Dear doctor;

The elderly have this thing of claiming that they lived long because they did not take cold baths or showers during their time. Does taking hot bath make us age fast and also shorten lifespan? Emmy, 23.

Dear Emmy,

Hot water showers are very refreshing after a hard day. But they are not very healthy for the skin and body. Hot water strips the body of its essential oil and nutrients, causing early wrinkling and aging. The skin is also the protective cover of the body. Repeated use of water causes excess dryness, which makes the skin more vulnerable to cracking and infections. It also makes the small blood vessels weak, causing redness of skin.

Chlorine, a chemical used to make the water safe for consumption and other domestic uses, causes excess dryness of skin and wrinkling. It is not healthy for skin as well as lungs. Anything used on the skin is always absorbed, though in small quantities. Chlorine is also known to cause cancer. With use of hot water, skin pores open up causing accelerated absorption of chlorine.

The rate of reaction of chlorine in the body is also enhanced with hot temperature, in the case here, hot water raising the temperature. This exaggerates the health hazards of chlorine.

Thus as per experts, cold showers are ideal. If one cannot tolerate the cold shower then quick shower with lukewarm water is next better choice. But good hot water is not healthy.