Contents:
- Medical Video: Cold Water Vs Warm Water: One of Them is Damaging to Your Health
- Hot shower
- Benefits of hot baths
- Risk of hot showers
- Cold shower
- Benefits of cold shower
- Risk of cold shower
Medical Video: Cold Water Vs Warm Water: One of Them is Damaging to Your Health
Bathing and cleaning yourself are daily necessities that provide so many benefits for your health. However, it turns out bathing with different temperatures will have a different impact on you. This is a heated debate, which one is healthier for you? Bathing in hot water or cold water?
Actually, both a hot shower and cold water are equally beneficial for your health. According to health experts, there is no single correct recommendation. However, because of its different properties, you can adjust for yourself what best suits your needs and conditions. To help you make your choice, consider the advantages and disadvantages of the following hot or cold water showers.
READ ALSO: 5 Unhealthy Habits You Often Do in the Bathroom
Hot shower
If you like hot showers, there are several things that must be considered. For example the temperature of water used for bathing. According to a skin specialist, Dr. Melissa Piliang, the water temperature should not be higher than 44 degrees Celsius. In addition, if you take a bath with hot water at this temperature, avoid taking too long. Hot bath for 5-10 minutes can provide health benefits for your body.
Benefits of hot baths
If you take a bath with hot water according to the recommendations mentioned earlier, you will feel some benefits as below.
- Blood circulation, especially if you take a shower under a stable water pressure. Standing under a shower for five minutes can further facilitate circulation in the arteries and blood vessels.
- Relaxes tense, stiff, and painful muscles. While enjoying a hot shower, you can move your neck, shoulders, waist, or other body parts that are feeling stiff. You can also lightly massage your body, for example on your arms or legs. If you have a shower, you can also take a shower with hot water and stand under it for about 10 minutes. The water pressure from the shower serves as a natural massager that is effective in relieving aching and stiff muscles.
- Reduces stress and anxiety. A study published in England in 2002 revealed that hot water can stimulate the brain to produce the hormone oxytocin. This hormone is responsible for making you feel more happy and positive.
- Prevent insomnia and sleep disorders. For those of you who have trouble sleeping because of insomnia or have certain sleep disorders, please try taking a hot shower before going to bed. You will feel more calm and sleep better.
READ ALSO: Sleeping More Soundly by Bathing at Night, Really?
Risk of hot showers
Bathing with a temperature that is too hot for a long time risks causing various harmful effects on health. Here are some risks that might occur if you take a hot shower.
- Dry and cracked skin. Although it feels soothing, a hot shower can make skin dry. Because the hot water can disrupt the oil glands in the skin. As a result, the surface of the skin becomes cracked and itchy. If you have dry skin problems, you should avoid taking hot showers too often.
- Branched hair. Shampooing with hot water also risks causing dry hair. Dry hair becomes easily broken and branched off. Preferably, wash your hair with warm or lukewarm water. After finishing shampooing with warm water, end with cold water. This trick can make your hair look more radiant.
- Blood pressure drops suddenly. Hot water can reduce blood pressure. If your blood pressure drop it suddenly, you may feel your head glow and vision blurry. Be careful when taking a hot shower if you do suffer from hypotension or low blood pressure.
Cold shower
On a hot day or when you wake up early, a cold shower seems to be a refreshing choice. According to Dr. Melissa Piliang, the ideal cold water temperature ranges from 21 degrees Celsius. You are not recommended to bathe in ice water or water, which is lower than the recommended experts.
Benefits of cold shower
Getting used to taking a cold shower can provide many benefits. Here are the benefits of taking a cold shower for your health.
- Refreshes the mind. Taking a cold shower in the morning can keep you fresh and awake. Cold water temperatures can trigger the brain to produce the hormone norepinephrine, a type of adrenaline that will help your mind stay alert naturally.
- Maintain healthy hair and skin. Unlike hot water that makes the skin dry, cold water can keep the skin moist and supple. Your hair also becomes softer and naturally radiant.
- Increase endurance. A study in the European Journal of Applied Physiology and Occupational Physiology proves that cold temperatures can help strengthen the body's resistance. This is because when bathing in cold water, the body produces various proteins needed by the immune system to fight various viruses and bacteria that cause disease.
- Relieves depression. For sufferers of depression, there's nothing wrong with trying to take a cold shower. Cold water in contact with the nerve endings on the surface of the skin will send electrical impulses to the brain. This will be read as a signal to keep the brain active and fresh. The brain will also produce beta-endorphins which will make you feel better.
READ ALSO: Which is Healthier: Bathing with a Shower, Dipper, or Bath Tub?
Risk of cold shower
Whether taking a hot or cold shower, there are a number of risks that you must pay attention to. Try to avoid the following risks when you shower with cold water.
- Narrowing blood vessels. Many studies have proven that taking a cold shower can cause narrowing of the arteries. If not treated immediately, blood flow to your vital organs such as the heart and brain can become blocked. If your vital organs don't get oxygen-rich blood, the result can be fatal.
- Hypothermia. We recommend that you do not bathe with water that is too cold when the temperature around you is cold enough. Especially if you take a cold shower for a long time. Your body temperature is at risk drop it suddenly and it's hard to get back up. This is at risk of causing hypothermia and a weakening pulse.
READ ALSO: Cold Water Baths After Staying Late Turns Out to Be Dangerous
