Whole-Body Cryotherapy Reduces Systemic Inflammation in Healthy Adults: Pilot Cohort Study
Chun E, Joseph R, Pojednic R
Interactive journal of medical research · 2 citations
How it was studied
- Design
- Cohort study (classified by our AI screen)
- Studied in
- People
- Main outcome
- Health markers and function
Who paid for it
- Funding
- Independent funding
- University or hospital
- Pomorski Uniwersytet Medyczny W Szczecinie
Based on 1 listed funder(s).
Publication
- Published
- 2024-11-22 · Interact J Med Res · vol. 13 · p. e60942
- Publisher
- JMIR Publications
- Cited
- 11 citations · more than 87% of similar papers · 1.9× the field average
- References
- 30 works
- Access
- Open access (journal) · CC-BY
- Research areas
- Exercise and Physiological Responses · Therapeutic Uses of Natural Elements · Adipose Tissue and Metabolism
- Keywords
- Medicine, Inflammation, Internal medicine, Biomarker, C-reactive protein, Cohort, Systemic inflammation, Hemoglobin, Metabolic syndrome, Gastroenterology, Obesity
3 authors
From US
- Elizabeth ChunTexas A&M University
- Richard I. Joseph
- Rachele M. Pojednic · correspondingNorwich University; Stanford University
Abstract
Background
Chronically elevated inflammation is implicated in many conditions, including obesity, metabolic syndrome, and cardiovascular disease, and has been associated with increased mortality risk. Whole-body cryotherapy (W-BC) is a promising modality to treat inflammation with demonstrated benefits for clinical subpopulations including those with arthritis, obesity, and type 2 diabetes. However, it is unclear whether the benefit from W-BC extends to healthy individuals prior to chronic disease-related inflammation. In addition, the long-term durability of W-BC effect is unknown.
Objective
This study investigates the inflammatory response to W-BC in healthy adults with a biomarker of inflammation, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP), and clinical biomarkers of metabolism including fasting glucose, hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and high-density lipoprotein (HDL), and triglycerides.
Methods
Fifteen individuals (n=9 female) participated in frequent recreational W-BC (3 minutes of cold exposure at -110 ℃) over approximately 9 months and had blood draws at baseline plus follow-up visits. Biomarkers were modeled as linear functions of W-BC sessions received in the month prior to blood draw.
Results
The mean amount of W-BC received was 6.78 (SD 4.26) times per month with the cumulative total ranging from 13 to 157 W-BC sessions over the course of the study. On average, participants completed 1-2 sessions per week throughout the intervention. The number of W-BC sessions were associated with decreased hsCRP (-0.14 mg/L in hsCRP per W-BC session; P1c was increased significantly after 9 months (P.10), although LDL trended lower over the time period examined (P=.07).
Conclusions
These results suggest that W-BC beneficially impacts systemic inflammation by lowering hsCRP levels in healthy individuals and may also have some modulating effect on fasting glucose.
Abstract via Europe PMC. Copyright remains with the authors or publisher (CC BY).
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