Introduction
We all know that showering is necessary to maintain hygiene, but did you know that the temperature of the water used can impact it? Well, it’s true. Both cold and hot water showers have benefits and cons. Read on to learn about them.
Cold Showers
To most people, cold showers are extremely uncomfortable, as they may feel like icicles going down your skin. Although they are painful, cold showers actually have a lot of benefits.
- Fosters immunity to colds: You don’t need to shower in cold water the whole time to receive benefits. All you need to do is shower normally in warm or hot water, then switch to cold for about 30-90 seconds. Once switching the temperatures, your body notices the change as if feeling a shock. In response, blood cells that are meant to fight off infections are produced to fight the cold. Then, you can switch back to warm water. Doing this for a few days can help build up the immune system, allowing your body to fight off infections more easily.
- Increase metabolism: Although this isn’t a very effective method, cold showering can help to increase metabolism. Your body’s energy gets expanded to try to stay warm while taking a cold shower. In the process, it burns a few calories.
- Decreases depression or anxiety: Studies have shown that people with depression, after several months of taking cold showers, have been reported to have fewer symptoms of depression. This is called cold water therapy. It most likely occurs because cold water has been seen to boost your mood, therefore decreasing depression and anxiety for some time.
Hot Showers
Hot showers are more universally enjoyed, but their benefits are less known. Here are a few benefits of taking hot showers.
- Helping sleep: Taking a nice hot shower at night before bed can help you sleep better. They relax muscles while elevating the body temperature. Although it seems strange, hot showers actually cool the body down. The heat causes the thermoregulatory system to make blood from your heart go down to your feet and hands. In short, it removes heat and temperature by flowing flood throughout the body.
- Clear skin: The hot water from a hot shower often produces steam. This creates a warm atmosphere for your skin, opening your skin’s pores. It will allow all the grime and dirt usually under the skin to wash out.
- Eases breathing difficulties: If you struggle with nasal or breathing issues, consider taking a hot shower. As said before, hot showers often produce steam. The steam is able to open airways as well as loosen mucus stuck in your nasal system. This cleans out the waste stuck in your nose blocking an airway.
Both kinds of showers have benefits as you’ve read, and there are even more to support both sides. Cold showers are more helpful to get healthy while hot showers are a great way to ease the body. Ultimately, it’s up to you to choose which is better.
RELATED STORIES:
https://www.uclahealth.org/news/article/6-cold-shower-benefits-consider
https://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/benefits-of-cold-vs-hot-shower
https://www.healthline.com/health/cold-shower-vs-hot-shower
https://us.sundaebody.com/blogs/sundae-school/benefits-taking-hot-shower
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