It’s time to jump out of your comfort zone and into an ice bath! While athletes have used cold therapy for years, and the “Polar Bear Plunge” has been going on since the 1920s, the concept of cold therapy has just recently become a hot topic within the “bio-hacking” community. The history of cold water plunging actually dates back to the Roman and Greek empires. Throughout time, many cultures including the Chinese, Indian and Japanese have been using cold water therapy as a modality for healing. Recently, cryotherapy, another form of cold exposure therapy, has become popular- and it also has a lot of health benefits. In a study, regular winter swimming significantly decreased tension, fatigue, memory, and mood negative state points with the duration of the swimming period; significantly increased vigor-activity scores; relieving pain who suffered from rheumatism, fibromyalgia, or asthma; and improved general well-being in swimmers.
As far as proponents of cold therapy goes, few are as enigmatic or well-known as Wim Hof, the Dutch wellness leader known for completing superhuman feats in sub-zero conditions (running a barefoot marathon on ice and climbing Kilimanjaro in shoes and shorts). Hof claims the technique that he has been teaching since 2013 can help everything – from anxiety to obesity, MS to Parkinson’s, insomnia to poor concentration. Scientists who studied him found his method is indeed effective: it tricks the body into producing a stress response, releasing opioids and cannabinoids, which helps one resist the effects of cold.
But you don’t need to swim in the arctic to reap the benefits of cold therapy. Wyatt Ewing, Ice Barrel founder and CEO saw profound changes in his life when he started incorporating cold water therapy “My journey with cold therapy began a few years back when I was stressed out, anxious, and depressed. Between work and family, I was burning the candle at both ends and running out of steam. Our society tells us to work harder, sleep less, and not complain, but my work-life balance and the everyday pressures had caught up with me. I was broken, sick, and desperate for a change. Cold exposure changed my life in ways I could not have imagined. As it turns out, overwhelming research shows that regularly exposing ourselves to cold temperatures can greatly benefit both body and mind. I created Ice Barrel to make cold exposure accessible to all, so that more people can experience its profound effects on everything from your muscles to your mood.”
You can reap the health benefits of cold plunging at home by filling an Ice Barrel with water, adding ice, and sitting in it for 3-10 minutes. Of all the cold therapy tools that the HFR team tried, the Ice Barrel was the easiest to set up, to use, and to clean afterward! Incorporating cold therapy daily has become easier!
Here are the 10 health benefits associated with cold plunges and cold therapy:
- Reduced inflammation: This is a big one since most of us walk around with chronic inflammation and don’t even realize it! Submerging yourself in the chilled water instantly numbs the nerves that surround your joints and muscles, causing the release of hormones and endorphins. Studies show the release of hormones and endorphins acts as an analgesic, which relieves inflammation and alleviates muscle strain and joint pain.
- Boosts mood: As the cold water envelops the entire body, norepinephrine, an anti-stress hormone and neurotransmitter, and epinephrine/adrenaline are released which is what makes you feel so invigorated! Several studies are now being conducted on using cold water therapy and cold showers to help treat depression. For example, this small study showed that the cold hydrotherapy can relieve depressive symptoms rather effectively. In addition, this 2007 study found evidence that cold showers can help treat depression symptoms, and, if used regularly, might even be more effective than prescription antidepressants!
- Improves the body’s antioxidant capacity and increases white blood count: A study from England found that those who took daily cold showers had increased numbers of disease-fighting white blood cells (compared to people who took hot showers). The investigators at Britain’s Thrombosis Research Institute suggested that as the body tries to warm itself during and after a cold shower, metabolic rate speeds up and activates the immune system, which leads to the release of more white blood cells. And, according to a German study, consistency is essential! Those who only participated in an occasional winter swim in cold water had increased oxidative stress, but, done regularly, such swimming leads to an adaptive antioxidant response. Those who regularly partook in cold water swims had bodies better equipped to combat oxidative stress in general once they were accustomed to cold-water swims.
- Boosts immune system: A plunge in frigid water causes your lymph vessels to contract, which forces your lymphatic system to pump lymph fluids throughout your body. The flushing of fluid triggers the white blood cells to attack any foreign bodies in the body. Cytokines and other chemicals that boost the immune system receive a release in cold plunging. According to this study, cold water baths have shown to stimulate the lymphatic and immune system, which helps in boosting the production of infection-fighting cells thereby increasing your immunity. This same study found that people who take cold showers are 29% less likely to call in sick for work or school. Also, try these natural foods to boost your immune system.
- Helps improve circulation: As cold water hits your body and external limbs, it constricts circulation on the surface of your body. This causes blood in your deeper tissues to circulate at faster rates to maintain ideal body temperature.
- Can help alleviate rheumatoid arthritis: For those with rheumatoid arthritis, taking a cold shower after a sauna has been shown to reduce pain and improve circulation which can help minimize symptoms throughout the remainder of the day.
- Can improve lung health: Your lung function improves tremendously when you take a plunge in cold water suggests a study published in the North American Journal of Medical Sciences. That feeling of breathlessness you get when you take a plunge into cold water is what improves your lung function. When you hold your breath each time you take a plunge and slowly release your breath, you improve your lung function.
- Good for the nervous system: Nerves in the autonomic nervous system are activated during the cold plunge immersion. The cold also stimulates you to take deeper breaths, decreasing the level of CO2 throughout the body, helping you concentrate. Also, studies show that the increase in fat burning during cold exposure is modulated by the sympathetic nervous system. Cold temperatures act as a mild “workout” for the nervous system, which adapts and strengthens.
- Aids at fat-burning, regulating blood sugar, and weight loss: One study found adiponectin levels increase by 70% after cold exposure. Adiponectin is a protein involved in blood glucose regulation, with low levels often found in insulin resistance. In another study, subjects who were exposed to cold stress had an 80% increase in their metabolism over “warm” levels. Studies also show that cold exposure increases Brown Adipose Tissue activity, which leads to increased calorie expenditure. Researchers concluded that frequent cold exposures might be an acceptable and economical complementary approach to address the current obesity epidemic.
- Good for willpower: Let’s face it, the first few seconds of a cold plunge are tough, but powering through can work wonders at training your brain. Getting into freezing cold water every day trains the brain to do things it otherwise wouldn’t. This positive attitude could then translate to other areas of your life!
