When you’re sweating through your clothes and the air feels like soup, a freezing cold shower sounds like the most obvious relief. But according to scientists, that chilly blast might be working against your body—not with it.
At first, cold water seems like a solid fix. It feels amazing on skin that’s been baking in the sun. But what your body actually needs is a way to cool its core, not just its surface. And this is where cold showers fail. “Although diving into a cold bath or shower straight after being out in the heat might feel nice on your skin, it isn’t doing what is needed to reduce the core temperature of the body,” researchers wrote in a recent study review published via The Conversation.
That’s because cold water triggers vasoconstriction—your blood vessels tighten, especially the ones near your skin. And that’s a problem. In order to cool down, your body tries to bring heat from the core to the surface by pumping blood outward. Cold water cuts that process off. “Less blood is now flowing to the surface of the skin,” the report states, “which will hold the heat in and around your organs instead of getting rid of it.”
A Cold Shower on a Hot Day Might Feel Good—But It’s Probably Making Things Worse
It can get worse. If the water is really cold—like 15°C (59°F)—your body might enter cold shock mode. Your blood pressure spikes. Your heart works harder. For anyone with heart conditions, this can be dangerous. While that kind of reaction is rare in a basic cold shower, it’s still a risk that increases when your body is already overheated.
Hot showers don’t help, either. Warm water transfers even more heat into your body, which raises your core temperature instead of lowering it. So, what’s the sweet spot? Research suggests a lukewarm shower or bath—around 26–27°C (78–81°F). It’s just warm enough to open your pores and encourage blood flow to the skin without triggering any alarm bells in your internal cooling system.
There’s also hygiene to consider. Cold water doesn’t clean as well. It’s less effective at breaking down sebum (your skin’s natural oil), which means sweat, grime, and bacteria are more likely to stick around. Cold showers also tighten skin, potentially trapping gunk inside your pores and contributing to breakouts.
So the next time you stumble inside from 90-degree heat and reach for the coldest setting on the dial, maybe pause. Lukewarm might not feel as refreshing, but it’ll actually help your body cool down instead of making it panic.
The post Stop Taking Cold Showers on Hot Days, It’s Bad for You appeared first on VICE.
