Are Cold Showers Good for You? 9 Health Benefits You Didn’t Know About
Take a cold shower in the morning and you will start feeling more energetic. Bathe with cold water after a workout and your muscles will feel more relaxed. So, are cold showers good for you? What are the health benefits of bathing with cold water? Let’s find out.
9 ‘Cool’ Benefits of Cold Showers
For optimal benefits, use water slightly cooler than room temperature – around 3 to 10 degrees Celsius lower than room temperature.
#1 Mystic Takeaway by Sadhguru
Prepare for your yoga practice by taking a shower or bath with slightly cooler than room temperature water. This helps the epithelial cells contract and the intercellular spaces expand. In yoga, we aim for the cellular structure to be charged with a different dimension of energy. When the cells contract and create space, practicing yoga becomes a powerful means to charge the cellular structure with renewed energy.
#2 Natural Stress Relief
A cold shower in the morning gives you a quick energy boost and uplifts your mood. Cold showers promote the release of noradrenaline and beta-endorphins, and may have an anti-depressant effect. They are known to lower your cortisol levels, thus giving you relief from stress. Cold water activates that part of the brain which reduces impulsivity, thus helping you stay calm. Bathing with cold water every morning, is known to improve concentration and increase your alertness.
#3 Immunity Booster
Bathing with cold water helps in boosting your immunity, as a cold shower triggers the generation of leucocytes which help fight infections. A 2022 study found that cold showers can help elevate the levels of adiponectin, a hormone that helps in preventing age-related ailments.
#4 Better Heart Health
A cold shower gives a slight shock to the body, leading to greater intake of oxygen and increased heart rate. Due to cold water, your body goes into survival mode, causing the heart to pump blood more efficiently. Thus, cold showers improve blood circulation in the body.
#5 Increases Metabolism
Cold water pushes the body to increase its metabolism in an effort to stay warm, owing to which the practice of taking cold showers can help you lose weight.
#6 Good for Muscle Recovery
They can help you get rid of soreness and fatigue in the muscles. If you bathe with cold water after a workout, it helps speed up the recovery from soreness and pain.
#7 Diabetes Prevention
The practice of bathing with cold water can improve insulin sensitivity and lower the risk of type 2 diabetes.
#8 Hair and Skin Rejuvenation
Cold shower benefits for the skin and hair are many. Cold showers tighten the skin pores, due to which natural oils in the skin and hair are retained. So, the practice of bathing with cold water goes a long way in keeping your hair shiny, reducing hair loss, improving scalp health and keeping your skin hydrated. Cold showers help in reducing inflammation and swelling on the skin. By reducing inflammation, they help remove skin discomfort and itchiness.
#9 Increases Sperm Count
Heat can have a negative impact on sperm count, which is why a cold shower could boost fertility in males.
Please note that cold showers should not be used to treat any health condition. For example, just because cold showers increase metabolism, they cannot be your only way to weight loss. Similarly, even though cold showers are known to relieve depression, they should not be used as a substitute for other depression aids. If you are sick or have any underlying health conditions, it is best to consult your doctor before switching to cold showers.
If you wish to adopt the habit of taking a cold shower daily, reduce the water temperature gradually and know that your body will take time to get accustomed to the cold. Over a few weeks, you should be comfortable bathing in cold water; moreover, knowing the benefits of cold showers would give you the much-required impetus.