You can ‘superdose’ oxygen—but what does that even mean?

Want to know what it feels like to spend 20 minutes in an ozone sauna? Watch the video.

Come fall, nothing beats spending time in a steamy sauna. If you close your eyes, you can almost imagine that you’re sweating it out poolside somewhere with palm trees swaying overhead, and cold beverages adorned with tiny pink umbrellas. What you’re not likely picturing, however, is a burst of ozone (O3): a gas purported to strengthen the immune system and help circulation in small doses.

This week on What the Wellness, Well+Good’s YouTube channel exploring the oddest, buzziest health treatments of today, video producer Ella Dove trieds an ozone sauna. After sitting in the balmy egg-shaped device for 20 minutes at Upgrade Labs in Beverly Hills, Dove had some thoughts. 

Carly Sinay Mayers, a trainer at the Upgrade, says that the ozone sauna mimics aerobic exercise while you’re just chilling (ahem, more like roasting) inside the device. Since saunas themselves have already been shown to improve vascular function, you can just think of the chemical as the cherry on top. Once she helps Dove into the chamber and shuts the door, Mayers slips a mask over her face so that Dove won’t physically breathe in the O3.

Was the “superdose of oxygen” weird or worth it? Watch the video to find out.

For even more What the Wellness, check out Dove’s experience with AI running and a scalp facial.