Cold showers may not seem like the most appealing activity, but it could be a beneficial one for you. It involves reducing the water temperature to under 60 degrees. A cold shower can serve as cold therapy that can aid in enhancing healing, boosting mood, and improving your overall wellness. And to be effective, it doesn’t have to last for 15 or even 5 minutes. In fact, it could be for just two to three minutes at a time. Cold showers are great for athletes, exercise enthusiasts, or anyone who sees where cold therapy can benefit their mental or physical health.
Based on research, a cold shower appears to have positive health outcomes. Specifically, it can help to lessen symptoms of depression and anxiety considerably. It not only reduces feelings of chronic fatigue and boosts your energy levels while lowering stress levels, but also builds up your immune system and helps you to have a more positive outlook on life.
Also, studies indicate that taking a cold shower after doing some form of exercise – an anti-stressor in and of itself – can double the benefits of cold water therapy.
There have been reports of feeling rejuvenated, cheerful, and brighter, as well as experiencing a calmer mind after taking a cold shower. Furthermore, after thirty days of cold showers, people report feeling more alert, having more energy, noticing healthier skin and hair, and seeing improved circulation. In addition, many report experiencing better mental health and improved resilience.
Studies suggest that a cold water immersion or cold water shower can be good for you. Exposure to cold temperatures can cool the body’s tissues and provide therapeutic relief in instances of injuries or treating specific muscle groups. In addition, it appears to have several other benefits.
Here’s a look at some specific ways cold showers benefit your health.
Cold showers may have the potential to protect you from circulating viruses, like the common cold. The cold water can shock the body and stimulate the blood cells (leukocytes) that are responsible for fighting off infection. The findings from a study published in PLoS ONE indicate that people who changed to taking cold showers for 30, 60, or 90 seconds for 90 days had fewer sick days from work (29% less). This is in comparison to people who didn’t switch to cold showers.
Ice-cold water touching your skin during a cold shower triggers a natural response, which is to get out of its path. It strains your body when it hits your skin, essentially shocking your body into survival mode. This shock sends your circulatory system into overdrive, increasing blood flow to warm your core and safeguard vital organs. The stimulation of blood flow is beneficial for your overall health.
When the cold water shocks the body, it boosts up your metabolism. Your body will go into overdrive to keep warm, and in the process, it expends energy. This self-heating process causes your body to burn even more calories. Still, don’t expect the weight to just fall off with each cold shower since it’s not the best option alone for weight loss.
While limited, research findings suggest that cold showers may help alleviate symptoms of depression. According to one study in the International Journal of Circumpolar Health, cold water immersion can impact the brain by stimulating cold receptors in the skin. As a result, it can cause anti-depressive effects. Specifically, the findings suggest that regular cold-water exposure could relieve depressive symptoms efficiently. Furthermore, research suggests that cold water may enhance your mood and reduce symptoms of anxiety.
Another of the cold shower benefits is that it can decrease inflammation and soothe sore muscles. The anti-inflammatory effects of cold showers can be linked to increased blood flow, heart rate, and oxygen uptake.
When cold water hits your body, your blood vessels tighten. When this occurs, your now oxygen and nutrient-rich blood moves to your body’s core and vital organs. When your body warms up again, the blood vessels expand and your oxygenated blood is transported back to your tissues. During this process, your body attempts to flush out inflammation that can lead to muscle soreness. Furthermore, by reducing inflammation, cold showers help to alleviate pain.
A cold shower is great for immediately waking you up. Research suggests that cold showers can cause a boost in the perception of energy levels in a person. Additionally, they can increase focus or concentration, productivity, and cognitive performance. Essentially, it creates an uplifting effect that can cause you to be more alert and enhance your mental clarity.
When you take cold showers, you improve the health of your circulatory system. This helps your muscles and other bodily tissues to repair properly. By taking a cold shower after a tough workout, you may notice that you’re able to bounce back quicker and also do better at your next workout.
Based on the findings of one study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, cyclists were better able to recover from high-intensity interval training if they took 15-minute showers in cold water that were 59 degrees F (or 15 C) after their exercise in a hot environment. Specifically, researchers found that cold showers can promote a thermal comfort sensation by causing a faster heart rate recovery after 30 minutes. Furthermore, these cold shower benefits appear to be possible due to their cardiovascular and hormonal effects. Reducing cortisol levels is one of the hormonal benefits of cold showers after exercise.
Cold showers have also been shown to be good for the health of both your skin and hair. Studies suggest that taking cold showers can help to minimize skin dryness, inflammation, and itching. They can make your hair and skin retain their moisture and appear less irritated, dry, or dull. Essentially, the cold tightens the small blood vessels and causes pores to appear tighter and less inflamed.
An improvement in fertility may be possible as a result of men taking cold showers. Evidence suggests that cold showers, even for a week, may improve male sperm production. Specifically, they help lower the scrotal temperature. As such, this helps to improve sperm and testosterone production.
An early study found that when testicular temperature is kept between 31 to 37°C (88 to 99°F), it allows for optimal DNA, RNA, and protein synthesis. This may be why cold showers help boost sperm production.
Another cold shower benefit is its ability to support a healthy metabolism. Cold showers appear to increase endorphins, which are feel-good brain chemicals (hormones) your body releases when it feels pain or stress. Remember, the body uses energy to try to keep warm in response to cold temperatures. This can cause it to burn a few calories as it fights to self-heat and increase your metabolism in the process. Still, they are no replacement for healthy eating or exercise, which also support your metabolic health.
Hot and cold temperatures play a role in preparing your body for sleep and also in the regulation of your sleep-wake cycles. Your internal body temperature reduces before you fall asleep. As such, showering in cold water before bed can lower your body temperature at night, which could help you to fall asleep more easily. In a way, the cold shower helps promote natural temperature regulation processes.
Adrenal Fatigue Syndrome (AFS) is the non-Addison's form of adrenal dysfunction, where the body's stress response cannot keep up with life's chronic stressors. Cortisol is a notable factor at play in AFS. Your body releases cortisol in response to stress. However, it needs the stress to end so it can recover. When chronic stress emerges, your adrenal glands can fatigue and become unable to keep up with the demand for cortisol. When this happens, an imbalance in the NeuroEndoMetabolic (NEM) Stress Response system takes place.
As a result, symptoms such as tiredness, ongoing fatigue, depression, irritability, foggy thinking, joint pain, and premature aging skin. Cold showers may be useful in alleviating some of these AFS symptoms. However, be sure to talk with your doctor before starting any form of cold therapy.
One of the biggest disadvantages of cold showers is that they give you an uncomfortable sensation when the cold water touches your skin. A cold water shower can tighten blood vessels and increase blood pressure and heart rate. Furthermore, cold showers may also cause irregular heartbeats in some people with heart issues. Also of note is that cold showers may not be effective for everyone. Those with adrenal fatigue have to beware of the drastic change in temperature to their body causing a crash, so if you're in the later stages cold showers might not be for you due to poor temperature regulation.
Cold showers can benefit your health in several ways. From boosting your immunity to getting better sleep, cold temperatures can work wonders on your overall wellness. You may not like the idea of cold water on your skin, but that sensation may be what you need to be a healthier, happier you.
If you would like to learn about the pros and cons of cold showers and if you should do it if you have adrenal fatigue, the team at Dr. Lam Coaching can help. We offer a free, no-obligation phone consultation at +1 (626) 571-1234 where we will privately discuss your symptoms and various options. You can also send us a question through our Ask The Doctor system by clicking here.
Buijze, Geert A., et al. "The Effect of Cold Showering on Health and Work: A Randomized Controlled Trial." PLoS ONE, vol. 11, no. 9, 2016, https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0161749.
Espeland, Didrik, and James B. Mercer. "Health Effects of Voluntary Exposure to Cold Water – a Continuing Subject of Debate." International Journal of Circumpolar Health, vol. 81, no. 1, 2022, https://doi.org/10.1080/22423982.2022.2111789
Nakamura, M et al. “Optimal temperature for synthesis of DNA, RNA, and protein by human testis in vitro.” Archives of andrology vol. 20,1 (1988): 41-4.
Cold showers provide several benefits, including increasing circulation, improving metabolism and sperm health, supporting weight loss, decreasing inflammation, boosting skin and hair health, supporting mental clarity and alertness, and improving sleep, among other benefits.
