Break Out The Ice Cubes!
We already know the benefits of plain old water, and we know we have to drink it. We know that steeped hot water also has a variety of health benefits, but what about cold water? If you didn’t know already, cold water has a plethora of health benefits for the mind, body, and soul that can be achieved either by drinking it or bathing in it. For your next favorite health trend, read on.
1. Immunity
As cold water passes through or over your body, it can stimulate the production of white blood cells. Our antibacterial cells do better in colder temperatures, making them more productive against possible infections.
2. Inflammation
If you’ve ever had to heat and then ice an area of your body to reduce swelling, you’ve participated in something called vasoconstriction. This process narrows blood vessels, decreasing the amount of blood flow to a particular area.
3. Increases Metabolism
When you make the decision to drink cold water, your body will burn more calories. This is due to a process called thermogenesis, where our body wants to warm the consumed water to a comfortable internal temperature, but must use a little bit of energy to do so.
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4. Muscle Soreness
On top of vasoconstriction, something as simple as a cold plunge can actually slow down our nerve signals, which can help to lessen pain perception. A combination of cold plunge and rotating hot and ice on a sore area will have you feeling good in no time.
5. Energy
When you shower in cold water, you’re putting your body into a natural “fight-or-flight” stress response, releasing hormones like epinephrine and adrenaline. Sure, you’re getting a little cortisol spike as well, but you’ll definitely feel more energized after the fact.
6. Circulation
Through the process of your blood vessels constricting, they start to move towards your core organs to conserve heat and, in doing so, make your blood quite oxygenated. When you begin to warm up again, the rest of your body will receive this oxygen-rich blood, improving your circulation in the long run.
7. Athletic Recovery
Taking a cold plunge can help with inflammation, delayed onset muscle soreness, and flush out any waste accumulated within the body. Pro athletes quite enjoy this process, as it also can allow them a better power output the following day, instead of having to do passive recovery.
8. Mental Resilience
If you trigger your body into a stress reaction in a controlled setting, you have a better grasp on your stress response. Consistently showering or plunging into cold water can help your brain cope with stress in the long run, leading to overall better mental resilience.
9. Improves Mood
After you go through a fight or flight response, your body will stimulate its rest and digest system, releasing dopamine, endorphins, and the parasympathetic nervous system. Like we mentioned before, it can also increase energy, making you not only more alert but also physically relaxed.
10. Weight Loss
As we mentioned, drinking or showering in cold water helps your body to burn calories through something called thermogenesis. While that calorie count is ultimately low, consistent use of cold water may activate something called “brown fat,” which is a type of fat that burns calories to generate heat.
11. Promotes Sleep
You can physically signal to your body that it's time to rest by putting yourself into a cold water shower. When you sleep, your body’s core temperature decreases. Physically making that decrease occur boosts melatonin production, reduces cortisol, and helps you relax.
12. Skin Health
Aside from circulation, applying cold water to your face helps to tighten the appearance of pores, reduce puffiness (especially around the undereye area), and calm any irritation. It’s recommended that you start your face washing with warm water to really get into all the nooks and crannies, but switch to cold water when you’ve washed everything off your face.
13. Boosts Focus
So let's discuss norepinephrine for a second. This hormone is a neurotransmitter that is incredibly important for your attention and focus, regulating your heart rate, blood pressure, and glucose levels. When this hormone is activated, you will get an immediate focus boost, and the best way to do that is in a safe environment. You guessed it. Cold shower.
14. Anti-Anxiety
We’ve mentioned just about everything with the fight or flight response, so we won’t bore you with the details. Long-term exposure, or consistent exposure to cold water, can have a great effect on anxiety hormonally, but also mentally. How can you think about your worries when you have ice-cold water raining down on you?
15. Chronic Pain
Cold water therapy is a common practice for those who deal with consistent or chronic pain. Cold water numbs the nerve endings, reduces swelling, and improves your lymphatic system, removing excess waste from the body.
16. Hair Health
Cold water does have a large impact on heart health. It seals the hair cuticle, keeping moisture from escaping the way it would with hot water. Cold water is also said to reduce frizz and increase shine, protecting the hair from dryness. It's also popular for those with color-treated hair, as cold water is less likely to remove dye.
17. Improves Mental Clarity
We discussed how a cold shower improves your mental clarity, but that happens once, maybe twice a day. If you need a quick jab of mental clarity, try some ice-cold water. This mini shock to your system will give you little focus boosts, so you can get your work done with ease.
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18. Reduces Stress
You guessed it, it's those mood-boosting hormones again. Outside of the nervous system, cold water can also help to put you into a state of mindfulness, where you’re forced to abandon your worries for just a few minutes.
19. Hydration
We mean… It's water. You have to drink water. And if you don’t like hot water or relatively room-temperature water, then rest assured, you can enjoy the many benefits of ice-cold water instead.
20. Tastes Good
There is nothing quite like grabbing your water bottle and chugging the coldest water you’ve ever had in your life at 2 in the morning. For some, cold water just tastes better and is usually the drink of choice on those hot summer days.
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