7 Wonderful Effects of Taking A Cold Shower
This post was last updated on July 18th, 2023
You may hate it when you are forced to have a shower in the cold water. The very thought of it will send shivers down your spine and you may even think of skipping bath for a day! You mostly enjoy a warm shower that relaxes you to the core and you feel scared at the thought of getting wet in cold water.
But have you ever known that cold shower can be wonderful for your health? If no, then you need to make an analysis of the fact that a cold shower is great to have a supple skin, healthy hair along with stress relaxation for the complete body. There are many myths associated with taking a cold shower but you need to know that even warm shower has its own adverse impacts. Many people have the perception that if you bath in cold shower then you may suffer from ailments such as cough and cold, fever, pneumonia and even joint pains. But the truth is that cold shower is an extremely effective pain reliever.
In ancient times, people used to wake up early in the morning and used to bath on the banks of the rivers and lakes. It is said that bathing in cold water purifies you completely and as per Hindu rituals, it is essential to take a cold shower before you take the blessings of God. Besides, in many other cultures and countries, people believe that taking a cold shower is a great therapy to rejuvenate your senses.
To know why you should prefer taking a cold shower, you must read these 7 wonderful effects of taking a cold shower:
1. Beautifies Your Skin & Hair
On the external front, the cold shower has amazing effects on your skin and hair. Cold water effectively cleanses the skin’s pores and keeps them thoroughly moisturised. Hot water on the other hand, robs off the skin’s moisture making it extremely dry and opens the skin’s pores causing more accumulation of dust and dirt. Cold water shower tightens the pores so that it is protected from the bacteria responsible for the occurrence of acne, blisters, pimples or allergies, etc. Similarly, hot water makes your scalp and hair dry causing it to lack lustre. Cold water deeply cleanses your scalp while retaining the moisture levels and makes hair look shiny and healthy.
2. Relieves Depression
Not many people are aware of the fact that cold shower can relieve you from depression. Cold water has an intense effect on the mood of a person and can easily uplift the senses by impacting on the cold receptors on the skin. As soon as the soothing cold shower touches the skin, the cold receptors send a massive amount of electrical impulses to the brain that stimulates the mood and gives an instant anti-depression effect. You tend to feel better when your mind is stuck in the whirlpool of thoughts and you tend to feel less stress.
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3. Helps In Reducing Fat Content
Our body is composed of two kinds of fat, which are white fat and brown fat. While bathing in hot water hardly has any effect on our fat content, cold water has the capability to melt fat. When our body is in contact with cold water, our body instantly sends signals to the brain to warm up the body. In this process, to provide more energy to our body, the brown fat starts burning more and gives the body heat and resistance to sustain the cold water. Thereby, cold shower helps us in melting down the fat and stored calories.
4. Improves Concentration Level
There is an in depth scientific research in relating the cold water with our mental alertness and concentration levels. As per studies, when the cold water flows through our body, our rate of heart beat increases and we feel rush of blood on our complete body. This in turn, results in deep breathing and our whole body awakens and activates. We feel highly energetic and this is showcased by our attitude at work and home as we tend to perform our tasks with more concentration, vigour and alertness.
5. Triggers Repair Mechanism
Taking a bath is just not an activity aimed at cleansing your body. It is in fact, an exercise that ensures that your body parts are active enough to work for the whole day. When you take cold shower, the increased heart beat rate causes the blood to flow to all parts of the body vigorously. The flow of blood activates the functioning of all body parts and your body burns calories to absorb more nutrients and is processed fast to ensure removal of toxins from the body. Thereby, the calories are utilised well in repairing the strained muscles and tendons making them flexible and also helps to revitalise yourself after a hard core work out.
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6. Increases Immunity & Blood Circulation
Cold shower causes regulation of blood flow into the body and reduces the blockage in the arteries. This means it is actually good for people with high blood pressure as the pumping of blood in the arteries will be effectively done when bathed in cold shower. Moreover, researchers have found that people who take cold shower have more white blood cell count in comparison to people who bath in hot shower. Along with higher white blood cell count, cold shower can increase the concentration of plasma, T helper cells and lymphocytes, all of which makes you immune to lots of diseases.
7. Improves Metabolism Rate
Cold water is also great if you want to augment your metabolism rate. Cold shower helps in keeping your body temperature regulated. Since your body is warm and cold shower causes the body to cool, then to regulate the body temperature, more calories are burnt and energy is produced. In this way, the increase in metabolism rate due to bathing in cold shower will keep you fit, healthy and active. But you must keep in mind that you need to take cold shower for a short span only as longer exposure to cold water can have adverse impacts too.
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Snehashree Bhat
A young writer who loves to pen words from creative perspective. Passionate internet surfer, a versatile homemaker and a person who finds pleasure in adopting healthier and positive changes in her persona. An enthusiastic feminist who wishes to make serious changes in the stereotypical thought process of the society via the voice of her words.
