Cold Treatment vs Hot Treatment: Which Should be The Preferred Method?

Introduction

Heat and cold treatment are so old, they were used by civilizations as old as the ancient Romans and Greeks for treating body pain and aches. Although it was primarily used by kings and high officers of the empires, their effect was widely acknowledged historically. Fast forward to current times, and heat and cold therapy has become an indispensable aspect of personal care and treatment. We have therapy wraps, especially cold therapy wraps and hot therapy wraps, ice packs and water bags to help apply the desired temperature on desired part of the body.

However, many get confused by whether heat treatment is better or cold. Many even apply heat to treat injuries and pain that are to be treated by cold, and vice versa. Hence it is very important to understand the basic differences, and their working, in order to best determine whether an injury requires hot treatment, cold therapy wraps or doesn’t require any of those at all.

Inner Workings of Heat and Cold Therapy

The best way to practically determine whether cold therapy should be preferred or hot therapy is to understand how exactly heat and cold affect the injured area.

When we apply a cold pack, cold therapy wraps or an ice pack to an injured of swollen area, the extreme cold drastically drops the temperature in and around the affected area. This greatly affects the blood flow; it makes blood in those areas much thicker, just like how cooking gravy is liquid when hot and semi solid when refrigerated. This means blood flows around more slowly, and injuries like inflammation which are caused by blood rushing and accumulating in the injured area are slowly returned to normal. Care must be taken not to apply cold for prolonged periods of time lest the skin gets affected by frostbite and hypothermia, which can cause damage. It is best to apply for some time, remove the pack or wrap and reapply it again to prevent the muscles and veins from freezing up.

When we apply a heat pack, it works in the exact opposite of how cold packs work. Heat drastically increases the temperature of the surrounding area, which makes the blood thinner. Thin blood means they can flow around more quickly, and are best for injuries such as muscle strains that cut off blood flow or blocked veins due to injury. Like cold packs and therapy wraps, heat packs also should not be applied for a prolonged period of time, and breaks should be taken between application to prevent skin burn.

Applications of Cold Packs and Cold Therapy Wraps

Cold packs reduce blood flow to the affected area, so it is best for injuries where blood flow needs to be decreased so that the area can heal. Common usage scenarios include swellings, inflammation, gout problems, muscle strains, issues in muscle tendons, muscle pains and osteoarthritis. Cold packs also numb the pain, and act as a low-level anesthetic for pain relief. It is highly recommended that ice packs not be applied directly on injuries where skin tear in involved, such as open wounds and bleeding injuries. Also, ice should not be applied directly to skin; all cold packs must have a protective layer between the source of cold and the skin surface.

Applications of Heat Packs and Heat Therapy Wraps

Heat increases the flow of blood, so it is best for injuries where blood supply to the affected area needs to be increased. Common usage scenarios involve muscle pains, muscle sprains, treatment of stiffened muscles and tendons, relieving general body pain, treating pain due to some kind of internal injury such as necks and backs. Like cold packs, extra care must be taken to ensure safety during application of heat packs and heat wraps. Heat should never be applied to any kind of open injury where skin tear or bleeding is involved. Numb areas where pain is not felt should not be treated with heat therapy. Plus, one needs to check for heat sensitivity to skin before applying them.

Mode of Application of Heat and Cold

There are many ways to apply heat and cold to affected areas. There are smaller, personal applications such as packs, water bags and wraps, whereas many professional equipment also exists such as cryotherapy modules, hot wax baths and many more. For personal and self-use, it is best to stock up on a couple of body wraps that have gel packs. Gel packs have the unique property of acting as both cold and hot pack when needed; refrigerate them to make a cold pack, and microwave them to make a heat pack. Gel packs save time and money, plus they are completely reusable. If you are travelling or for outdoor use, you can get instant ice packs that are single use but effective in outdoor emergency situations.