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How did IceBath Therapy start? History, Research, and How it Helps.

If you browse Instagram, you’ll probably come across videos of individuals having cold showers by jumping into tubs that are filled with ice and very cold water.

Though it may seem like a fad on social media, immersing your body in icy water is a long-standing technique called cold water therapy, which is a subset of cryotherapy.

Today, Let’s have a look at how this all started.

History of Ice Bath Therapy:

(139 CE TO 216 CE)

Despite its long history, Cold Water Therapy has been there for thousands of years and employed by cultures all over the world.

Cold water immersion was recommended by Roman physician Claudius Galen as a therapy for fever and used for therapeutic and relaxation purposes in ancient Greece in 139 CE.

From there various merchants and travelers with time took this practice to the Western world, South Africa, and most Asian countries.

By the 1600s, it became a common practice for natives to build up their strength.

Later on in 2000’s:

A paper published in February 2022 in the European Journal of Applied Physiology changed the whole perspective and,

Soon after a while this research was published, a lot of athletes, both professional and amateur, used cold water treatment to aid in their recovery after workouts.

Using the knowledge gained from this was developed the Wim Hof Method which combines commitment exercises, breath work, and cold therapy.

What it does is when your body is submerged in cold water, your blood vessels tighten, directing blood toward your organs.

This process is called vasoconstriction.

This taught the modern world how specifically it affects blood pressure and the autonomic nervous system, which regulates automatic physiological processes like heart rate.

According to Dr. Leary, those same blood vessels dilate as soon as you step out of the chilly water.

The blood that is rich in oxygen and nutrients is pushed back into your tissues, assisting in the removal of waste products like lactic acid and reducing inflammation.

You cannot have disease or pain without inflammation.

Therefore, treatments that reduce inflammation, such as cold water therapy, may be beneficial for a variety of medical conditions.

The Benefit?

Regular use of cold water therapy may also assist your heart and blood vessels in the long run.

Because there are muscles around each blood vessel, cold water therapy strengthens blood vessels in the same way as performing bicep curls grows biceps.

This may eventually improve circulation by enhancing the flow of blood via your blood vessels.

You can receive cold water therapy at a physical therapy clinic, fitness center, specialty wellness studio, or in a natural body of water.

You can also get an Ice Code tub for your home to start your cold plunging journey.