People may think that higher temperatures work best when it comes to burning calories, but the new study in Cell Reports Medicine says otherwise.
Experts from the University of Copenhagen studied eight men who swam in cold weather and went for a sauna session after swimming for two years, while another group of swimmers opted for a temperature-specific scenario.
The results were that swimmers in cold weather were better able to adapt to temperature changes in their environment, they had better thermoregulation.
It was also found that swimmers in cold weather had better activation of brown fat – a special type of body fat, which is activated when the body is cold. It helps in maintaining the body temperature when it is cold.
Because of greater heat production, winter swimmers burn more calories during cooling. It was also found that people who have more brown fat have a lower risk of heart disease, coronary artery disease, type 2 diabetes and hypertension.
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