Does cold water help eczema?

My theory on why swimming in Key West was so good for my eczema is partially due to the chemical composition of the pool but also because while I was in Key West, it was actually pretty chilly when I was there, in January. So, I was essentially steeping in luke warm if not slightly cold, (hopefully) lightly chlorinated water for many hours. If only my lifestyle allowed this sort of activity more often! This led me to ask: does cold water help eczema?

Is it true? Does cold water help eczema?

I’ve found that when my skin is decent enough that I can sweat (rare), if I sweat quite a bit then immediately (and I mean immediately) take an icy cold, very quick shower, my skin is super happy. This is of course only possible if you have the space to do a sweat-inducing workout in your home. We recently bought a spin bike, which is great, but before we had it I would do HIIT workouts in our living room to build up a sweat before my icy shower. If you can take an icy shower without being drenched in sweat first, more power to you.

When I do this, I don’t itch as much out of the shower as I normally do. My goal is to get my skin happy enough that I can take a quick shower like this and actually not have to use lotion afterwards. That would really answer the question: does cold water help eczema??

I hypothesize this may be possible because hot water is very drying, but cold water isn’t necessarily, so if I can get my skin nice and oily and moisturized from sweating, perhaps I can retain that a bit even after I get clean in the shower?

By the way, I literally never use soap in the shower. Very occasionally if I have a big event, like a wedding, I’ll use soap on my armpits and groin. I realize this may sound very gross, but I’ve found I don’t smell. I do use shampoo occasionally (about once a week) and I do scrub my armpits, groin, and feet in the shower, just without soap. Doing this (i.e. not using soap) is actually really good for your skin. I learned this several years ago from this book. My West Coast dermatologist later recommended not using soap except when absolutely needed, too, so I suppose that’s hyper-validated. I still wash my hands with soap of course, which definitely contributes to eczema on my hands, but ideally as infrequently as possible. (Which I recognize is also gross. I don’t get sick much though, so at least that’s good).

Does contrast therapy work for eczema?

I’ve also tried typical “hot-cold” therapy or “contrast therapy” – i.e. doing a sauna then showering. I absolutely love saunas. I discovered their magic for the first time when I was lucky enough to study abroad in Vienna for 5 weeks. My apartment building had one for any resident to use. (It was amazing). I would go in there with my friends once a week and we would chat and then shower, of course. Our apartments didn’t have A/C and we lived there in the hot summer. Our showers were often luke warm if not chilly, and certainly so after the sauna.

My skin was great that summer. I look back at pictures and I’m literally glowing. This was also pre-eczema, though. My skin was always great pre-eczema, frankly. I had little acne as a teenager. My skin was always prone to dryness but nothing crazy. I was just super, particularly dewy that summer. If only…

Further thoughts on saunas, specifically

I’ve tried sauna-ing after I had eczema too, when I was in grad school. Our gym locker room conveniently had one, and a steam room. I marginally like saunas better than steam rooms, so I opted for that. While I loved the warmth of the sauna during the cold Boston winter, I did find myself itching like crazy once I started sweating in there (which is the goal). I was often with friends while sauna-ing. I think if I’d have been alone I would have tried really hard to meditate or something to avoid extensive itching. Instead I idly scratched (hard) at my sweaty skin. (Probably very gross for my friends to witness).

I would follow this sauna session by a cold shower and then get home as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, my skin would get really, really dry and tight on the way home. This is one reason why I find sweating at home and then immediately showering and applying lotion is so critical. I guess I’ll have to get my own barrel sauna and cold plunge for my backyard. Or, If I ever get back to the Midwest, I’ll buy a sauna and just lay in the snow. Goals!

Again – not medical advice, just my own experience!