The weight loss benefits of ice baths and other cold-water plunges are being called into question as a new study reveals they could lead to eating more after a dip.
While it is not new information that ice baths and cold-water plunges can help your body burn more calories, a new study by researchers at Coventry University shows post-dip cravings could be undoing the potential weight loss benefits.
The study examined 15 healthy adults, comprising ten men and five women, and compared their food intake after 30-minute plunges in cold water (16°C), warm water (35°C), and sitting in a room at normal temperature (26°C).
Professor David Broom, who led the study with PhD student Marie Grigg, said: “Interestingly, people didn’t say they felt hungrier during or after the cold water. They just ate more.”
The cold water plunges led to participants eating around 240 calories more than in the other conditions.
Grigg said: “Our findings show it is important to put strategies in place to avoid over-eating after cold water immersion.”
Broom and Grigg believe this might be due to the after-drop phenomenon, where a person’s core body temperature continues to fall even after they exit the water.
Craving more food after this phenomenon may be a natural response sent by regions of the brain which sense changes in core body temperature and energy levels.
Cold-water immersion is popular for its health benefits, including reducing exercise-induced muscle damage and improving overall health and well-being.
However, people need to be aware of post-dip cravings if they are trying to manage their weight.
Ryan Barclay, 25, uses ice baths two to three times a week and typically spends about 12 minutes in the cold water.
He uses ice baths for his health and well-being, and to help him bring calm focus to his life, rather than expecting them to help with any physical changes or weight management.
Barclay said: “I don’t tend to get many cravings afterwards, but I do tend to get a bit of a buzz of a desire to be hyperactive and do something else to channel my focus, which I achieved in the ice bath.”
“I knew all I’d really be doing was sitting in, admittedly cold, water, so I didn’t really think it was realistic to believe that this would cause any weight loss or change.”
Further research is needed on the after-drop phenomenon and its role in appetite regulation to investigate whether repeated cold-water plunges can lead to longer-term weight gain.
Feature image: Issued with press release
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