With Father's Day quickly flying around the corner, many are checking out all the trendiest gadgets, sporting goods, and home improvement accessories they are sure dad will love. Cold water immersion therapy is a great gift idea for that hard-to-shop-for Dad.
This year, get dad a gift that he will truly love: Ice Barrel. Ice Barrel is a cold therapy training tool for athletes, individuals seeking pain relief from chronic conditions, and others looking to improve their everyday health and well-being.
Still on the fence about Ice Barrel as a gift for dad? Check out these seven reasons cold therapy is making dads feel (and look) like a million bucks.
1. Improves Mental Health
In today’s society, it seems as though there’s a never-ending feeling of stress, anxiety, and depression. While men are generally less likely to seek help for mental health, it’s still essential to find healthy methods to deal with stress. Soaking in an ice bath can decrease anxiety and depression when the brain releases norepinephrine during cold stress. Exposure to cold therapy also stimulates the vagus nerve, which is 75% of the parasympathetic nervous system and is responsible for the rest and relaxation mode of our bodies.
2. Promotes Better Sleep and Increases Mood
One thing that every dad could use is a restful night of sleep. While The American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommends 7-9 hours of sleep each night, 29.2%of men are sleep deprived, getting less than six hours of sleep each night. Using cold therapy as a technique stimulates the vagus nerve, lowering the heart rate and improving the heart rate variability. As a result, this reduces stress and promotes relaxation for a good night's sleep.
3. Decreases Inflammation in the Body
Anyone, regardless of their fitness levels, can accumulate inflammation. Three commoncauses that individuals see with inflammation are:
- Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS)
- Injuries and related inflammation
- Auto-immune diseases (Lupus, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis)
Inflammation can be reduced by the cooling action of the ice bath (RICE method) and through stimulation of the vagus nerve complex with cold therapy, thereby reducing inflammation throughout the body and activating the stimulation to start healing. This will help with soreness or swelling from a workout or injury.
4. Boost Your Immune System
Females are known to have a naturally stronger immune system and a stronger response to infection than men, so it's vital for men to stay on top of their health. A study of immunological, hormonal, and metabolic responses was conducted through the process of whole-body cryotherapy (WBC). Ten cyclists and ten middle-distance runners each received three one-a-day sessions of WBC and, as a result, showed improvement in both innate and adaptive branches of all three responses. The boost to the immune system would help in tissue repair and reduce the risk of getting sick.
5. Reduces Symptoms of Chronic Disease
Millions of people worldwide currently live with an auto-immune disease and are seeking holistic pain management. A study conducted based on individuals with Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) split participants into two groups: the study group and the control group. While the two groups had no significant difference between them with the rehabilitation, the study group that received cold therapy had a marked reduction in common disease symptoms including joint pain, swelling, and fatigue.
6. Cold Therapy for Weight Loss
For those dads looking to shed a few pounds, cold therapy can help boost weight loss. When using cold therapy, weight loss can occur by stimulating the growth of brown fat and lowering the white fat. The brown fat then breaks down both glucose and fat molecules to create heat to help maintain body temperature. The result? It raises the body's metabolism. Dr. Lee, an endocrinologist at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research, conducted a study where participants were exposed to the cold and participated in exercise simultaneously. The results showed that humans are able to acclimate to cool temperatures by increasing brown fat, which can result in an improvement in glucose metabolism.
7. Promotes Fertility, Testosterone, and HGH
Men's sexual health is about more than libido, although that is really important too. Healthy levels of testosterone are important for physical activity, fertility, sleep, weight loss, and mental health. Cold therapy has a proven track record to help dad get leaner, workout harder, and have improved feelings of well-being. Those who use cold therapy in conjunction with a healthy physical and mental lifestyle naturally see an increase in fertility, testosterone, and human growth hormone (HGH).
Give the Gift (and Health) of a Lifetime
There are an overwhelming number of presents to choose from for Father’s Day, but nothing says ‘I love you’ like a gift that supports his health and well-being. Whether dad is looking for workout recovery, relief from a health condition, or just looking to wind down and take some stress off his shoulders—Ice Barrel has you covered. Even for the dads who are the hardest to shop for, this will be a father’s day he never forgets.