After a solid night of sleep, when you step out of bed and stretch, you may experience discomfort, aches, or joint pain. Fortunately, you don’t have to deal with the pain, suffering, and cracking sounds; there’s a way you can combat the discomfort and make getting out of bed a whole lot easier and more enjoyable.
The answer lies in the magic remedy – Cryotherapy!
What is Cryotherapy?
Cryotherapy literally translates to ‘cold therapy‘. It’s a technique that involves exposing the body to exceptionally cold temperatures over the span of several minutes. The therapy has two distinct types:
- Localized therapy (for arms or legs)
- Whole body therapy (for complete body)
- A variety of techniques can be used to administer localized cryotherapy – application of ice packs, coolant sprays, ice massages, or others.
- With whole body cryotherapy or WBC, apart from the head, the entire body is immersed into very cold air for several minutes.
- You step into an enclosed ‘cryo sauna chamber’, which surrounds the entire body and features an opening above for your head. Once the chamber space is closed, liquid nitrogen is released to reduce the temperature by as much as 300 degrees Fahrenheit.
- The session typically lasts between 2-4 minutes, depending on the endurance level and requirement of the individual.
Top 05 Benefits of Cryotherapy
Though the scientific studies and research processes are still underway, some of the most notable benefits of cryotherapy have been enumerated here for your reference. These widespread benefits have made this technique extremely popular amongst the athlete community, fitness enthusiasts and individuals who wish to gain recovery from chronic pain.
1) Supports Weight Loss – There are proven weight loss benefits of cryotherapy. While it doesn’t directly cause weight loss, the very cold temperatures boost the metabolism, which in turn aids in weight loss.
- As per research studies conducted, exposure to extremely cold temperatures can increase the body’s metabolic rate while it’s returning to normal body temperature after the therapy session is completed.
2) Reduces Inflammation – When too much strain is placed on the muscles, tendons, and joints, the body inflames the tissues of the affected area in an effort to protect it. Numerous studies have confirmed that cryotherapy can successfully promote muscle healing and reduced inflammation, as exposure to extreme cold boosts the presence of certain proteins that helps in healing it.
3) Chronic Pain Relief – A single whole body cryotherapy session can treat muscle pain better than cold water immersion and a person may experience significant pain relief almost immediately. A lot of athletes – including weightlifters – use whole body cryotherapy as a way to treat injuries from intense exercise, and that’s largely because it can effectively numb pain.
4) Strengthens Immune System – Studies have also found that whole body cryotherapy has major health benefits that boost and enhance the function of the immune system. After the body has been exposed to extremely cold temperatures in a cryogenic chamber, blood flow increases in order to return the body to normal temperature.
5) Promotes Healthy Skin – Those who suffer from certain skin conditions also apparently benefit from the whole-body cryotherapy procedure. Studies have found that exposing the body to subzero temperatures minimized atopic dermatitis, a skin disease that is marked by chronic inflammation and causes excessive dryness and itching.
- Cryotherapy has seen success with treating warts, skin tags, and improving overall skin health as ultra cold temperatures from the liquid nitrogen safely treat the skin’s surface.
6) Reduces Joint Pain – Some published scientific studies have found that whole body cryotherapy is known to reduce the pain in patients who have been diagnosed with arthritis, making it a highly beneficial technique for them to try.
How does Cryotherapy reduce Stress?
Several scientific studies have found that cryotherapy can effectively reduce stress levels and treat migraines. In these studies, patients who practiced cryotherapy saw a dramatic reduction in how they managed stress and anxiety disorders after just a few minutes in the cryo chamber. This scientific remedy is known to:
- Enhance the mood level
- Reduces cortisol level
- Improves sleep
On many occasions, temporary redness of the skin, mild tingling and numbness may occur post-therapy; however, these effects are usually short-lived.
