Cold Showers

Cold water can help alleviate inflammation and muscle soreness from intense exercise. The concept dates back to the tale of semi-legendary hydrotherapist Vincenz Priesnittz, who, seeing a deer hold a wounded limb in a stream, became inspired to heal the masses with his cold water treatment. Jockeys have known for years that cold water wraps [...]

Cold showers are sometimes touted as a preventative tonic for colds, flu, and infections. However, are these reported benefits just a placebo effect – the power of suggestion, or do cold showers have a direct and measurable effect on our immunity? Once again, studies show at least some support for the popular wisdom. An experiment [...]

Many people report that they feel warmer throughout the day after taking a cold shower or bath. This could partly be due to enhanced circulation, but the stimulation of brown fat also seems a likely cofactor. Brown fat is one of two types of fat in the body – the other being white fat, or [...]

Some basic reasoning tells us that cold showers can assist in weight loss. Consider the acute effects of a cold shower. The water hits the skin and almost immediately the body jump starts; blood flow increases, muscles harden, and heart rate increases. All of these things require energy. It may help to think of the [...]