devices and the forced silence in a sauna acts as an informal meditation, which likely contributes to the observed heart rate and stress reduction.
      • Temperature Matters: There was a debate regarding "real" sauna benefits, with several users (particularly those from Nordic backgrounds) arguing that temperatures below 80°C are ineffective and that "heat shock" only truly occurs at higher intensities.
      • Physiological Nuance: Discussion touched on "athlete's heart" (eccentric hypertrophy), with experts noting that while saunas stress the heart, they don't provide the "volume load" or mitochondrial adaptations that come from aerobic movement.
  2. Feb 2022
  3. Jan 2021
    1. Yet another concept of hacking comes from a totally different source. Dave Asprey, a computer security guy, considers himself a biohacker. Basically he hacks into his own body. Here’s what he says: “There are two perspectives on biohacking. One is that biohacking is something you do to biology, outside of yourself; you’re going to change a cell; you’re going change an amoeba and make it glow in the dark. The other perspective on biohacking, the one where I spend my time, is that you can hack your own biology, and you can gain control of systems in your body that you would never have access to.” Asprey — who has received attention online and at conferences — says he has used biohacking and new technical measurement tools and a low-toxic coffee he produces (Bulletproof) to alter his cognition, his weight and his general health. He takes supplements, applies electricity to his brain and his muscles, to improve his body and his mind.

      Quote Dave Asprey

    2. Ron Shigeta runs Berkeley Biolabs, a biohacking site in Berkeley, California, where dozens of would-be biologists gather frequently to hack around. He says biohacking is “a freedom to explore biology, kind of like you would explore good fiction.” As for the hacking part, “hacking is kind of like the freedom to sort of dig deep into something, just because you’re interested in it. … The whole idea of biohacking is that people feel entitled, they feel the ability to just follow their curiosity — where it should go — and really get to the bottom of something they want to understand.” “The whole idea of biohacking is that people feel entitled, they feel the ability to just follow their curiosity — where it should go — and really get to the bottom of something they want to understand.”But hacking also has a negative connotation; when someone hacks your computer, you want to send him or her to jail. But that’s not exactly what biohacking is. Drew Endy, a professor of bioengineering at Stanford, who considers himself a biohacker, says “I come from a tradition where hacking is a positive term, and it means learning about stuff by building, and trying to make things and seeing what happens.”

      Quote Ron Shigeta (Berkeley Biolabs)

    3. And Eri Gentry, who founded the Silicon Valley biohacking venue BioCurious, explains further: “The word hacker comes from MIT where hacks would be cool little tricks that you would play on each other, so when you’re done with your homework, you’re staying up all night, and you’ve got to have something to do, so they might coat the ceiling or the roof of a building in tin foil. So this was a hack, and hackers came to be known in the 60s and 70s as the guys who were making the first computers.”

      Quote Eri Gentry (BioCurious)

  4. Jul 2018
  5. Apr 2016
  6. www.bioflux.eu www.bioflux.eu