Imagine coming home after being in the freezing cold all day, only to be left with no hot water when you go to take a shower. You would reluctantly turn on the faucet, and then step into the cold shower. While the freezing water may give us the shivers, they’re surprisingly beneficial to our health.
Here are 5 reasons why cold showers are actually good for you:
- Depression
According to a study done by Dr. Nikolai Shevchuk, taking a cold shower activates Noradrenaline in the brain. Noradrenaline is put into many anti-depressant medications and is believed to help decrease the symptoms of depression. The doctor believes that the shock from the cold water activates Noradrenaline in the brain, and helps those that are depressed feel a little bit better.
2.) Anxiety
A similar reaction happens with anxiety. In a research study done by the University of Osaka, researchers have found that cold showers may reduce the cortisol hormone, which usually reacts when one is feeling anxious or stressed.
So if you are down in the dumps, hop in a cold shower!
3.)Smoother Hair and Skin
Dr. Jessica Krant, a dermatologist, stated that ice-cold water may help skin and hair from having healthy natural oils stripped too quickly. These healthy oils prevent hair from getting frizzy.
Cold water makes hair appear stronger, healthier and shinier by essentially closing up the hair follicles on our scalp.
4) Increased Energy
This one may be obvious as stepping into a cold shower would shock many of us. When we are in the state of cold shock, our body responds by deep breathing which increases overall oxygen intake. More oxygen means increased blood flow, giving us an extra dose of energy.
5.) Relieves Sore Muscles
Several studies have found that people who take cold showers (or a bath) after strenuous exercise were relieved of their muscle aches. The subjects took cold showers for several days and found that their muscles felt better than if they were to take hot showers.
We decided to put these ideas to the test!
Check out the video below:
We found that due to the short amount of time, there was not much of a difference from taking a cold shower for a week. Although, the rush of cold water gave us a boost of energy to get more work done. This may be a beneficial discovery, during finals week as it is easy to become extremely drained. A cold shower might be the solution over ten cups of coffee, the natural boost of energy may motivate hard core studiers to power through. The study on feeling less down or anxious was not really noticeable, but the energized feeling after getting out of the cold shower somewhat took our mind off of pointless things that are easy to get caught up on.
