Everyone and their mom seems to be talking about cold plunging right now. Celebs like Kate Middleton and Brooke Shields have even openly shared their experiences with the practice. But despite all the positive testimonials surrounding this chilly health hack, scientific research into its actual health perks are still ongoing.
Now, there’s a new study that suggests that cold plunging can literally impact you on a cellular level, triggering them to start a process called autophagy that can have total-body benefits. In fact, doctors swear this cellular impact could help support your overall health and longevity. Women’s Health asked experts for their insights on the new study, and the latest health findings to better understand the phenomenon.
Meet the experts: Joseph J. Ciotola, MD, is an orthopedic surgeon at Baltimore’s Mercy Medical Center who has studied with cold plunge expert Wim Hof; Bert Mandelbaum, MD, is a sports medicine specialist and co-director of the Regenerative Orthobiologic Center at Cedars-Sinai Orthopaedics in Los Angeles; Phillip Williams, MD, is an assistant professor of orthopedic surgery at Baylor College of Medicine; lead study author Kelli King, PhD, is a postdoctoral fellow at University of Ottawa’s School of Human Kinetics.
What did the study find?
The study, which was published in the journal Advanced Biology, had 10 healthy young men do a cold plunge for an hour every day for a week straight.
The researchers collected blood samples before and after the plunges to look at how the participants’ cells responded to the cold plunges.
“We found that in as little as four days, cold water plunges can reduce cellular stress and increase a cellular protective mechanism called autophagy,” says lead study author Kelli King, PhD, a postdoctoral fellow at University of Ottawa’s School of Human Kinetics. “This mechanism helps remove damaged proteins and organelles in the body and is critical during stressful conditions—such as cold exposure—to facilitate cell survival.”
How do cold plunges change your cells?
Exposure to cold is what’s known to doctors as a hormetic stressor, explains Joseph J. Ciotola, MD, an orthopedic surgeon at Baltimore’s Mercy Medical Center who has studied with cold plunge expert Wim Hof. And this “stressor” is actually good for you in moderation, as it helps your body build resilience and greater tolerance to distress.
“This uses your body’s natural adaptive abilities and stimulates the cells with the cold,” he says. “These hormetic stressors, which also include fasting and heat exposure from saunas, use your body’s own potential to heal, ultimately making it more resistant to disease.”
In this instance, by repeatedly exposing yourself to cold temperatures like you’d experience with a cold plunge, your body learns to more effectively deal with extreme environmental conditions, King says.
Doing things like cold plunges “trains the body to adapt and survive,” says Bert Mandelbaum, MD, sports medicine specialist and co-director of the Regenerative Orthobiologic Center at Cedars-Sinai Orthopaedics in Los Angeles. “Hormetic stressors like cold plunges are really getting us to perform at the highest level and to adapt to different stresses,” he adds.
What are the health benefits?
The health benefits from this particular study are all thanks to a process called autophagy. Autophagy specifically helps clear out damaged proteins, which are called protein aggregates and are a precursor to several chronic conditions, she explains. This allows healthier cells to thrive.
“There is growing literature that autophagy is a key component in disease prevention, including metabolic conditions such as type 2 diabetes, neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, as well as certain cancers,” King says.
High rates of autophagy can even help to regulate uncontrolled cell growth, i.e. cancer, King says.
What else can cold plunges help with?
A lot of the perks around cold plunges so far have been linked to inflammation and mental health. “Cold plunges can reduce inflammation, accelerate muscle recovery, and ease joint pain—key for athletic performance and post-surgical rehab,” says Phillip Williams, MD, assistant professor of orthopedic surgery at Baylor College of Medicine. “They also trigger endorphin release, improving mood and stress resilience.”
Again, research into the potential perks of cold plunges is ongoing. So, it’s entirely possible that there are more health benefits still to be discovered in the future.
What counts as a “cold plunge”?
This particular study had participants do cold plunges in water that was 57.2 degrees Fahrenheit. Most research into cold plunges focuses on temperatures between 50 and 60 degrees Fahrenheit.
For beginners, it can be good to start with 30 seconds to a minute of exposure to the water. Once you’ve done it more often, you can work up to five to 10 minutes at a time, per the Mayo Clinic. In this study, the participants did 60-minute cold plunges, but you don’t need to stay in that long to reap some of the other established brain and anti-inflammation benefits!
Mayo Clinic Health Systems
Article: Speaking of Health | Tuesday, January 30, 2024
Can taking a cold plunge after your workout be beneficial?
From ice bucket challenges to polar plunges, people have embraced being doused with or dunked in icy water to raise money for their favorite causes. But can cold water immersion have benefits beyond fundraising?
Research indicates that icy water may have a positive effect on recovery after exercise by reducing inflammation and soreness. It also may help build resiliency, restore balance to the nervous system and improve cognitive function and mood.
What are the basics of cold-water immersion?
A cold plunge or cold-water immersion involves partially or totally submerging yourself in cold water for a few minutes at a time. It can be as simple as sitting in a bathtub filled with cold water and ice cubes or jumping into a cold lake or the ocean. You also can go to a cold-plunge center or create or buy your own cold-plunge tank, which, if it has all the options, can cost up to $20,000.
Be sure not to plunge into icy waters that have a current, such as a river, to avoid being swept downstream or trapped under ice.
Water should be 50 F or colder. Keep in mind that the water in a frozen lake will be much colder. That’s why it’s a good idea to measure the temperature before you jump in. The plunge can be done as one continuous session or multiple sessions with breaks between the sessions. Typically, cold-water plungers start with 30 seconds to a minute and work up to five to 10 minutes at a time.
Researchers are still determining the optimum process and timing for cold-water immersion sessions.
You can do cold plunging every day. However, if you’re doing it after training, daily plunges could compromise the potential for long-term performance improvements.
What are the benefits for workout recovery or athletic performance?
Research on cold-water immersion has found evidence that it helps reduce the degree of exercise-induced muscle damage that can occur after physically challenging activities. Less damage leads to less inflammation, which in turn reduces soreness and helps restore physical performance the next day.
These benefits may be the result of rapid constriction of the blood vessels due to the cold water. The cold can trigger responses in your body, such as decreased metabolic activity, alterations in hormone production and blood flow, and activation of the immune system.
What are the drawbacks of cold plunges?
The most obvious drawback is the cold and discomfort, although frequent plungers report becoming more comfortable and tolerant of the cold with regular exposure. Depending on the environment, such as plunging into an ice- and snow-covered lake, you also may be at risk for frostbite. Too-long exposure also can lead to hypothermia, so make sure you have towels and warm clothing close at hand if you’re doing cold plunges outdoors.
For athletes, cold-water immersion may affect different types of training in different ways. For those engaged in resistance training, cold water may turn down the molecular signaling pathways that are normally activated after exercise. This may hinder long-term improvements in strength, muscle growth and performance. However, cold-water immersion doesn’t appear to negatively affect endurance training in the same way.
If you want to give cold-water immersion a try, start by consulting an expert, such as a sports medicine specialist, to ensure you’re plunging appropriately and following the right protocol. If you have risk factors associated with cardiovascular disease, such as high blood pressure, check with your primary care provider or cardiologist so you know it’s safe for you to cold plunge.
Andrew Jagim, Ph.D., specializes in sports medicine in La Crosse and Onalaska, Wisconsin.