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Sauna Hype°H

The claim

“Cold plunges reduce inflammation in your body.”

Stretched. A 2025 pooled analysis of 11 studies found that inflammation markers rose right after cold water, and the two studies behind that result both had people lift weights first. When people took regular dips for weeks, blood markers of inflammation stayed flat or rose slightly.

Updated Sep 24, 2026 · 2 studies reviewed

The claim pulls a real finding well past what the study showed.

People say it in places like these

  • Huberman Lab podcast

    Deliberate cold exposure can reduce inflammation.

    See an example ↗

  • Lizzo (AP report)

    Lizzo says cold plunges reduce inflammation.

    See an example ↗

  • Cold plunge brands

    The norepinephrine from regular ice baths can dramatically reduce inflammation.

The research found this

The widest summary is a 2025 analysis in PLOS ONE that pooled 11 randomized studies with 3,177 participants.Source 1 · Meta-analysisEffects of cold-water immersion on health and wellbeing: A systematic review and meta-analysisCain T, Brinsley J, Bennett H, et al.. PLOS ONE, 2025.Read the paper ↗PubMed ↗ Of those, 3,018 came from one cold-shower trial, and each of the other ten studies enrolled 7 to 26 men. The review measured how much each cold group changed from before to after the cold water, and it didn't subtract the change in the comparison group.

By that measure, inflammatory markers rose right after immersion (a standardized effect size of 1.03) and were still up an hour later (1.26).Source 1 · Meta-analysisEffects of cold-water immersion on health and wellbeing: A systematic review and meta-analysisCain T, Brinsley J, Bennett H, et al.. PLOS ONE, 2025.Read the paper ↗PubMed ↗ Both estimates came from the same pair of studies, and in each one men got into cold water after lifting weights. In one, men did squats and then either sat in 15°C water for 15 minutes or rested. Thirty minutes later the cytokine IL-6 (a chemical messenger that drives inflammation) was up 4.9% in the bathers and 47.5% in the men who rested.Source 2 · Crossover trialCold-water immersion blunts and delays increases in circulating testosterone and cytokines post-resistance exerciseEarp JE, Hatfield DL, Sherman A, et al.. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 2019.Read the paper ↗PubMed ↗

The studies without a workout are small. In young men followed for 48 hours, ten minutes at 14°C lowered TNF-α (another inflammatory cytokine), and IL-6 moved only after a delay.Source 3 · Crossover trialResidual effects of short-term whole-body cold-water immersion on the cytokine profile, white blood cell count, and blood markers of stressEimonte M, Paulauskas H, Daniuseviciute L, et al.. International Journal of Hyperthermia, 2021.Read the paper ↗PubMed ↗ Finnish women who dipped in 0–2°C water for 20 seconds, three times a week for 12 weeks, showed no change in any of the three cytokines measured.Source 4 · Clinical trialEffects of long‐term whole‐body cold exposures on plasma concentrations of ACTH, beta‐endorphin, cortisol, catecholamines and cytokines in healthy femalesLeppäluoto J, Westerlund T, Huttunen P, et al.. Scandinavian Journal of Clinical and Laboratory Investigation, 2008.Read the paper ↗PubMed ↗ After six weeks of hour-long immersions at 14°C, athletic young men had small rises in TNF-α and some immune cells. The authors called those changes slight and of unclear significance.Source 5 · Clinical trialImmune system of cold-exposed and cold-adapted humansJanský L, Pospíšilová D, Honzová S, et al.. European Journal of Applied Physiology and Occupational Physiology, 1996.Read the paper ↗PubMed ↗

Research on cold water after exercise finds little movement in blood markers. A pooled analysis of cooling after exhausting exercise found no significant change over 96 hours in cytokines or other objective measures of recovery.Source 6 · Meta-analysisThe Effect of Post-Exercise Cryotherapy on Recovery Characteristics: A Systematic Review and Meta-AnalysisHohenauer E, Taeymans J, Baeyens JP, et al.. PLOS ONE, 2015.Read the paper ↗PubMed ↗ In a 2026 trial, regular cold baths after interval training left inflammatory markers unchanged.Source 7 · Randomized trialRegular Cold‐Water Immersion Following HIIT Does Not Affect Intramuscular Adaptation Markers, Inflammatory Profile or Endurance PerformanceMalta ES, Neto JCR, Beck WR, et al.. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, 2026.Read the paper ↗PubMed ↗

A 2022 review of 104 studies in the International Journal of Circumpolar Health couldn't reach clear conclusions about cold water's effects on health. Its authors pointed to small single-sex groups and water temperatures that varied from study to study.Source 8 · ReviewHealth effects of voluntary exposure to cold water – a continuing subject of debateEspeland D, de Weerd L, Mercer JB. International Journal of Circumpolar Health, 2022.Read the paper ↗PubMed ↗

The dial reads 62°H for four reasons

How the reading adds up

14 + 18 + 22 + 8 = 62°H

  1. EvidenceWhat kind of human evidence exists?

    14/25

    The human evidence comes from small trials that measured blood markers such as IL-6 and TNF-α over minutes to days.Source 1 · Meta-analysisEffects of cold-water immersion on health and wellbeing: A systematic review and meta-analysisCain T, Brinsley J, Bennett H, et al.. PLOS ONE, 2025.Read the paper ↗PubMed ↗Source 3 · Crossover trialResidual effects of short-term whole-body cold-water immersion on the cytokine profile, white blood cell count, and blood markers of stressEimonte M, Paulauskas H, Daniuseviciute L, et al.. International Journal of Hyperthermia, 2021.Read the paper ↗PubMed ↗ None of them followed people with an inflammatory illness.

  2. ConsistencyHave other studies found the same thing?

    18/25

    Ten minutes at 14°C lowered TNF-α in one lab, and six weeks of hour-long immersions at the same temperature raised it slightly in another.Source 3 · Crossover trialResidual effects of short-term whole-body cold-water immersion on the cytokine profile, white blood cell count, and blood markers of stressEimonte M, Paulauskas H, Daniuseviciute L, et al.. International Journal of Hyperthermia, 2021.Read the paper ↗PubMed ↗Source 5 · Clinical trialImmune system of cold-exposed and cold-adapted humansJanský L, Pospíšilová D, Honzová S, et al.. European Journal of Applied Physiology and Occupational Physiology, 1996.Read the paper ↗PubMed ↗ Twelve weeks of 20-second winter dips changed none of the cytokines measured.Source 4 · Clinical trialEffects of long‐term whole‐body cold exposures on plasma concentrations of ACTH, beta‐endorphin, cortisol, catecholamines and cytokines in healthy femalesLeppäluoto J, Westerlund T, Huttunen P, et al.. Scandinavian Journal of Clinical and Laboratory Investigation, 2008.Read the paper ↗PubMed ↗

  3. MagnitudeDoes the claim match the size of the effect?

    22/25

    No study has measured the lasting, body-wide drop in inflammation that the claim describes. In the pooled short-term data, markers rose right after immersion (an effect size of 1.03) in people fresh from a workout.Source 1 · Meta-analysisEffects of cold-water immersion on health and wellbeing: A systematic review and meta-analysisCain T, Brinsley J, Bennett H, et al.. PLOS ONE, 2025.Read the paper ↗PubMed ↗

  4. DoseDoes the studied dose match how people use it?

    8/25

    Some studies used doses close to home use, such as 10 minutes at 14°C or 20-second dips at 0–2°C, and others kept people in 14°C water for an hour.Source 3 · Crossover trialResidual effects of short-term whole-body cold-water immersion on the cytokine profile, white blood cell count, and blood markers of stressEimonte M, Paulauskas H, Daniuseviciute L, et al.. International Journal of Hyperthermia, 2021.Read the paper ↗PubMed ↗Source 4 · Clinical trialEffects of long‐term whole‐body cold exposures on plasma concentrations of ACTH, beta‐endorphin, cortisol, catecholamines and cytokines in healthy femalesLeppäluoto J, Westerlund T, Huttunen P, et al.. Scandinavian Journal of Clinical and Laboratory Investigation, 2008.Read the paper ↗PubMed ↗Source 5 · Clinical trialImmune system of cold-exposed and cold-adapted humansJanský L, Pospíšilová D, Honzová S, et al.. European Journal of Applied Physiology and Occupational Physiology, 1996.Read the paper ↗PubMed ↗

The claim drifts from the data here

The claim is about inflammation across the whole body. Researchers measured a few cytokines in the blood over minutes to days, in people without any inflammatory illness, and saw them rise in some studies and fall in others.

In cold-water research, Wim Hof breathing dampened an inflammatory response more clearly than anything else, and cold training without the breathing didn't.Source 9 · Randomized trialVoluntary activation of the sympathetic nervous system and attenuation of the innate immune response in humansKox M, van Eijk LT, Zwaag J, et al.. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2014.Read the paper ↗PubMed ↗Source 10 · Randomized trialThe Effects of Cold Exposure Training and a Breathing Exercise on the Inflammatory Response in Humans: A Pilot StudyZwaag J, Naaktgeboren R, van Herwaarden AE, et al.. Psychosomatic Medicine, 2022.Read the paper ↗PubMed ↗ Cold water right after lifting did trim the cytokine rise, and when people repeated the habit for weeks it came with smaller gains in muscle size and strength.Source 2 · Crossover trialCold-water immersion blunts and delays increases in circulating testosterone and cytokines post-resistance exerciseEarp JE, Hatfield DL, Sherman A, et al.. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 2019.Read the paper ↗PubMed ↗Source 11 · Meta-analysisThrowing cold water on muscle growth: A systematic review with meta‐analysis of the effects of postexercise cold water immersion on resistance training‐induced hypertrophyPiñero A, Burke R, Augustin F, et al.. European Journal of Sport Science, 2024.Read the paper ↗

Put it to use

Plunge for how it makes you feel, and don't count on it to lower inflammation. If you lift for muscle, skip the plunge in the minutes right after training, because cold water at that point came with smaller gains.Source 12 · Randomized trialPost‐exercise cold water immersion attenuates acute anabolic signalling and long‐term adaptations in muscle to strength trainingRoberts LA, Raastad T, Markworth JF, et al.. The Journal of Physiology, 2015.Read the paper ↗PubMed ↗Source 11 · Meta-analysisThrowing cold water on muscle growth: A systematic review with meta‐analysis of the effects of postexercise cold water immersion on resistance training‐induced hypertrophyPiñero A, Burke R, Augustin F, et al.. European Journal of Sport Science, 2024.Read the paper ↗

From our sister magazine

Sauna Monthly explains when to plunge around a training session

Sauna Monthly · Guide

Time your plunge around your training

Keep a hard plunge a few hours away from heavy lifting.

Read it on Sauna Monthly

Sauna Monthly · Shop

Cold plunge tubs range from ice barrels to chillers

Sauna Monthly compares every tub it tracks on price and cooling.

Read it on Sauna Monthly

People also ask

Does an ice bath reduce inflammation after a workout?

It can blunt the short-term rise in inflammatory signals. After squats, IL-6 was up 4.9% at 30 minutes in men who took a 15-minute bath at 15°C, against 47.5% in men who rested.Source 2 · Crossover trialCold-water immersion blunts and delays increases in circulating testosterone and cytokines post-resistance exerciseEarp JE, Hatfield DL, Sherman A, et al.. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 2019.Read the paper ↗PubMed ↗ Repeated after every session for weeks, the same habit came with smaller muscle gains.Source 11 · Meta-analysisThrowing cold water on muscle growth: A systematic review with meta‐analysis of the effects of postexercise cold water immersion on resistance training‐induced hypertrophyPiñero A, Burke R, Augustin F, et al.. European Journal of Sport Science, 2024.Read the paper ↗

Do cold plunges help chronic inflammation?

No controlled trial has tested cold plunging in people with a chronic inflammatory disease. In healthy women, 12 weeks of 20-second dips left cytokines unchanged, and a 2025 pooled analysis found no effect on immune markers.Source 4 · Clinical trialEffects of long‐term whole‐body cold exposures on plasma concentrations of ACTH, beta‐endorphin, cortisol, catecholamines and cytokines in healthy femalesLeppäluoto J, Westerlund T, Huttunen P, et al.. Scandinavian Journal of Clinical and Laboratory Investigation, 2008.Read the paper ↗PubMed ↗Source 1 · Meta-analysisEffects of cold-water immersion on health and wellbeing: A systematic review and meta-analysisCain T, Brinsley J, Bennett H, et al.. PLOS ONE, 2025.Read the paper ↗PubMed ↗

Check these claims next

30°H

Likely

Cold

“Ice baths help you recover faster after exercise.”

Across dozens of small trials, cold water after hard exercise eased soreness and helped muscle power recover by the next day. The soreness benefit averaged about 0.3 points on a 0–10 scale in one pooled analysis, and the largest review found strength came back no faster.

56°H

Unsettled

Cold

“The Wim Hof Method lets you control your immune system.”

Men trained in the method had a smaller inflammatory response to an injected bacterial toxin, and the breathing did most of the work. In a later trial, cold training alone left that response unchanged, and no study has tracked whether practitioners get sick less.

64°H

Stretched

Heat

“Sauna lowers inflammation in your body.”

Finnish men who took the most saunas had slightly lower levels of the inflammation marker CRP, and the link was weak. Trials that heated people for weeks found no change in CRP, and one session nudges some inflammatory signals up.

We cited these sources

  1. 01Cain T, Brinsley J, Bennett H, Nelson M, Maher C, Singh B. Effects of cold-water immersion on health and wellbeing: A systematic review and meta-analysis. PLOS ONE. 2025;20(1):e0317615. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0317615 PMID 39879231
  2. 02Earp JE, Hatfield DL, Sherman A, Lee EC, Kraemer WJ. Cold-water immersion blunts and delays increases in circulating testosterone and cytokines post-resistance exercise. European Journal of Applied Physiology. 2019;119(8):1901-1907. doi:10.1007/s00421-019-04178-7 PMID 31222379
  3. 03Eimonte M, Paulauskas H, Daniuseviciute L, Eimantas N, Vitkauskiene A, Dauksaite G, et al.. Residual effects of short-term whole-body cold-water immersion on the cytokine profile, white blood cell count, and blood markers of stress. International Journal of Hyperthermia. 2021;38(1):696-707. doi:10.1080/02656736.2021.1915504 PMID 33910456
  4. 04Leppäluoto J, Westerlund T, Huttunen P, Oksa J, Smolander J, Dugué B, et al.. Effects of long‐term whole‐body cold exposures on plasma concentrations of ACTH, beta‐endorphin, cortisol, catecholamines and cytokines in healthy females. Scandinavian Journal of Clinical and Laboratory Investigation. 2008;68(2):145-153. doi:10.1080/00365510701516350 PMID 18382932
  5. 05Janský L, Pospíšilová D, Honzová S, Uličný B, Šrámek P, Zeman V, et al.. Immune system of cold-exposed and cold-adapted humans. European Journal of Applied Physiology and Occupational Physiology. 1996;72(5–6):445-450. doi:10.1007/BF00242274 PMID 8925815
  6. 06Hohenauer E, Taeymans J, Baeyens JP, Clarys P, Clijsen R. The Effect of Post-Exercise Cryotherapy on Recovery Characteristics: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. PLOS ONE. 2015;10(9):e0139028. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0139028 PMID 26413718
  7. 07Malta ES, Neto JCR, Beck WR, Cornachione AS, de Poli RAB, Sigoli E, et al.. Regular Cold‐Water Immersion Following HIIT Does Not Affect Intramuscular Adaptation Markers, Inflammatory Profile or Endurance Performance. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports. 2026;36(3):e70241. doi:10.1111/sms.70241 PMID 41742004
  8. 08Espeland D, de Weerd L, Mercer JB. Health effects of voluntary exposure to cold water – a continuing subject of debate. International Journal of Circumpolar Health. 2022;81(1):2111789. doi:10.1080/22423982.2022.2111789 PMID 36137565
  9. 09Kox M, van Eijk LT, Zwaag J, van den Wildenberg J, Sweep FCGJ, van der Hoeven JG, et al.. Voluntary activation of the sympathetic nervous system and attenuation of the innate immune response in humans. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 2014;111(20):7379-7384. doi:10.1073/pnas.1322174111 PMID 24799686
  10. 10Zwaag J, Naaktgeboren R, van Herwaarden AE, Pickkers P, Kox M. The Effects of Cold Exposure Training and a Breathing Exercise on the Inflammatory Response in Humans: A Pilot Study. Psychosomatic Medicine. 2022;84(4):457-467. doi:10.1097/PSY.0000000000001065 PMID 35213875
  11. 11Piñero A, Burke R, Augustin F, Mohan AE, DeJesus K, Sapuppo M, et al.. Throwing cold water on muscle growth: A systematic review with meta‐analysis of the effects of postexercise cold water immersion on resistance training‐induced hypertrophy. European Journal of Sport Science. 2024;24(2):177-189. doi:10.1002/ejsc.12074
  12. 12Roberts LA, Raastad T, Markworth JF, Figueiredo VC, Egner IM, Shield A, et al.. Post‐exercise cold water immersion attenuates acute anabolic signalling and long‐term adaptations in muscle to strength training. The Journal of Physiology. 2015;593(18):4285-4301. doi:10.1113/JP270570 PMID 26174323