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Wednesday, June 12, 2013

The Health Benefits of Cold Showers


Cold Showers.
They sound terrifying if you’ve never done one. They’re sound amazing if you’re a veteran.
I talk a lot about cold showers around here. They’ve got a ton of benefits: clarity of mind and fearlessness to name a few. In the past I’ve focused specifically on the mental & psychological aspects of cold showers, but as it turns out, there’s quite a few actual scientifically studied health benefits of cold showers as well.
There seems to be quite a bit of misinformation and folklore around cold showers so I’ve tried to comb through and sort out the scientifically backed evidence from the urban legends. For more information, see the sources below.

The Health Benefits of Cold Showers

Improves Immune System
There are countless studies that first and foremost, cold exposure improves your immunity.
Cold water immersion has been shown to  increase metabolic rates due to shivering and activating the immune system. Those that participated in 6 weeks of immersions showed s a trend to wan increase in the plasma concentrations as well as T helper cells and lymphocytes.
In Sweden, it’s common practice to let small babies take naps outdoors in the cold. They’ve not only shown to be more resistant to diseases, but they also seem to sleep deeper and more soundly.
(Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-21537988 & http://herkules.oulu.fi/isbn9789514296673/isbn9789514296673.pdf.)
In Siberia, they take it step further and dump a whole bucket of cold water over their heads, in a ritual called Rodnichok or cold springs. They do this year round for ages 2-6. Again, this is in Siberia. Those kids are tough. It’s shown that about 95% of the kids who participate are healthy through the flu season as opposed to 75% of the those children in groups that don’t participate.
Lesson learned: if you want to be healthy – stick to the cold setting in your shower!
Fat Loss
When your body is exposed to cold, it requires more heat to warm you up. To do so, it has to process more energy and in doing so helps you burn more fat, more efficiently. It can also activate “brown fat”, which is a sort of good fat that helps generate heat, increase your metabolism and burn fat.
Improves Circulation
Cold water exposure over time is shown . Since cold exposure causes your blood flow to be redirected to your vital organs, it forces your body to circulate your blood more efficiently & effectively.
Regulates Temperature
Regular cold showers help limit heat loss, decrease core body temperature and regulate overall body temperature.
Relieves Depression
Cold showers have been shown to help relieve depression symptoms. Due to the high density of cold receptors in the skin, a cold shower is expected to send an overwhelming amount of electrical impulses from peripheral nerve endings to the brain, which could result in an anti-depressive effect. So if you need a pick-me-up, jump in the shower and turn it on blast.
(source: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17993252)
Keeps Skin & Hair Healthy (not dried out)
Cold water helps “close” pores. This keeps your skin looking smooth and healthy while not drying your skin out as hot water showers can sometimes do.  The cold water will help keep your hair look shiny and keep your skin soft, rather than itchy, ashy and dried out.
Increases Testosterone
A 1993 study done by the Thrombosis Research Institute in England showed cold baths to be correlated with high testosterone levels. We don’t have the direct link but try it for yourself and see. We promise at least that after spending 5-10 minutes in the freezing cold water, you’ll feel like more of a man.
Increases Fertility
As you can imagine, an increase in testosterone can lead to an increase in fertility. Not only do they give you energy, but hot showers drastically decrease sperm count. So, if you’re looking to pop out a few mini-me and want to give your little swimmers a fighting chance, stop  make sure to turn your water to cold.
Increases Energy
Besides the fact, that there’s nothing quite like a ice cold water to wake you up out of a daze, cold showers can actually increase energy. When you jump in teh shower, the nerve endings on your skin will stand up due to the ice world you just entered. You heart starts races and you start breathing rapidly as your body starts to adjust. That’s a whole response that the best cup of coffee in the world can’t match.
Lymphatic Movement
The lymphatic system takes waste away from your cells to help fight disease. It’s separate from your blood vessels, but is moved around by the contraction of your muscles. Cold showers cause your entire body to contract and forces the lymphatic system to push the lymph fluids throughout your body rather than pooling in one part of your body as it would if it were compromised or inefficient.
Decreases Inflammation
Ice baths have long been uses by elite athletes to help decrease inflammation after a workout. It can work to help alleviate DOMS by constricting the veins throughout your body and thereby removing toxins in your blood. When you get out, your system is flushed with fresh, nutrient-rich blood that can help repair muscles & tendons.
Breathing
Cold showers can force you to breathe deeper by forcing you to momentarily pause & hold your breath as sort of an automatic reflex when the cold water hits. It helps open up the lungs (similar to doing physical exercise) and helps bring in more oxygen.
Better Sleep
Remember the sleeping babies from earlier? Well, they’re not the only ones sleeping better at night thanks to the cold. Insomniacs are recommended to take cold showers to help aid sleep. It might be because the feeling you get after the initial shock of the shower helps your body calm down & releax.
Personal note: I’ve noticed that I sleep better and deeper when I’m taking cold showers than when I’m not.
Tolerance To Stress
In general, cold exposure gives your body a higher tolerance to stress by purposely exposing it to stress. Over time, this leads to strengthening and hardening of your body and your immune system (as we talked about earlier).
Cold showers have also been used to reduce chronic pain, reduce body aches, improve hair health, kidney function, reduce inflammation and regulate nervous system. Deepen your breathing and help fight fatigue and improve quality of sleep. Whew!

Additional Benefits
One of the main benefits seen throughout all these is the ability to subject the body to a certain level of stress under a controlled environment. By doing this, you teach your body to adapt to the stressors and become stronger. Whether it’s on a respiratory, circulatory or simple temperature regulation, you’ll find your body strengthening and hardening to these small stressors.

Of course, these are just the physical health benefits to cold shower therapy. I personally think the mental health benefits & the psychology of taking cold showers is worth it in and of itself, if you needed to know – there’s a whole suite of reasons why taking freezing cold showers might be the next big healthy thing you start doing.
TLDR: Do it. It might just change your life. 
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Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Cholesterol Countdown

American's cholesterol levels are moving in the right direction. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently analyzed data from three national health surveys from 1988-2010 and found that total cholesterol levels among adults dropped an average of 10 points, from 206 to 196, while bad LDL fell and good HDL rose slightly. Researchers credit wider us of  statins and, perhaps, fewer trans-fats in our diet  and lower smoking rates. But we still have work to do. Here are three small steps to help get-or-keep your numbers on track. 

Eat Apples. They're a source of soluble fiber, which helps reduce absorption of cholesterol into the blood stream. (Other foods that do this: Oat bran, oatmeal, beans, pears, peas, and barley.) And a small study of healthy, middle-aged adults has found that having one apple a day for four weeks lowered blood levels of oxidized LDL cholesterol (what hardens arteries). Those who took capsules of polyphenols (an antioxidant in apples) had a similar, less significant, effect. More diet tips to help control cholesterol: Focus on produce; choose whole grains, lean meats, low-fat dairy and olive or canola oils; and eat fish at least twice a week. 

Pump your heart. Walk, jog, bike, dance, play basketball or ice skate: Brisk activity increases heart rate, and doing it regularly can help boost "good" HDL by about 5 percent within a few months of starting. Aim for at least  30 minutes a day, five times a week(you can break your daily workout into three 10 minutes sessions.) Plus, new research in The Lancet suggests that if you work out regularly and take statins as part of a cholesterol-lowering plan, you dramatically cut risk of premature death. 

Sleep Longer. Research suggests a link between lack of sleep and weight gain (that's important because excess pounds contribute to high cholesterol). The latest: Researchers studied adults who slept four hours vs. nine; short sleep increased hunger stimulating hormones in men and reduced satiety hormones in women. Both could lead to overeating. 

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Wednesday, December 12, 2012

5 Strange (but True) Health Tips


1. Stop Bleeding with this Spice


Nearly every kitchen is equipped with this humble hero. Black pepper is naturally analgesic, antibacterial, and antiseptic, and it won’t sting when you sprinkle it onto and apply pressure to a well-washed wound to stop bleeding.

2. Disinfect a Wound with Honey


Nix the Neosporin, which comes with unhealthy and, to some, allergenic ingredients in the ointment. Keep the pantry stocked with raw honey from your local beekeeper. Or, more practically, from your local health food store. It’s antibacterial, antimicrobial, an antioxidant, and humectant, which means that any wound healed with honey will heal faster and leave less of a scar. (That’s also what makes it such a good remedy for acne and dry skin.) Think honey is too sweet to pack a healthy punch? A study published in the Archives of Surgery says that honey kills almost all strains of bacteria seen in everyday wounds.
Check out some amazing health benefits of honey.

3. Prevent Claustrophobia by Smelling an Apple


Sniffing a green apple can help you feel less nervous in tight spaces according to Dr. Alan Hirsch, M.D. Try carrying one with you in your bag if you begin to feel claustrophobic on the subway to work. It may sound strange, but give it a try.

4. Massage Away Nicotine Cravings


As published in Preventive Medicine, a study found that men who rubbed the skin between their index fingers and thumbs and the middle of their palms smoked 25 percent fewer cigarettes than quitters who relied on conventional methods, like chewing gum. The action of keeping your hands busy in such calming motions seemed to do the trick.

5. Eat This Oil to Lose Weight


We’ve become deathly scared of oils and fats in the past few decades, thanks to the ad campaigns of Crisco and various diet fads shunning fat. Coconut oil is high in saturated fats, which were demonized in the ‘70s, but as many human studiesshow today, this oil can actually help cut abdominal fat In one experiment, a group of women receiving 2 tablespoons of coconut oil daily for 12 weeks lost visceral fat and experienced a rise in “good” HDL cholesterol levels while the control receiving no coconut oil group saw no changes.
Shedding girth isn’t the only reason to think about adding coconut oil to your daily diet. It can improve bone and dental health as well as prevent—even reverse!—Alzheimer’s disease. Read here for more health benefits of coconut oil.
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Friday, October 5, 2012

Strengthen your mind

2-second lifesaver: Strengthen your Mind!
Willpower is a muscle that can be trained. To strengthen it, try this exercise. Pick a habit to work on, like saying yes and no instead of yeah and nope. Florida State University research shows that this can steel your willpower for harder tasks.


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Monday, July 30, 2012

Teach kids to wash their hands

What your mother told you is true: kids who wash their hands are much less likely to get sick. In a study published in the American Journal odds infection control, researchers in Denmark taught 324 children age 5-14 to wash their hands three times each day during school. During the following three months, absences of four days or are decreased by 66%, while the number of kids who missed zero school days increased by 20%.


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Sunday, April 1, 2012

Consejos para motivar a tus hijos

Hablales de los beneficios del ejercicio:
  • Huesos y musculos mas fuertes.
  • Un corazon fuerte y sano.
  • Mantener un peso saludable.
  • Menor riesgo de desarrollar enfermedades que pueden afectarlos para toda la vida como la diabetes tipo 2.
  • Autoestima elevada: el ejercicio hace que se sientan confiados y seguros.
  • Mejor concentracion en las clases. 
  • Divertirse con los amigos y pertenecer a un grupo. 
  • Disminuir el estres. 
Comparteles los riesgos de la obesidad infantil:

  • Perjudica la salud con efectos, tanto inmediatos como a largo plazo.
  • Riesgo de desarrollar enfermedades del corazon como colesterol alto y presion alta. 
  • Riesgo de tener problemas en las asticulaciones y en los huesos.
  • Ser obeso de adulto puede generar enfermedades cronicas como la diabetes tipo 2 y propension a sufrir derrames cerebrales y cancer.
Es conveniente que evalues las politicas de la escuela en cuanto a la actividad fisica.

  • Averigua si ofrecen programas pra practicar deportes.
  • Investiga si estimulan la actividad fisica al terminar las clases. 
  • Habla con las autoridades escolares si tienes alguna inquietud. 
Entre todos podemos evitar que la obesidad infantil siga aumentando y podemos promover un futuro sano para nuestros ninos.



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Wednesday, January 25, 2012

7 Easy Fixes for Snoring


1. Change Your Sleep Position.

Lying on your back makes the base of your tongue and soft palate collapse to the back wall of your throat, causing a vibrating sound during sleep. Sleeping on your side may help prevent this.
"A body pillow (a full-length pillow that supports your entire body) provides an easy fix," Slaughter says. "It enables you to maintain sleeping on your side and can make a dramatic difference."
Taping tennis balls to the back of your pajamas can also stop you from sleeping on your back, Chokroverty says. "Or you can recline the bed with the head up and extended, which opens up nasal airway passages and may help prevent snoring. This may cause neck pain, however." If snoring continues regardless of the sleep position, obstructive sleep apnea may be a cause. "See a doctor in this case," Chokroverty says.

2. Lose Weight.

Weight loss helps some people but not everyone. "Thin people snore, too," Slaughter says.
If you've gained weight and started snoring and did not snore before you gained weight, weight loss may help. "If you gain weight around your neck, it squeezes the internal diameter of the throat, making it more likely to collapse during sleep, triggering snoring," Slaughter says.

3. Avoid Alcohol.

Alcohol and sedatives reduce the resting tone of the muscles in the back of your throat, making it more likely you'll snore. "Drinking alcohol four to five hours before sleeping makes snoring worse," Chokroverty says. "People who don't normally snore will snore after drinking alcohol."

4. Practice Good Sleep Hygiene.

Poor sleep habits (also known as poor sleep "hygiene") can have an effect similar to that of drinking alcohol, Slaughter says. Working long hours without enough sleep, for example, means when you finally hit the sack you're overtired. "You sleep hard and deep, and the muscles become floppier, which creates snoring," Slaughter says.

5. Open Nasal Passages.

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If snoring starts in your nose, keeping nasal passages open may help. It allows air to move through slower, Slaughter says. "Imagine a narrow garden hose with water running through. The narrower the hose, the faster the water rushes through."
Your nasal passages work similarly. If your nose is clogged or narrowed due to a cold or other blockage, the fast-moving air is more likely to produce snoring.
A hot shower before you go to bed can help open nasal passages, Slaughter says. Also, keep a bottle of saltwater rinse in the shower. "Rinse your nose out with it while you're showering to help open up passages," Slaughter says.
A neti pot could also be used to rinse out the nasal passages with a salt-water solution.
Nasal strips may also work to lift nasal passages and open them up -- if the problem exists in your nose and not within the soft palate.

6. Change Your Pillows.

Allergens in your bedroom and in your pillow may contribute to snoring. When did you last dust the overhead ceiling fan? Replace your pillows?
Dust mites accumulate in pillows and can cause allergic reactions that can lead to snoring. Allowing pets to sleep on the bed causes you to breathe in animal dander, another common irritant.
"If you feel fine during the day but obstructed at night, these things may be contributing to your snoring," Slaughter says.
Put your pillows in the air fluff cycle once every couple weeks and replace them every six months to keep dust mites and allergens to a minimum. And keep pets out of the bedroom.
Beware before spending money on special pillows designed to prevent snoring, Chokroverty says. "They may work if it props up your head, which fixes nasal issues, but can cause neck pain."

7. Stay Well Hydrated.

Drink plenty of fluids. "Secretions in your nose and soft palate become stickier when you're dehydrated," Slaughter says. "This can create more snoring." According to the Institute of Medicine, healthy women should drink about 12 cups of water (or fluids) a day; men require about 16 cups.
Overall, get enough sleep, sleep on your side, avoid alcohol before bedtime and take a hot shower if nasal passages are clogged, Slaughter says. "These simple practices can make a huge difference in reducing snoring."
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