Wellbeing expert Dr Michael Mosley has delved into a shower trick that he said can boost mood and mean you take fewer sick days. Dr Mosley was speaking on a new BBC Radio 4 podcast called Cold Therapy, looking at how to “invite the cold into your life”.
During the series he is examining how to “harness the power of the cold”, looking at the latest research and speaking to experts along the way. Introducing the podcast, Dr Mosley said: “The cold is something we, at times, work with and harness in ways that can help our health and wellbeing.”
Dr Mosley began the second episode of the series speaking about an incident where his son fell out of an upstairs bedroom window when he was sleepwalking and bashed his head. He said they used the age-old technique of putting frozen peas on his head while waiting for an ambulance.
He had a scan at the hospital and it was found that he’d cracked his skull. Dr Mosley’s son made a full recovery and he said he was “convinced the cold played a big part in that”.
Dr Mosley’s guest was Dr Amir Pakravan, a consultant in sport, exercise and musculoskeletal medicine, who has worked with the men’s and women’s national basketball teams and Premier League football club Crystal Palace.
Dr Mosley said: “There is of course a long history of using cold for healing purposes.” He said there was also a long history of combining cold with heat, citing the Finnish tradition of alternating a hot sauna with a cold dip, which has been linked with many benefits, including a long life.
Dr Pakravan said: “When you turn up at a sporting event, one of the first things you check with the host team or people there is ‘do we have ice?'”
He added that it was “an extremely common practice” to use ice on injuries like sprains as an immediate action to try to control the initial swelling and help with the pain. Not doing so, he said, would mean significant swelling, which could compromise a medic’s assessment of the injury.
Dr Mosley said cold was known to reduce pain by temporarily slowing the speed of signals travelling through the nerves, as well as taking the patient’s focus away from the pain and onto the cold. He went on to discuss alternating hot and cold therapy to treat injuries, known as contrast therapy. Dr Pakravan said this had proven to be effective in treating osteoporosis.
How hot-cold showers can benefit your health
Dr Mosley said there were other benefits to be had, saying: “As well as reducing stress, hot-cold cycling could also boost your energy and, surprisingly, reduce the amount of sick leave you take.”
He said a study in the Netherlands of more than 3,000 people split participants into two groups. One stuck with hot showers, while the other alternated between hot and cold showers, starting with a hot one and then spending either 30, 60 or 90 seconds under cold water.
Dr Mosley said: “Over the course of the following winter, those who did the hot-cold combo took nearly 30% less sick leave and most reported a boost in energy levels, so much so that nearly two-thirds of the participants carried on with the hot-cold showering after the completion of the study. And, for me, the really good news was that ending with a 30-second cold shower was just as effective as the full 90 seconds.”
He said if you wanted to try it, Dr Pakravan suggested starting with the water a little warmer than body temperature, then switching to something colder.
Dr Pakravan said: “It’s not freezing, it’s not zero, it’s within a range that would be the same temperature as having a cold glass of water.”
Dr Mosley then had a go himself, saying: “There are many ways you can do it, but I start by having a quick wash in warm water, then 30 to 40 seconds of cold. I normally time myself by belting out a couple of verses of a song – and I find that also helps with the shock.
“If you want you can do a second hot-cold cycle on top of the first, although I’ve not seen any compelling evidence that this is particularly beneficial. And a note of caution, if you have any cardiovascular issues, do seek medical advice before giving this a go, as it can temporarily push up your blood pressure.”
Concluding, Dr Mosley said: “So, that’s the power of cold, it can reduce swelling, soothe pain and help your recovery after an injury. And if you alternate heat with cold, you just might see an improvement in mood and energy and have less sick days. A hot shower followed by a cold one is a simple way you can bring the benefits of the cold into your life.”
Laura Adams is a tech enthusiast residing in the UK. Her articles cover the latest technological innovations, from AI to consumer gadgets, providing readers with a glimpse into the future of technology.
