*Disclaimer: If you are struggling with your mental health please see your trusted health professional*
How can iced water help your brain and body?
Recently I posted about how hot baths can have amazing benefits for your body, heart, circulation, and skin health. Exposing your body to healthy doses of cold can also be beneficial!
Recently I watched the Netflix show Human Playground and in the first episode, a woman swam in a frozen lake. She discussed how the freezing cold temperatures had had a positive impact on her mental health after struggling with the after-effects of abuse.
While I don’t recommend that you head to your nearest iced-over lake and cut a hand-made hole! You can get some of the same effects – with much less risk! by simply dipping your face into iced water aka. – a large bowl of water filled with ice cubes.
Benefits of dipping your face in iced water:
- Decreases inflammation
- Reduces puffiness
- Helps to increase blood flow to the upper layers of the skin which improves the look of wrinkles and pores
- Boosts lymph function aiding in detox
- Can soothe and calm down redness
- Tights and tones your skin
- Helps to gently exfoliate and speed up the process of renewing skin cell turnover
- Helps relieve mild anxiety symptoms and induces parasympathetic activity and calmer states
Looking for the ultimate low-cost glow-up? Exposing your skin to the cold helps to increase circulation and really gets you that rosy glow like no other! This is because the ice helps with blood flow allowing nutrients and oxygen to come closer to your skin’s surface, which gives your skin an amazing natural boost!
Are there any side effects?
Popping ice into a bowl of water and dipping your face into it for short periods of time shouldn’t cause any harm to your skin or body.
Of course, people always take this to the max with supermodels like Kendell Jenner showing herself putting her whole face into just ice cubes (well she does have amazing skin!).
I wouldn’t recommend this and would just stick to the iced water.
The only drawback that comes to mind is that the water and ice could cause your skin dehydration. However, I have some tips further on in this article to help minimise any of these negative aftereffects!
If you have fragile, sensitive skin then you do also need to be mindful about bursting any capillaries by exposing your skin to extreme cold. Obviously, as your skin ages, it does become much thinner so you do need to proceed with caution if that is the case.
You might also notice that you are a bit red-faced afterwards the first few times while your skin gets used to the ice. If your face does go red you might want to stick to the end of the day for any ice dunking!
If you are at all concerned then you should just stick to popping things in the freezer to get the same effect but in a way that is going to be much safer for your skin (read on for further tips on this one too!).
How can iced water help with anxiety:
Dunking your face in cold water helps to stimulate nerve signals that lead to the vagus nerve which is connected to your parasympathetic nervous system. This really helps to jumpstart your parasympathetic nervous system meaning that your relaxation response will be turned on and your heart rate will really start to slow down.
It’s called the mammalian diving reflex. The ice-cold water hitting the upper parts of your face simulates this response which instantly slows your heart rate. When actually underwater this reflex enables us to stay calm, conserve energy and hold our breath for longer.
It is also a crazy instant way to quickly trick your brain to activate your parasympathetic nervous system instantly. Initially, the only thing you can think about is the cold so ice water dunking can really help to take your mind off the day.
When your heart rate is slowed down blood flow will then decrease in your limbs and be sent to your brain and organs. Activating your parasympathetic nervous system in this way will really help you to enter a beautiful, blissful state of calm and relaxation.
It’s a wonderful way to reset your whole system at the end of the day!
Can iced water tighten skin?
Dunking your face in iced water will definitely help to soothe any inflammation or puffiness which can also help to give your face a tighter, toned look.
For extra toning, it’s great to also include your ice water dunking with facial massage. Make sure you do this after you have applied your moisturiser or facial oil as your skin can be extra dry after being exposed to the ice water!
The facialist Abigail James recommends sweet almond oil, evening primrose oil or avocado oil for dry, sensitive skin.
Can I use iced water every day?
If you have oily, acne-prone skin you can definitely do this every day!
If you have sensitive skin you might want to stick to just doing this 2-3 times per week. There are also many other ways to incorporate cold water therapy practices into your week alongside ice dunking. You might want to try a combination of different things that still have a similar, positive effect on your skin and your stress levels.
How long should I ice my face?
Everyone’s body is different and their own unique level of discomfort is vastly different. Make it really achievable for yourself – start super small and then build up to longer periods of ice dunking over time!
Here are some more getting-started tips below:
- Fill up a large bowl with water and ice cubes (around two trays is a good amount). Leave the ice for 2-3 minutes to slightly melt into the water and make it somewhat icy cold.
- It is essential to not take a large breath and just take your usual breath before you dunk. You can then hold your breath for 20-30 seconds (or however long you feel comfortable!). This is the best way to stimulate vagus nerve activity and switch on your parasympathetic nervous system. You can also use a snorkel if you prefer.
- When you first start the feeling of having icy cold water on your face is going to feel incredibly uncomfortable. You can start with a couple of minutes and then build up to 5-10 minutes depending on how long you feel comfortable. Listen to your body! If it becomes too painful or stressful then stop.
- For some added variety you can add some skin-friendly essential oils to your water or even freeze some herbs or cucumber in your ice cubes. Or for some added relaxation you can make an ‘iced tea’ by putting hot water and chamomile tea bags into your water first and then allowing it to cool before adding the ice.
So initially aim to start with five minutes, dunk your face each minute and hold your breath for 20-30 seconds at a time. Over time you can then build up to doing this for ten to fifteen minutes if you wish. Make sure you set a timer on your phone for accountability.
Can ice-cold water damage my skin?
The best skin type to get the most benefits from iced water dunking is slightly oily skin as the icy cold water can really help to decrease inflammation and decrease oil production.
As I mentioned earlier – do proceed with caution if your skin is extremely dry and sensitive, just because the water and ice can momentarily increase redness and dryness in your skin. It doesn’t mean that you can’t still get benefits from ice dunking, you just might want to decrease the amount of time you are spending and perhaps put fewer ice cubes in.
If you have sensitive skin you might also want to consider just popping some things in the freezer to get some of the same effects without the full ice dunk.
Here are some ideas:
- Freeze cucumber slices for your eyes!
- Try popping any beauty tools in the freezer for half an hour before you use them (think of your Jade roller or gua sha stone)
- Purchase a freezing-specific full-face gel mask
- Splash cold tap water on your face each morning when you get up. It will mimic some of the same positive benefits
Water can be quite drying to your skin in general so it is good to pop some moisturiser on after you do the full ice dunk, particularly so if you have dry skin. Always be sure to moisturise when your skin is slightly damp! This is the lightweight moisturiser that I am currently using for sensitive facial skin.
Another great way to get some all-over cold water therapy is to switch your shower to cold for a couple of minutes before you hop out each day. Start with lukewarm for a couple of minutes and then gradually build up to much colder water and increase the cold part of your shower over time.
When is the best time to use iced water?
Anytime is a great time to do a total face-ice dunk! 🙂
The morning is great because the ice against your skin can really help to wake you up and get your brain and body going for the day. The ice water also helps to remove any excess oil on your skin and helps with that morning puffiness which makes this a great thing to do before your daily make-up application.
When you first get started because your skin is not used to it you might notice some redness. In this case, you might want to wait until the end of the day to get started.
The evening is also amazing because the ice-cold water can help your brain to do a total reset for the day. It’s a fantastic way to induce more calm feeling states. You can also include it as part of an evening routine and it sets you up well mentally for an amazing relaxing yoga session afterwards if you want to add that on too.
Another benefit of doing this in the evening is that activating your parasympathetic nervous system will set you up really well for rest and sleep along with helping your body detox and get the nutrients that it needs to relax and repair itself while you are asleep!
If you try this out – please let me know how you get on in the comments!
Photo by Josine Vaes on Unsplash
Links:
Link to facial immersion in ice water study