Why cold showers are good for you: scientists have found several advantages

For many people, a hot shower or bath is one of the greatest pleasures of winter, as the feeling of hot water covering your body and warming it through is truly wonderful. And while it may seem counterintuitive to take a cold shower in the morning during the cold season, it can bring more benefits - strengthening the immune system, improving brain function, and alleviating symptoms of depression.

This is reported by the Express, citing data from two studies, one conducted by experts from the Netherlands and the other from the Czech Republic.

A study conducted in the Netherlands with more than three thousand people showed that a regular cold shower led to a statistical decrease in the incidence of the disease in adults without serious comorbidities.

Meanwhile, a Czech study concluded that when athletes immersed themselves in cold water three times a week for six weeks, it strengthened their immune system.

Another advantage of immersion in cold water, an ice shower or bath is the activation of the sympathetic nervous system, which controls internal organs during physical and emotional stress, and mobilises the body's forces for active activity. This part of the nervous system produces a hormone known as norepinephrine, which speeds up the heartbeat, constricts blood vessels and dilates the bronchi (so that we can breathe easier during stress).

That is why cold showers are believed to improve health, as the production of this hormone increases heart rate and blood pressure.

In addition, cold showers and immersion in cold water are potentially beneficial for mental health and are an excellent treatment for depression.

In 2008, our fellow countryman, molecular biologist Mykola Shevchuk, proved that regular cold showers give better results in the treatment of depression than pharmacological antidepressants.

"The mechanism that explains the good effect of immersion in cold water may be the stimulation of dopamine-energy metabolism in the mesolimbic and neurogastric pathways. Dopamine pathways control our emotions, and many studies have shown that these brain areas are linked to depression," Shevchuk explained.

The idea that cold water improves overall health is supported by the existence of cold water therapy, a form of medicine that has experienced a resurgence in recent decades.

Athletes are also harnessing the power of cold water, and ice baths have become commonplace in training programmes.

These ice baths are used as a form of cryotherapy to get rid of cramps, muscle soreness and to reduce the risk of injury.

And while a morning cold shower may seem uncomfortable and shocking at first, it has long-term benefits.

And if you start taking a two-minute cold shower at least a few times a week, you will feel how your life has changed in a month.

As OBOZREVATEL previously reported, American scientists have developed a new device that helps to get rid of severe depression.