The cold, damp season does not enjoy the best of reputations. Yet, the cold has a number of advantages for our organism. It is time to take a different look at winter.
It is well known: flu viruses thrive best in cold, dry air. Accordingly, we have more frequent colds in winter. Less well known is: Low temperatures can stimulate your immune system and strengthen your defense against infections in the long term. Provided that you do not spend the entire winter in highly heated rooms. Especially in winter, exercise in the fresh air is a good way to strengthen your immune defenses and promote your well-being. Then you will also be able to enjoy another advantage of the cold:
Cold burns calories
Your organism always tries to keep your body temperature at around 36 to 37 degrees. If you spend time in the cold, it requires significantly more energy to do so. A 2018 US study was able to prove that 53 subjects burned an average of 34 percent more calories when hiking in temperatures between minus five and minus ten degrees than when covering the same distance at ten degrees plus. Better yet: The cold activates brown adipose tissue. And that is precisely what helps to burn significantly more calories.
Thinking more clearly with a cool head
Why is it that we can actually think better and work with more focus when the temperatures are cooler? Studies have investigated this question and have been able to show: When it is warmer, your body increasingly uses glucose to cool your body down. However, glucose is also an important fuel for all mental tasks. Therefore, the cold actually helps you keep a cool head.
Falling asleep faster
In summer, it takes up to two hours for your core body temperature to cool down to the somewhat lower "sleep temperature." In winter, it is much easier to reach the appropriate coolness quickly. However, you need a little more sleep in winter, which is also related to the longer darkness and your melatonin production. The following applies to all seasons: The room temperature should be between 15.6 and 19.4 degrees. Under no circumstances should it fall below 12 degrees or rise above 24 degrees. Good, restful sleep is an important source of your health and well-being.
Cold strengthens the heart
Endurance training is highly recommended at any time of year. In cold temperatures, however, it has an extra benefit, because training in the cold strengthens the heart muscle. If you warm up well, you are often even more capable of performing at low temperatures than on warmer days. However, you should pay attention to the right clothing and not overexert yourself. Jogging in sub-zero temperatures, for example, requires that you are healthy and already quite well trained.
As you can see, the cold also has its positive sides for health and well-being. And that applies not only to hay fever sufferers who are glad when pollen does not fly for a few months.
