A social media post has been gaining attention, suggesting that drinking cold water or taking a cold shower immediately after coming in from a hot outdoor environment could lead to significant health problems, including bursting blood vessels and strokes. Let’s check the veracity of the claims made in the post.
Claim: Drinking cold water or bathing with cold water immediately after coming from outside heat will cause health issues like burst of blood vessels and stroke.
Fact: There is no strong evidence to suggest that immediately consuming cold water or bathing with it will cause blood vessels to burst or lead to a stroke. While there may be a minimal risk of experiencing shock due to sudden temperature changes, the primary concern should be maintaining proper hydration, especially during hot weather or after being exposed to high temperatures. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, American Heart Association, and Mayo Clinic all emphasize the importance of staying hydrated, particularly during hot weather, exercise, or exposure to high temperatures. None of them mentions any specific risks associated with the immediate consumption of cold water or showering with cold water after being exposed to heat.
Snopes investigated the claim that drinking cold water or showering with cold water immediately after exposure to heat can cause blood vessels to burst. While they acknowledge a slight chance of adverse effects in specific situations if a person drinks too cold water because the body should adjust the temperature difference, such as going into shock due to an abrupt change in temperature, they emphasize that this is extremely rare and not the norm.
To sum it up, while there may be a small chance of experiencing shock due to sudden temperature changes, the risk is minimal, and the primary concern should be maintaining proper hydration. There is no strong evidence suggesting that immediately consuming cold water or showering with cold water after exposure to heat can cause blood vessels to burst or lead to any other severe health effects.
