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The Proof with Simon Hill

Science of ice baths, brown fat and metabolism | Susanna Soeberg, PhD

The Proof with Simon Hill

Simon Hill

Nutrition, Education, Self-improvement, Health & Fitness

4.9 • 3.1K Ratings

🗓️ 6 March 2023

⏱️ 170 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Episode #250. Ice baths and other forms of cold water exposure have gained a huge amount of traction in the past few years. I’m joined by expert Dr Susanna Søberg to examine what the science says – is cold water exposure safe? What does the research say about the bold health claims? Is brown fat just a buzzword? How do you safely and effectively implement hot and cold exposure into your life? Dr Søberg answers these questions and many more in this three-hour deep dive into cold water immersion. Specifically, we discuss: Intro (00:00) The tradition of winter swimming (01:52) Cold water swimming and activating brown fat (09:44) Dr. Søburg's personal experience with cold water bathing (23:13) Funding hurdles and potential benefits of cold water immersion (25:34) Cold water immersion and the body's response (33:36) Brown fat activation and more physiological responses (40:45) What is brown fat? (45:54) Is brown fat genetic? (55:28) Benefits of activating brown fat (58:32) Winter swimming, sauna, and disease: what the data says (1:01:10) Metabolism and shivering (1:13:01) Brown fat activation and muscle building (1:25:06) Who has more brown fat: Women or Men? (1:36:33) Chronic inflammation, exercise, and more benefits of deliberate cold exposure (1:46:11) Cold water immersion for beginners (2:06:18) The minimum threshold for health benefits using cold and heat (2:15:03) Clothes or no clothes? (2:22:57) Temperature regulation and gender differences (2:26:30) Safety protocols & understanding ice plunging lingo (2:34:08) Outro (2:47:18) To connect with Dr Susanna Søberg, you can find her on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, TikTok, and LinkedIn. Head to her website, www.soeberginstitute.com, to learn more about Dr Søberg’s work – including her research and her book Winter Swimming. Friends of The Proof can also receive a 10% discount on her Thermalist course with code SIMONHILL. Discover more insights and supporting resources in the full show notes. Enjoy, friends. Simon Want to support the show? The best way to support the show is to use the products and services offered by our sponsors. To check them out, and enjoy great savings, visit theproof.com/friends. You can also show your support by leaving a review on the Apple Podcast app and/or sharing your favourite episodes with your friends and family. Simon Hill, MSc, BSc (Hons) Creator of theproof.com and host of The Proof with Simon Hill Author of The Proof is in the Plants Watch the episodes on YouTube or listen on Apple/Spotify Connect with me on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook Nourish your gut with my Plant-Based Ferments Guide Download my complimentary two-week meal plan and high protein Plant Performance recipe book

Transcript

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0:00.0

Hey there, I've got a very quick message to share with you before we jump into the episode.

0:08.1

Let's keep this under 30 seconds, shall we?

0:11.5

This episode is proudly brought to you by Amille.

0:13.7

Amille is a plant-based wellness company focused on formulating evidence-based supplements

0:18.2

to optimize our health.

0:19.8

I personally take Amille's essential aid multi-nutrient to how I start my day, which contains

0:25.0

eight essential nutrients in the right forms and dosages to perfectly complement a plant-rich

0:30.1

diet.

0:31.1

Amille offers no magic pills or hyperbolic claims, just good quality supplements that

0:36.3

we can trust.

0:37.3

To check out Amille and get 10% off your first order, visit theproof.com forward slash

0:42.5

friends.

0:43.5

I'll pop a link to that in the show notes.

0:49.1

We see from studies in cold showers.

0:51.9

And I study from Amsterdam where they have tested whether a cold shower a day of 30 seconds

0:59.7

up to 90 seconds will decrease the sick days that they have during a month.

1:05.6

They did see that people had less sick days when they go into cold showers.

1:15.8

Welcome to theproof podcast.

1:17.7

A space-for-science-based conversation exploring the health and longevity benefits that come

1:22.6

with mastering nutrition, physical exercise, mindfulness, recovery, sleep and alignment.

1:29.6

Facts, nuance and trustworthy recommendations minus the hyperbolic.

1:35.4

In today's episode, I sit down with Dr. Susanna Soberg to talk about her research looking

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