Summary
Cold plunge is a systemic therapy that can improve every aspect of your health, including your cardio-vascular (heart), psychological (brain), and immune system (body) health.
Drugs and allopathic medicine are targeted therapies, which is why their deleterious consequences are called side effects.
Like exercise, sunshine, and sleep, a little bit of cold plunge therapy can result in big improvements in well-being.
Heart Benefits of Cold Plunge Therapy
The metabolic benefits to the heart may be the most important, as every leading cause of death from chronic illness in the western industrialized countries originates in metabolic dysfunction. In Ben Bikman Interview: Mitochondrial Health, I explain how heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, obesity, Alzheimer's dementia, and even cancer are all associated with a pathological phenomenon called insulin resistance, which is a disorder of glucose metabolism. Cold plunge therapy boosts insulin sensitivity and can resolve the metabolic dysfunction that underpins all of these chronic illnesses.
Although hypertension is one of the most important contraindications to cold plunge, a regular practice will improve circulation by promoting endothelial function. Because the endothelial cells are responsible for vasodilation, or expansion of the blood vessels to increase perfusion throughout the body, the boost to endothelium that results from cold plunge will reduce risk of heart attack, stroke, deep vein thrombosis, and other cardio-vascular diseases. As a bonus, cold plunge therapy can resolve erectile dysfunction by improving circulation of blood to the penis.
Brain Benefits of Cold Plunge Therapy
The psychological benefits have been documented in case studies and clinical trials that show a regular practice of cold water swimming will boost mood, increase energy and motivation, and can reverse major depression--even when medication and traditional talk therapy have failed. For example, in a recent United Kingdom study, just five minutes of whole-body cold water immersion improved the mood of 39 participants (Massey et al. 2023). As I explain in Depression Cured by Cold Plunge, that may be partly because of the action of cold stimulation on the brain. After less than a minute of exposure to cold water, the body produces massive quantities of feel-good neurotransmitters and hormones like dopamine, norepinephrine, vasopressin, and oxytocin that lift mood and create a sense of social connection. Moreover, after a few weeks of regular cold plunge therapy, the body will recruit new brown fat that increases neuroprotective factors like FGF-21 and brain-derived neuroprotective factor (BDNPF) that boost brain function and promote healing of brain injury. Brown Fat & Brain Health provides further details on these mechanisms of protection.
Immunological Benefits of Cold Plunge Therapy
Lastly, cold plunge therapy has a surprising effect on immune function. Despite the folk wisdom that cold exposure can increase risk of "catching cold," when the exposure is acute and brief, clinical studies show that it stimulates increased production of NK cells that help fight infection, and ameliorates the symptoms of certain autoimmune conditions like rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, and fibromyalgia. That's probably how a study in the Netherlands reported that bank employees who regularly practiced cold showers were absent fewer days sick from work (Buijze et al. 2016).
Bonus Benefits
As if these three body systems weren't enough to convince you to give cold plunge therapy a try, there's one other factor that is reported by high achievers and elite performers. Celebrities like Joe Rogan, scientists like Andrew Huberman, and athletes like Luke Donald or Nick Bosa have all reported to me that a regular practice of ice bath helps them hone their competitive edge.
References
Buijze GA, Sierevelt IN, van der Heijden BC, Dijkgraaf MG, Frings-Dresen MH. The effect of cold showering on health and work: a randomized controlled trial. PLoS One. 2016 Sep 15;11(9):e0161749.
Yankouskaya A, Williamson R, Stacey C, Totman JJ, Massey H. Short-Term Head-Out Whole-Body Cold-Water Immersion Facilitates Positive Affect and Increases Interaction between Large-Scale Brain Networks. Biology. 2023;12(2):211. doi:10.3390/biology12020211
About the Author
Thomas P Seager, PhD is an Associate Professor in the School of Sustainable Engineering at Arizona State University. Seager co-founded the Morozko Forge ice bath company and is an expert in the use of ice baths for building metabolic and psychological resilience.
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