Just a little Science Stuff For Ya
Whether you’re a hard-core science nerd or you barely made it out of your high school biology lab, you deserve to know if there is evidence to back up the idea that taking a regular cold dip will do more than make you shiver.
And, much like a good cold dip, finding out shouldn’t be painful. So we’ve gathered some of the claims and some of the science of cold water immersion so you can decide for yourself if this is a fad or a life-changer.
Is it just a fad?
First, let’s address the question of whether this is all just a fad. Which means, before we start science class, we’re going to take a detour into history. Sorry.
If it’s a fad, then Hippocrates — aka the father of modern medicine — was also one of the first influencers. The ancient Greeks and Romans were using cold water immersion despite not having the chance to post about it on TikTok.
And it never went out of style. Thomas Jefferson was a fan of cold foot baths every morning (Full-body baths weren’t really a thing in the U.S. back then, which is reason No. 1,942 we’re glad to be alive now.)
In 1762, a French paper suggested that a cold soak was good for “rarefying the blood and rendering it more fluid, for arousing the animal spirits and causing them to circulate more rapidly ... lastly, for rendering the body agile and vigourous.” Leave it to the French to find cold water arousing.
So, there’s really nothing new to cold dips. What’s new is that we have studies and research that tell us, in part, not just that cold water makes us feel good but exactly how. Still with us? Let’s blast off to the science section.
The science behind why cold dips make you feel better
The claims about benefits of cold water immersion can be summarized by saying it will make you happier, healthier and better looking. To which we say, yes, yes, and maybe…
How can dipping into cool water increase happiness? The same way some drugs do. But with a cold water dip, the "high" is actually longer lasting. Really.
Researchers keep coming up with the same result. People who take cold dips report being less sad, angry and stressed and more happy, focused and chill. (Pun totally intended.) How? Because the cold raises levels of serotonin, cortisol, dopamine, norepinephrine, and β-endorphin, the brain chemicals that impact emotional and stress regulation and reward processing.
One study showed that immersion in cool water raised dopamine levels by up to 250% and noradrenaline by 530%.
There’s even a case study of a 24-year-old woman suffering from severe depression that wasn’t relieved by antidepressants. After a weekly practice of cold water swims. She saw immediate improvement in mood after each swim. A year later, she was off all antidepressants and symptom free.
It makes sense when you think about it. The most popular class of antidepressants are SSRIs – Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors. They work by keeping serotonin levels high because serotonin can help prevent or correct feelings of depression. It also works with melatonin to help control when you sleep and wake up, as well as how you feel pain.
It’s not all in your head.
So it’s pretty clear (and cool) that cold dips can boost your mood. What do they do for the rest of your body? They can lower your triglyceride levels, boost your immune system, fire up your metabolism and increase your insulin sensitivity.
Increasing insulin sensitivity is key to keeping your glucose levels, well, level. Rapid changes in blood sugar can cause hunger, brain fog, fatigue, hormonal problems including menopause symptoms. Improved glucose balance reduces your chances of developing fatty liver disease, Alzheimer’s disease and even cancer.
In a not-so-shocking twist if you’ve read this far, cool dips into water can even help prevent or manage Type 2 diabetes. A study found that 10 days of intermittent cold water bathing led to more than 40% increase in insulin sensitivity. That’s on par with the best results you can expect from medicines and exercise.
The fat that is your friend: Brown and beige fat
Central heating and air conditioning is comfortable, but it’s not what our bodies were made for. Our bodies were made to cope with fluctuations in temperature. When we’re born, we have plenty of brown fat, which helps us regulate our temperature through a a process called thermogenesis. But it turns out it’s kind of a use-it-or-lose-it situation with brown fat. As we get older, and we stay mostly in a narrow, very comfortable band of temperatures, we lose it.
Ever wonder why your grandpa moved to Florida or why your mom doesn't want to join on your family ski trips? It’s because they’ve lost most of their brown fat. Until a couple decades ago, doctors thought the brown fat just went away when we grew up. But, spoiler alert, it’s still there, waiting to be called into action. Best of all, even if you’ve lost most of your brown fat, you can regenerate it!!
Unlike white fat, which is set up to store excess energy to keep you from starving for a while if you run out of food, brown fat and its little brother beige fat (kind of a combination of brown and white fat) are there to keep you warm. Cold exposure causes them to jump into action, burning calories through thermogenesis. And don’t worry, you won’t burn them out! In fact, exposure to cold helps build up your brown fat volume, which is super cool.
Cold water immersion can, in fact, boost your metabolism by a whopping 350%!
Cold Shock Proteins and the Battle Against Free Radicals
No, it’s not a comic book movie. It’s how cold dips help slow the aging process. When you take a sudden dip into cool or cold water, your liver will release Cold Shock Proteins that help clean up the free radicals that are a key part of aging. Free radicals are unstable atoms that can damage your body’s cells and lead to things like crepey skin and illness.
So, you’re saying a cold dip will make me hot?
No. It won’t make you better looking because you’re already gorgeous. Really. If you don’t realize that, it’s all in your head.
Look, the world is full of products designed to make you feel bad about yourself. So while we have evidence that cold water immersion will boost your metabolism and kick-start your body on burning brown fat, we don’t focus on weight loss. And while there’s evidence it can slow the outward signs of aging, we don’t focus on that because we’ve got more important things to think about. Our focus is on making you feel your best and be healthier. If you lose a few pounds or develop a radiant glow because it tightens your pores, that’s just a pleasant side effect of boosting your confidence, mood and general wellbeing.
So when we talk about metabolism and fat burning, or about anti-aging and cellular repair, we want to be as clear as the water in a Doodip tub. It’s not about how you look. It’s about how you feel. And it turns out, your body feels pretty good with a regular routine of cold water immersion.
How cold are we talking? Do I need to see ice to get a benefit?
Nope. If you want to try to prove your toughness by soaking in the equivalent of an over-iced coffee drink, go for it. But to get benefits from cold water, anything below 60 degrees fahrenheit will do the trick.
It’s not for everyone
While we believe cold dips will benefit the vast majority of people, it’s definitely not for everyone. If you have heart disease or unmanaged high blood pressure, this may not be for you. Like everything new, you should check with your doctor before starting cold water immersion therapy.
