Benefits of cryotherapy disputed by scientists

Ice baths for athletes are expensive, polluting and have limited effectiveness in helping athletes recover, concludes a study by French researchers.

It has become a must at the top level. The practice of cryotherapy is widely used by athletes. The technique consists of exposing the body – with or without the head – to intense cold (at least -110°C) for two to three minutes.

Cryotherapy is said to help soothe and reduce pain for better recovery. Today, it has even gone beyond the scope of sport and is proposed to relieve pain related to inflammatory or neurological diseases. But the benefits of this practice are questionable.

A study has just been published in the British Journal of Sports MedicineThe use of cryotherapy is contested by a team of researchers from Montpellier, who collected the results of recent studies.

Researchers denounce the environmental and economic cost of this practice. For the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, 650 tons of ice will be consumed to supply the athletes’ cold baths, ten times more than during the previous Olympic Games in Tokyo. However, this practice is expensive: nearly a million euros. It is also polluting because the ice is transported by refrigerated trucks.

On a physical and sporting level, the researchers conclude that cold baths can even be counterproductive. They could impair recovery or delay tissue regeneration. According to the scientists, this cold treatment should therefore not be used to get back into shape between two intensive training sessions. Cryotherapy remains effective, however, to cool down after an intense session in full sun or to reduce muscle pain after several days of training.