New research: Get cold! Is it okay to be a little cold?

It is hard to imagine that in a situation where the wind is biting, the body is shaking, and people even feel that "nothing will ever get better", moderate coldness can not only help improve the metabolic function of the heart, but also effectively control blood sugar and relieve chronic low back pain and other problems.

In February 2024, a study in the journal Cell Reports Medicine revealed the benefits of cold environments for heart health. The study found that just two hours of cold exposure can increase the level of omega-6 in our blood by 46.9%, increase the level of omega-3 by 77.4%, change the level of signal lipids in the body, and thus improve cardiac metabolic health. The study also pointed out that cold exposure can activate brown adipose tissue, which is a yellow to light brown adipose tissue with strong heat-producing capacity in newborn individuals of homeothermic animals, rodents in cold environments, and hibernating animals before wintering. This tissue generates heat by consuming energy, which has a positive effect on cardiac metabolic health.

Recently, a research team led by van Marken Lichtenbelt of Maastricht University in the Netherlands published an important paper in the journal Nature Metabolism, further revealing the benefits of cold environments. The study showed that exposing 15 overweight or obese subjects to a cold environment and inducing shivering for 1 hour every day for 10 days improved their oral glucose tolerance, fasting blood sugar levels, triglycerides and free fatty acid concentrations, while reducing systolic and diastolic blood pressure. This undoubtedly provides strong evidence for the prevention and treatment of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease in cold environments.

As early as 10 years ago, van Marken Lichtenbelt's team had already studied the health benefits of cold adaptation. And in 2015, the team published a research paper in Nature Medicine showing that cold adaptation can improve peripheral insulin sensitivity in patients with type 2 diabetes . Miraculously, a study by the team in 2021 found that if the subjects were not allowed to shiver during the cold adaptation process, the effect of cold adaptation on improving insulin sensitivity disappeared.

In short, vanMarken Lichtenbelt's team found that acclimating the body to a cold environment* helps patients with type 2 diabetes control their blood sugar. But there is a key point: the body needs to be cold enough to shiver during this process , because shivering can cause muscle contraction, and this muscle activity is critical to improving insulin sensitivity; if you don't shiver in a cold acclimation environment, then this effect of improving blood sugar will not occur. Therefore, if you want to help control blood sugar through cold acclimation, it is essential to shiver the body appropriately.

But the health benefits of a cold environment go far beyond that. It has also been found to have analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects. Appropriate cold exposure can reduce the excitability and conduction speed of nerves, thereby reducing the patient's sensitivity to pain. For example, whole-body coldness can reduce the pain level of patients with chronic low back pain, ankylosing spondylitis, osteoarthritis, etc.

Cold environments can also improve mood and keep people awake. Low temperatures can stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system, promote the release of hormones such as adrenaline, norepinephrine and endorphins, and help reduce negative emotions such as anxiety and depression. In addition, low temperatures can help people stay awake and improve their concentration and decision-making abilities.

According to Reader's Digest magazine, cold environments have the following health benefits: they boost brain power, burn excess calories, help control blood sugar, relieve allergy symptoms, improve sleep quality, boost immunity, and strengthen heart function.

In summary, moderate cold exposure has a variety of positive effects on human health, from improving cardiometabolic health to analgesia and anti-inflammation, to improving mood and cognitive function. Although larger-scale trials may be needed to verify it repeatedly, there is nothing wrong with going out more, freezing, and seeing the wider world! However, it should be noted that these studies do not mean that extreme cold or prolonged cold exposure is beneficial. Appropriate cold exposure may bring the above benefits.

In this winter, let us feel the charm of ice and snow together and enjoy the happiness and health brought by the cold!

At the same time, please keep warm to prevent colds and other diseases!