When is the best time to start taking a cold shower? The advantages and disadvantages of taking a cold shower for men and women

As the temperature gradually rises, many friends start taking cold showers. Taking cold showers has many benefits, which can not only cool you down but also strengthen your body. However, taking cold showers should be done step by step in a scientific way. So what are the advantages and disadvantages of taking cold showers, and how to take a cold shower? The following Encyclopedia Knowledge Network will tell you the advantages and disadvantages of taking a cold shower, and how to take a cold shower best.

When is the best time to start taking cold showers?

If you have never taken a cold shower before, taking a cold shower suddenly will cause your blood vessels to contract, your body temperature to drop, and your body to get cold, leading to a cold. Therefore, taking a cold shower should start in the summer and continue from summer to autumn until winter, and it is best not to interrupt it.

How to take a cold shower

Starting from the summer, keep doing it, step by step; do "warm-up" exercises before taking a cold shower, rub your skin with your hands for a few minutes until you feel red and hot; in order to let the body slowly adapt to the cold water, it is not advisable to immerse the whole body in cold water suddenly at first. It is best to splash some cold water on the body with your hands or shower head, or wet your hands and feet with cold water first, then use a towel to soak some cold water to wet the front and back of the chest, rub the body for a while before pouring cold water all over the body, quickly wipe dry until the skin is red, and feel refreshed, which means that there is a good effect. If you feel chills, you should shorten the shower time or increase the water temperature. The water temperature should not be too low, 5℃-25℃ is appropriate, and the time should not be too long, about 10-15 minutes, and no longer than half an hour. After washing, wrap yourself in a bath towel or put on a bathrobe immediately, and put on clothes to keep warm immediately to avoid catching a cold.

It is best to take a cold shower once every 1 to 3 days, but do not take it more than a week apart. If you persist, you will get a good exercise effect. The duration of a cold shower should be from short to long, starting with about 10 minutes each time. As the body gradually adapts, it can be continued for about 20 minutes.

What are the benefits of taking a cold shower?

Benefits of cold water bathing: boost immunity

Cold water bath can enhance the body's resistance to disease, and is known as "vascular gymnastics". When taking a cold water bath, the surface of the skin will shrink and turn white due to the cold water in the first 1 to 2 minutes, and the blood will flow to the deep internal organs. However, after 2 to 3 minutes of bathing and the body adapts, the blood will be redistributed and flow back to the surface of the skin, and the skin will gradually turn red. The whole process is like doing vascular gymnastics.

The benefits of taking a cold shower are that you won’t catch a cold

People who often catch colds and have poor immunity can take more cold showers to increase their body's tolerance to cold and improve their immunity. In addition, blood will flow to the internal organs, which can remove toxins from the internal organs and promote metabolism.

The benefits of taking a cold shower are calming and refreshing

Rapid heartbeat and dry mouth can cause autonomic nervous system disorders. Taking a cold shower can calm the autonomic nervous system and help you sleep and calm your mind. At the same time, under the stimulation of cold water, the brain will immediately become excited, mobilizing organs and tissues throughout the body to strengthen activities to resist the cold; the dilation of blood vessels throughout the body is regulated by the central nervous system. Long-term cold shower exercise can enhance the function of the central nervous system through nerve reflexes and brain function, slowing down the aging and death of brain cells.

The benefits of taking a cold shower are that it helps digestion

Taking a cold shower can promote gastrointestinal motility and improve digestive function, but do not take a cold shower within half an hour after a meal to prevent blood from flowing out of the stomach quickly, which can easily cause indigestion. It is understood that when cold water acts on the skin, it causes skin blood vessels to contract sharply, and blood flows to the internal organs or deep tissues, which can enhance the metabolic process of the internal organs and increase heat. When the blood circulation in the abdominal cavity is accelerated, the gastrointestinal function is active, the intestinal motility is accelerated, and the digestion and absorption capacity can be improved, thereby enhancing the function of the entire digestive system and making people have a strong appetite.

The benefits of taking a cold shower are skin elasticity

Taking a cold shower can obviously stimulate the nervous system, causing the heart rate to speed up, breathing to deepen, and blood flow to accelerate, which can not only promote metabolism, but also make the skin soft and elastic. Therefore, taking a cold shower frequently can make the blood flow to the subcutaneous tissue and make the skin softer and more elastic.

Benefits of taking a cold shower to prevent disease

Taking a cold shower does have certain benefits for the body. Through the stimulation of cold water, peripheral blood vessels will contract, and some blood will flow back to the internal organs, increasing the supply of oxygen and nutrients to the internal organs. Extreme stimulation can exercise the body's immune ability, thereby better resisting the invasion of external cold and other disease factors. Long-term and continuous cold shower exercise will not only increase the elasticity of blood vessels, but also prevent vascular sclerosis, colds, bronchitis, tonsillitis, pneumonia, etc.

What are the disadvantages of taking a cold shower?

The disadvantages of taking a cold shower for people with poor physical condition

People with poor physical constitution should not take cold showers, otherwise, their resistance is poor, and the cold stimulation will cause colds, fevers and other diseases. Sweating profusely, being hot and unbearable, and wanting to cool down as soon as possible, taking cold showers at this time to relieve the suffering of irritability and heat is unscientific. Because, due to the sudden stimulation of cold water, the blood vessels in the skin will immediately contract, the blood circulation resistance will increase, the burden on the heart and lungs will increase, and the body's resistance will be reduced, and potential bacteria and viruses in the human body will take advantage of the opportunity to enter, thus causing diseases.

Disadvantages of taking a cold shower after exercise

Just for the sake of momentary pleasure, you take a cold shower from head to toe after exercise. You may feel refreshed at the time, but you may feel weak afterwards, and some may even have a headache. This is because when the body sweats a lot, the capillaries are in an expanded state. If you take a cold shower, the blood vessels will shrink sharply, and the heat in the body will be affected by external factors and cannot be dissipated for a while. In addition, the arteries in the brain are very rich and very sensitive to external stimuli. In hot seasons, the head is particularly prone to sweating after exercise. If you rinse the head with cold water at this time, it may cause abnormal function of the intracranial blood vessels, causing dizziness, headache, blackness in front of the eyes, and even vomiting. In severe cases, it may also cause intracranial hemorrhage.

Disadvantages of taking a cold shower after drinking alcohol

After drinking and sweating, the glucose in the human body is converted into heat and consumed, which greatly reduces the blood sugar content and lowers the body temperature. The alcohol contained in the wine can inhibit the normal activity of the liver and hinder the recovery of glucose storage in the body, so that blood sugar cannot be replenished in a timely and effective manner. This can easily cause symptoms such as dizziness, headache, blurred vision, and general weakness. In severe cases, blood sugar coma may occur. After sweating and drinking, you cannot take a cold shower immediately to avoid dangerous situations that endanger human health.

The following people are not suitable for taking cold showers

It is best not to bathe infants and people over 60 years old. Women should not bathe during menstruation or pregnancy, and the water temperature should not be too low. For people with poor immunity due to long-term overtime work or illness, bacteria and viruses can easily take advantage of the situation and cause colds, pharyngitis and other diseases. People who are sensitive to cold water should not bathe, otherwise they will get a rash. Cold showers for patients with hypertension will increase their blood pressure and even cause cerebral hemorrhage, stroke, coma, etc. Cold showers for patients with heart disease will increase the burden on the heart and induce angina pectoris, acute myocardial infarction and even sudden death. Patients with rheumatism and sciatica will have local pain aggravated by cold water stimulation, so they should not take cold showers.

The following conditions are not suitable for taking a cold shower

After drinking

After drinking, the pores of the skin are fully open. When taking a cold shower, the pores will rapidly contract due to the cold water. The impact is too great and the body cannot bear it.

After intense exercise

When engaging in strenuous exercise, just like drinking alcohol, you will produce heat due to sweating, which will open up all the pores of your skin. If you take a shower immediately, your body will not be able to bear it.

Insufficient Qi and Blood

Women are not suitable for taking cold showers and doing vascular exercises during menstruation, pregnancy, and postpartum confinement because they are weak, have insufficient Qi and blood, and have poor blood circulation.

Just had a full meal

When you eat, blood will flow to the stomach to help digest food. If you take a cold shower immediately, the blood will flow from the stomach to other internal organs of the body, affecting digestion. You should take a cold shower half an hour after a meal.

Feeling unwell

If you have a cold, fever, or any other physical discomfort such as inflammation, it is not suitable to take a cold shower because your body is weak.

What are the rules for women to take cold showers

Many people believe that taking a cold shower is good for health, and many female friends have joined this group and insist on taking it all year round. However, they do not know that taking a cold shower can give women the opportunity to get some gynecological diseases.

When taking a cold shower, the water temperature is too low, and the human body will feel cold, which will produce a series of stress reactions, such as increased heart rate, increased blood pressure, muscle contraction, nervous tension, etc., which not only cannot eliminate fatigue, but also easily cause colds, so it should be avoided as much as possible. Due to special physiological reasons, women, especially those during menstruation, lactation, and pregnancy, will encounter endocrine disorders, amenorrhea, abdominal pain, and many bacteria will enter the vagina to cause gynecological diseases such as vaginitis, which will have a certain impact on women's future pregnancy and physical health.

For those female friends with poor physical constitution, they should not take cold showers, otherwise their poor resistance will cause colds, fever and other diseases due to the stimulation of cold. Dr. Yao also reminded that due to the great climate change in some areas this year, the flu season has come earlier this year, so colds should be prevented early. Taking cold showers is not a wise move for female friends. However, you can insist on washing your face with cold water for a long time to promote blood circulation, prevent colds and rhinitis, and make your skin more shiny and elastic.

After sweating, people's metabolism is vigorous. In order to maintain a constant body temperature, the blood vessels on the surface of the skin expand, the sweat pores open, and the perspiration increases to dissipate the excess heat.

Is cold shower fitness really suitable for women ?

Although cold water exercise is good for improving physical fitness, it is not suitable for everyone. Especially for women, they should carefully consider their own physical constitution. After all, women's tolerance to low temperatures is relatively poor, and most women have a yang deficiency constitution and are easily afraid of cold. At the same time, in order to prevent female arthritis and gynecological diseases, women (especially those who are pregnant, giving birth, and menstruating) should try to avoid the stimulation of cold water in their daily lives.

Relevant experimental data show that the cleaning power of hot water is 5 times that of cold water. Due to the unique physiological cycle and poor resistance, if women are frequently stimulated by cold water, their resistance will be reduced, and pathogenic microorganisms can take advantage of the situation and enter, thus causing colds or other diseases.

Studies have found that the sensors in women's skin are extremely sensitive. As long as the brain receives cold information, it will instantly feel cold and the blood vessels will naturally contract. If you take a cold shower, the human body will produce a series of stress reactions, such as increased heart rate, increased blood pressure, muscle contraction, and nervous tension. Especially during lactation, pregnancy, and menstruation, women are easily induced to suffer from a variety of gynecological diseases after being stimulated by cold water, which will have adverse effects on women's pregnancy and physical health.

There are some rules for women to take cold showers, and they should be done step by step.

1. Before taking a cold shower, you should warm up your body by moving your body. Rub your whole body quickly with both hands, from the body to the limbs, evenly rubbing with moderate force until you feel redness and heat. When sweating, you should wait until the sweat has dried or wipe it with a towel before entering the cold shower.

2. When taking a bath, first "pour" water on the limbs, then rinse the chest and back after a few minutes, or put the towel in cold water, wring it dry and then wipe the body, so that the body has a gradual adaptation process.

3. When the body is able to adapt, you can directly rinse it with cold water, rubbing it while rinsing.

4. The water temperature should be around 15 degrees Celsius, and the bathing time should not exceed 15 minutes. It is best to adapt to the body. After bathing, quickly dry with a dry towel, put on loose clothes, and rub the joints of the body with both hands to prevent the occurrence of arthritis.

5. If you experience insomnia, weight loss, physical discomfort, or loss of appetite during cold water bathing, you should stop taking cold water baths.

6. It is not advisable to take a cold shower immediately on an empty stomach, after a meal or after strenuous exercise. It is also not suitable for people with unhealed skin wounds, weak constitution or fever.

Editor's note: In fact, whether it is hot water or cold water, it depends on the conditions to say whether it is beneficial or harmful to the body. Generally speaking, as long as the skin temperature does not change suddenly, it is fine. Generally speaking, from a woman's perspective, taking a cold shower for fitness is indeed a good way to maintain health, except for certain special circumstances that need to be paid attention to.

Is it better for men to take cold or hot showers ?

It is not good for men to take a bath with water that is too hot or too cold. It can easily irritate the skin, affect blood distribution throughout the body, cause blood vessels to relax or shrink, and then affect blood circulation in capillaries. For men, overheated water can cause sweating, shortness of breath, loose skin and flesh, dry mouth and fatigue, and reproductive disorders.

Foreign medical researchers have found that when healthy men soak in relatively warm water for one hour, the number, motility and penetration of sperm are significantly reduced, and one hour can damage a person's fertility for up to six weeks. When sperm is collected 36 hours after a hot bath, the above damage can still be seen. Many people bathe in hot water above 40°C, which is more harmful. Therefore, men should try not to take hot baths, especially not soak in hot water for a long time.

But don't take a bath with water that is too cold, as this will cause the skin, pores, and blood vessels to shrink suddenly, and the skin and flesh to shrink, especially on hot nights. If the bath water is too cold, it will easily make people feel the skin all over the body shrink, which can cause shoulder, knee and abdominal pain over time, and can even become a trigger for arthritis and chronic diseases.

Men taking cold showers after sex can easily lead to impotence

In the hot summer, many people like to take cold showers, and some even take them more than once a day, especially men in the south. But they ignore an important issue. Hospital experts point out that under normal circumstances, taking cold showers is harmless, and taking more showers is not a bad idea. However, if you choose to take a cold shower after sex, the situation is different, and it is very likely to cause impotence in men.

Experts remind male patients not to take cold showers or blow cold wind after sex. Because blood vessels are in a state of dilation and organs are in an excited state at this time, the sudden cold will cause the blood vessels in the skin to contract suddenly, causing a large amount of blood to flow back to the heart, thereby increasing the burden on the heart. In addition, the stimulation of cold water and cool wind will cause the excretion holes of sweat glands to be blocked, causing sweat to be stored in the sweat glands and affecting health. The same is true for causing male impotence.

In modern society, people are busy with work and the pace of life is accelerating. Many men feel that they have certain symptoms of diseases but do not have time to go to the hospital for examination. Especially white-collar men are often plagued by various diseases without knowing it. Male friends should pay special attention to their own health status. Prevention is worse than treatment.