View clinical trials related to Cold Exposure.
Filter by:The Wim Hof Method is a multi-disciplinary approach to physical and mental well-being combining cold exposure, breathing exercises, and meditation. This study evaluated the effects of a 15-day WHM intervention on cardiovascular parameters at rest and during a cold pressor test, as well as on various psychological parameters.
The goal of this clinical trial was to identify if duration of acute calorie restriction (CR)/fasting or combination CR with cold stimuli have any effects on mental and physical health-related markers, and to clarify if different fasting strategies have any effect on cognitive and motor functioning efficiency in different genders. The main questions it aims to answer were: - Does fasting duration have any effect on fasting evoked responses? - Does cold interventions can modulate fasting evoked responses? - Does sex have any effect on acute fasting evoked responses? For the first part, participants were randomly classified into 4 groups: two experimental groups: 2-days of CR (0 kcal diet) and 6-days of CR (0 kcal diet), and two control groups: 2-days or 6-days usual diet. For the second part, participants were randomly assigned to undergo the following conditions: 2-days of CR with two 10-min whole-body cold-water immersions on separate days, 2-days of CR without cold-water immersion, 2-days without CR with two 10-min whole-body cold-water immersions on separate days, or 2-days of the usual diet without cold-water immersion in a randomized crossover fashion. Changes in anthropometric characteristics, perceived stress, metabolism, overall health (total blood count, sex hormones, etc.), psycho-emotional state, cognitive and motor functions were examined.
Cold-induced thermogenesis, or the increase in energy expenditure upon cold exposure, indicates metabolic stress, as such, cold-induced thermogenesis may signal an appropriate stimulus to improve metabolic health. Cold acclimation may alter cold-induced thermogenesis due to changes in (non)shivering thermogenesis and blood flow. The main aim of this research is to compare the energy expenditure responses, during a standardised cold stress (~ 9°C air temperature, maximum 1 hour), of Siberian adults with Western European adults. The subjects will be individually matched for age, sex, body mass and height. It was hypothesised that cold-induced thermogenesis will be reduced in the Siberian population.
Naval Special Warfare (NSW) operators are exposed to a variety of extreme environmental conditions and intense physical demands. In addition to breathing high pressure gases at depth, prolonged cold water immersion and inadequate recovery from sustained physical exertion negatively impact individual and team performance. Biotechnologies that could mitigate the effects of cold as well as support physical recovery represent a significant unmet need for the NSW operational community. Oxytocin (OT) has a wide range of actions both locally in the brain and peripherally in the body including skeletal muscle. These peripheral effects can be mediated by classic ligand-receptor activation given the abundant expression of the oxytocin receptor in peripheral tissues, along with local expression of OT in peripheral tissues where it is likely to act in an autocrine manner. Exogenous OT via intranasal administration is FDA Investigational New Drug (IND)-approved and has been demonstrated as an easy and safe method to increase circulating OT concentrations that may augment actions on peripheral tissues.
Inflammatory cytokines play a pivotal role in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and innovative non-pharmacological therapies aimed at limiting cytokine production are highly warranted. Recently, our group showed that healthy volunteers trained in an intervention developed by 'Iceman' Wim Hof were able to voluntarily attenuate the pro-inflammatory response during experimental human endotoxemia (a model of systemic inflammation elicited by administration of lipopolysaccharide [LPS] in healthy volunteers). Subjects trained in the intervention exhibited profound increases in plasma adrenaline levels, a rapid increase of an anti-inflammatory cytokine and subsequent attenuation of the pro-inflammatory response. The intervention consists of three elements, namely meditation, exposure to cold and breathing techniques. The meditation element is not likely to be involved. It was a very minor part of the training program and was not practiced during the endotoxemia experiments. Exposure to cold and the subsequent rewarming to normal body temperature may influence the inflammatory response through the release of immunomodulatory molecules like HSP-70. Also, exposure to cold can induce an ischemia-reperfusion-like state in the skin and peripheral tissue that is known to be involved in the downregulation of pro-inflammatory cytokines and upregulation of anti-inflammatory cytokines. The investigators anticipate that the third element, breathing techniques, is the major contributor to the anti-inflammatory effects of the intervention previously observed. The present study aims to explore the effects of the breathing technique ('strength ventilation'), the exposure to cold, and these two elements combined on the immune response during human endotoxemia. Elucidation of the relative contribution of the elements is of importance to establish a feasible, safe, and effective intervention for future use in patients. Objective: The primary objective of the present study is to determine the effects of the `strength ventilation` breathing technique and exposure to cold, both separately and in combination, on the inflammatory response during human endotoxemia. To this end, a 2 by 2 design will be employed. Additionally, an evaluation of the influence of the cold exposure and breathing technique on pain thresholds and oxygen tension in the mitochondria will take place.
Physiotherapy offers a range of therapeutic modalities for pain management including Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS), Interferential current (IC) and Acupuncture. The objective of this study was to investigate the hypoalgesic effect of TENS, CI and Acupuncture in a cold-induced pain model.