Regular soaking in the bathtub can help you relax and eliminate daily stress and anxiety. However, as the findings of a recent study suggest, daily baths may also help prevent heart attacks and strokes.
Until recently, it was known that a hot bath helps to relieve joint pains, remove stress and promote sleep. However, according to a study published online on March 24, 2020, by the journal Heart, daily hot baths are also associated with better heart health.
In particular, the researchers analysed (self-)reports on the health and lifestyle of more than 30,000 middle-aged people in Japan. Thus, participants answered a questionnaire at the beginning of the study and were then followed up for about 20 years. The researchers found that compared to people who did not bathe more than twice a week, people who took daily hot baths had a 28% lower risk of cardiovascular disease and a 26% lower risk of stroke.
The study
At the beginning of the study, participants answered questions about their general health and their bathing practices, including their preferred water temperature (lukewarm, warm, hot). Next, the researchers divided the participants into three groups: those who bathed two or fewer times a week, those who bathed three to four times a week, and finally those who bathed daily or almost daily. It is noted that about 72% of respondents reported that they bathed almost daily.
Compared to people who bathed less than twice a week, those who bathed almost every day had a 28% lower risk of cardiovascular disease and a 26% lower risk of stroke. The research results came after the researchers modified the findings for other factors that affect heart health, such as diet, exercise and smoking habits. The temperature of the bath (which in Japan is usually between 104° and 107°F) did not affect the findings. As mentioned above, the study was published in the May 2020 issue of the journal Heart.
However, the above study is only observational and therefore does not actually prove whether daily bathing in your bathtub can prevent cardiovascular problems. On the other hand, previous research has proven that the effects of baths on your body are similar to those of regular exercise.
At the same time, it is worth mentioning that bathing in very hot water has also been officially linked to sudden death due to overheating or drowning. For this reason, if you want to include baths in your skincare routine, it is recommended to keep the water temperature at a “comfortable” level for the body, in order to avoid the risk of overheating.
