• Home
  • Mental Health
  • Depression
  • Meditation
  • Stress Disorders
  • Anxiety
  • Mental Illness
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
Natural Element
  • Home
  • Mental Health
  • Depression
  • Meditation
  • Stress Disorders
  • Anxiety
  • Mental Illness
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
Natural Element
No Result
View All Result

Cold Showers, Hot Saunas and the New Way to Tame Stress

October 12, 2022


That is the finding of a growing body of biological research that indicates that short intermittent bouts of stress such as heat, exercise and dietary restriction can strengthen your ability to withstand chronic stress.

Dosing yourself with bursts of pressure, called hormetic stress, can help your body and mind weather tough periods at work and home and help counter some of the unhealthy chronic stress caused by two years of pandemic.

High-intensity interval training, or HIIT, which cranks your heart rate up and down, is the most familiar hormetic stressor. Other hormetic stress-inducing activities include cold showers or ice baths, and hot saunas.

Podcasters and fitness gurus promote other, sometimes controversial types of stress like intermittent fasting and hypoxic breathing, which temporarily deprives your body of oxygen, makes you gasp for air and can have serious medical risks. None should be done without a doctor’s guidance.

Hormetic stress can help us cope with emotional stress, says Elissa Epel, a professor in the psychiatry department at the University of California, San Francisco. “The practices create short-term spikes of biological stress followed by recovery, ease and deep restoration and that is otherwise hard to get,” she says.

The practice is gaining more attention now as people grapple with the mental health fallout from the pandemic and scientists continue to gain a better understanding of our mind-body connections.

Dr. Epel is leading a study of hormetic stress at UCSF, comparing the stress-relief effects of low-intensity meditation, exercise and the higher-intensity hypoxic breathing method developed by Wim Hof, the Dutchman known as the Iceman, whose ability to endure extreme cold has attracted millions of online followers and practitioners, including many celebrities.

Dr. Epel found that Mr. Hof’s breathing method—several rounds of 30 to 40 deep breaths followed by a long-held exhale and an additional breath you hold for 15 seconds—greatly lowered her own stress threshold. During the pandemic she recruited Mr. Hof to teach the practice to healthcare providers in a virtual seminar on emotional well-being.

Short periods of stress shock our systems at the cellular and molecular level, challenging our bodies to adapt to tough conditions and restore equilibrium, research shows. Studies have found that the process can help to clean debris from our cells, promote the growth of new neural pathways, and over time help slow the effects of aging.

Without hormetic stress, “our cells become complacent. They do not maintain their ability to cope with the kinds of stressors that cause disease,” Mark Mattson, professor of neuroscience at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, said in a recent podcast interview.

Risks and benefits

Activities that produce hormetic stress can also carry serious risks, particularly for certain groups of people.

Doctors have voiced concerns about intermittent fasting, especially for those who are elderly, pregnant or have a medical condition. The Wim Hof website warns that its breathing method can cause lightheadedness, loss of consciousness and isn’t advised for expecting mothers or people taking medication for high blood pressure or those with epilepsy or heart disease.

Some people say hormetic stress techniques have helped them endure periods of emotional strain.

Alex Corindia, 33 years old, a product marketer at a metabolic health company, says he struggled with depression and periods of intense anxiety in his mid-20s. He began saunas, exercising and, for a while, took cold showers—usually after hearing about the practices on podcasts and researching them online. Along with therapy and meditation, he says, “exposing myself to these stressors over time sent me down a different path and got me through the depression.”

Finding the right dose

The benefit of hormetic stress often depends on the dose, studies show. A group of scientists in Korea found that short bouts of stress caused by five minutes a day of captivity in a tube could, over two weeks, reverse depressive-like behavior in mice. Captivity of 10 or 15 minutes a day had no effect, according to their study published in the journal Nature Communications in November.

Some research on repetitive sauna use suggests that it may have hormetic benefits. One study published in 2015 in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine looked at 20 years of sauna use by 2,300 middle-aged Finnish men. Men who took 20-minute saunas two or three times a week were 23% less likely to die of cardiovascular disease during the course of the study than men who took saunas once a week, the study found. Those who took four to seven saunas a week were 48% less likely to die.

The guidance on cold exposure is less precise. Cold increases your metabolic rate, causes blood vessels to constrict and gets your heart to work a little harder, basically giving your cardiovascular system a workout, scientists say.

Turning down the thermostat or spending time in the cold—without too many layers—can generate hormetic cold stress, scientists and trainers say. Mr. Hof advocates a daily cold shower, starting with as much time as you can handle, maybe 15 seconds to start, working up to 30 seconds and eventually to the full shower—if you can.

To derive hormetic stress from workouts, you need to move with enough intensity that you can talk, but not sing, while exercising, says Eli Puterman, who directs the University of British Columbia’s fitness, aging and stress laboratory.

Dr. Puterman did a three-year study on the effects of exercise on the chronic stress of family caregivers of dementia patients. The caregivers, who had been physically inactive, were given access to a gym and a health coach. A six-month period of intermittent exercise reduced their chronic stress, lessened their levels of depression and reversed some of the biological effects of aging, he says.

“I like to tell people: Move your body more than you were moving before,” Dr. Puterman says. “You need to get your heart rate up and you need to sweat.”

Original post





Source_link

Share120Tweet75Share30

Related Posts

Understanding Stress on Those Who Serve
Stress Disorders

Understanding Stress on Those Who Serve

January 31, 2023

Understanding Stress on Those Who Serve  (An Observation About Public Servants)   By Robert B. (Scott) Kuhnen, USAF Civilian (RET)  *This is an article from the Winter 2022/2023 issue of Combat Stress Please forgive me. I’m a neophyte in your...

Chronic Stress Spikes Your Risk of Dying From Cancer: Experts Say This Is How to Combat It
Stress Disorders

Chronic Stress Spikes Your Risk of Dying From Cancer: Experts Say This Is How to Combat It

January 25, 2023

If chronic stress has you at your wit’s end, you may be among the one-third of U.S. adults who report feeling extreme stress consistently. Sure, we all experience some form of stress in our daily lives, but chronic stress—the kind that...

Is stress improving your brain health?
Stress Disorders

Is stress improving your brain health?

January 23, 2023

It’s no secret that mental health and stress levels can have an impact on one’s physical health. However, short-term bursts of stress may benefit a particularly important part of the body. A recent study found a correlation between low to moderate stress levels and...

You’re Doing Something That’s Creating Work Stress 47% Of The Time
Stress Disorders

You’re Doing Something That’s Creating Work Stress 47% Of The Time

January 20, 2023

Science shows that mind wandering and present-moment focus are on opposite sides of the spectrum of how we pay attention and that it hurts work performance. It’s human nature for your mind to wander from time to time. Studies reveal that wandering...

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Categories

  • Anxiety (441)
  • Depression (136)
  • Meditation (210)
  • Mental Health (428)
  • Mental Illness (383)
  • Sound Therapy (2)
  • Stress Disorders (245)

Popular

  • Stress Level Of Americans Is Rising Rapidly In 2022, New Study Finds

    Stress Level Of Americans Is Rising Rapidly In 2022, New Study Finds

    302 shares
    Share 121 Tweet 76
  • 4 signs of burnout in your teen– and how to help them through it

    302 shares
    Share 121 Tweet 76
  • How Stress Affects Your Vision

    302 shares
    Share 121 Tweet 76
  • Helpful Resources During Suicide Prevention Month 2022 – My Brain’s Not Broken

    301 shares
    Share 120 Tweet 75
  • The Covid Symptoms No One is Talking About, But You Need to Know, Say Experts — Eat This Not That

    301 shares
    Share 120 Tweet 75

  • Home
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions

Copyright © 2022 Naturalele.com | All Rights Reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Mental Health
  • Depression
  • Meditation
  • Stress Disorders
  • Anxiety
  • Mental Illness
  • Contact Us
What Are Cookies
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent.
Cookie SettingsAccept All
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT