New research from the University of Ottawa, a famously cold place, shows that just one week of daily cold-water immersion can help the body’s cells better cope with cold.

In the study, young men who spent 60 minutes a day in 14 degrees Celsius water showed a shift in their cells’ response to cold stress. At first, cold exposure triggered signs of damage, but by the end of the week, cells were activating protective systems instead — breaking down damaged components and reducing early signs of cell death.

These changes suggest that the body can become more resilient to cold not just on the outside, but at the cellular level.

To test how well this cold training worked, researchers took blood samples and cooled them in the lab. After acclimation, the cells responded better to low temperatures, showing more protective activity and fewer signs of stress, even at 4 degrees C. Although some signs of inflammation remained, they were lower than before. The findings point to cold exposure as a possible way to train the body’s cells to handle extreme conditions.

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