Snus plunge like a Polar Bear in Stockholm

Want to know about Health & Wellness in Stockholm? Keep on reading. Maybe traveling, for you, is about getting drunk in your hotel bar. Or only seeing museums you’ll soon forget anyway (which you visited mainly because the travel guides suggested them). Fortunately, there’s an alternative way of traveling which includes the health-centric attractions in Stockholm.

The Polar Bear Plunge

Hellasgården is a good place to experience Swedish sauna and the famous polar bear plunge in winter. It is reachable with a short 15-minute bus ride from Slussen in central Stockholm (Bus 401). There is also a small indoor gym, which is included in the entrance price (65 SEK). After your workout, visit the sauna. Once you’ve been in the sauna long enough, go outside into the cold and run towards the lake. Get in the water. If you’re brave you can lower your head underwater for a split-second. Then you get back out and chill. Repeat the cycle. After the ice dip, you will feel high. Your body is now confused between the heat generated from the sauna, and the external cold from the lake.

My own experience: I ignored the ladder and jumped in instead. Fully submerging myself under icy water for a few seconds. After a few swear words, it felt great once I was back out of the water.

 

 

Snus: The Smokeless Tobacco Alternative in Stockholm

The slightly more harmful but legal high in Stockholm is Snus. This is a small tobacco pouch you put underneath your upper lip. Although some prefer putting it underneath their lower lip. It releases nicotine into your bloodstream, giving you a temporary high, depending on the strength of the snus. Afterwards, you may feel a come-down, including anxiety, sweating, and nausea. This can happen if you pick a snus that’s too strong for you. In my case, a mint and eucalyptus flavored snus made me feel sick with nausea and intense sweating. I recovered after sleeping for two hours.

 

Snus Benefits

 

• It feels relaxing
• Its less intrusive to bystanders than smoking
• It can help you wean yourself off cigarettes
• Lowers rates of lung cancer in society
• Less additives than cigarettes

 

Snus Negatives

 

• Cardio-vascular health risk
• Discoloration of teeth and gums
• Potential for “snus induced lesions” in the mouth
• Nicotine side-effects (same as cigarettes)
• Potential come-down after the nicotine high
• It’s addiction forming
• Like cigarettes, it may lead to anxiety symptoms, especially if you try to quit.

 

What the smart people say about Snus

According to a recent study, Snus is only correlated with an increase in risk of Pancreatic cancer, but not a factor in mouth or lung cancer (¹). Similarly, another article points out how lung cancer dropped in Sweden, along with a large drop in smokers, most likely due to the use of snus instead of cigarettes. They do point out a slight increase in cardiovascular health risk, although this risk is less with snus than with cigarettes. Moreover, pregnant women shouldn’t use snus, as it is likely to be harmful to the fetus (²).

The life expectancy of smokers who switched to snus, and smokers who quit tobacco products altogether only differs by 0.1 – 0.4 years. Thus there are significant health benefits in switching from cigarettes to snus for current smokers (³). Lastly, some sources mention a risk of hearing loss in nicotine users. This includes both snus and cigarettes (⁴).

In conclusion, snus appears less harmful than cigarettes according to the above studies cited. The reason for it being illegal to sell in the rest of the EU is thus unclear (it seems that the EU is protecting the tax money they earn from cigarettes). However, more research needs to be done in order to obtain 100% certainty about snus side-effects. Apparently, Swedish snus contains less additives than those from most other countries, thus choose your snus carefully (⁵).

 

Healthy Food in Stockholm

FLFL Vegetarian Restaurant

At this restaurant, you’ll find healthier falafel options than at your typical corner kebab takeaway restaurant. In addition to falafel and hummus, you can order middle-eastern sides like cauliflower with tahini. It is an expensive choice for a meal if you take a side order as well. However, a falafel plate on its own should be enough for most people. They offer a separate plate that you can take and add more sides like onions, sauerkraut, carrots and as much tahini as you like. Service is quick but there’s no wifi. Tapwater is offered for free.

Is Stockholm’s Tap-water Safe?

In Stockholm, water gets treated at municipal water treatment plants but fluoridation is banned. The reason for this is that adding fluoride to drinking water is correctly considered a forced form of medication. The argument against fluoridation is that there are other safer and less intrusive ways of ensuring that you get all the fluoride you need, such as through brushing your teeth. Stockholm is surrounded by water including lakes, the sea and it gets a lot of rain. Tapwater is thus drinkable and of higher quality than in a lot of other countries.

Hermans Vegetarian Restaurant and Garden Café

This restaurant has a fully vegan buffet. It is expensive (200SEK). After two plates of food, most people would feel satiated. If you can afford it, its nice healthy food. Choices include vegan lasagne, along with various salads and soy-based meat. No dessert or drinks included, apart from tea or coffee. The location is next to the river – it’s a great view.

 

 

 

Hermitage vegetarisk restaurang – Gamlastan

This restaurant is 85% vegan. The two non-vegan (but still vegetarian) options were vegetarian lasagne and a cream-based pasta.  A glass of water is included with the main meal. The price is around 140sek. It is the cheaper vegan buffet option in central Stockholm. Soup is included with the main meal. It is a genuinely healthy meal option, including sprouts and salads, and the food tastes good. Wifi is not available.

 

 

Paradiset Wholefoods Store

This is the largest wholefoods store I’ve seen in Stockholm. There is a huge variety of products (two floors) with competitive prices. It is likely the best wholefood store in central Stockholm. There’s more than one branch, but the larger branch is Paradiset Söder. Wifi is available here.

 

 

 

The Swedish Wholegrain white-bread alternative that can boost your health

What if there was a whole grain product that eliminates all the negative ingredients of modern white bread? In Sweden, this is called Knäckebröd (Crispbread). This traditional Swedish bread is made from 100% wholegrain rye, salt and water. Sometimes the rye is blended with other flours. The texture is crispy, thin and porous. It is healthier than most commercially produced bread, since it’s whole grain and contain only 3 ingredients.

Other health-food options

At the “Goodstore” shops you’ll find plenty of health products from other EU countries. It’s not cheap. At “Life” you’ll find a few items such as superfoods, organic toiletries and supplements. Another authentically Swedish food is oats. Sweden has the perfect climate to grow this crop. Oats contain fiber, and healthy unsaturated fat to help lower cholesterol.

 

The Free Gyms of Stockholm

There is about 40 outdoor-gyms in Stockholm. These are called “Utegyms”. Working out in these gyms are free. The equipment is made of wood. For several exercises, there are more than one wood machine with heavier wood for heavy lifting males. Don’t underestimate your ability to break a sweat and get a decent workout at a wood gym. Amongst other exercises you can do is bench-press, lunges, pull-ups, pull-downs, tricep-dips and sit-ups. It’s good enough to get your pulse beating faster for 30 to 60 minutes including a jog afterwards. Advantages of working out outdoors include getting fresh air and Vitamin D from the sun.

 

 

 

Conclusion

As you can see, there are plenty of healthier things to do and foods to eat in Stockholm. In fact, Swedes can be proud of their health-aware culture, and general lack of obesity. This is despite the cold winter weather – which often makes you feel like indulging in more calories, to compensate for freezing temperatures.

You can’t really go wrong spending a few days in Stockholm. Over and above health attractions, it’s a city with a rich history, and nice appeal to tourists. You may even find a few museums you like.

Health Travel Junkie Challenge – Stockholm

The challenge for Stockholm in Summer, is to visit the Utegym at least once for a proper workout.
While in Winter the challenge is doing an open-air polar bear plunge. Hellasgården is a good option for this.

You can do both challenges, but the water isn’t cold enough in Summer to consider it an authentic polar bear plunge. While in the middle of Winter it may be too cold for the Utegym.

Health Travel Junkie Scale

Fitness activities  –   9

Food – 8.5

Cost of traveling – 6

Other Health-related activities – 8.5

Overall rating:  80%

Next, read our wellness guides for two more Scandinavian cities: Oslo (Norway) and Helsinki (Finland).

 

Have you ever visited Stockholm? Do you prefer Summer or Winter in Scandinavia? Comment below with questions and tips for other travelers!

 

 

References

1. The Lancet. Volume 369, Issue 9578, 16–22 June 2007, Pages 2015-2020. Oral use of Swedish moist snuff (snus) and risk for cancer of the mouth, lung, and pancreas in male construction workers: a retrospective cohort study. Researchers: Luo, Zendehdel, Adami, et al.

2. Foulds J, Ramstrom L, Burke M, et al. Effect of smokeless tobacco (snus) on smoking and public health in SwedenTobacco Control 2003;12:349-359.

3. The Lancet. Volume 369, Issue 9578, 16–22 June 2007, Pages 2010-2014. Assessment of Swedish snus for tobacco harm reduction: an epidemiological modelling study. Gartner, Hall, Vos, et al.

4. https://www.healthyhearing.com/report/50940-Smoking-and-hearing-loss

5. http://www.webmd.com/smoking-cessation/features/snus-tobacco-health-risks#2

..back to top