"... that promised to help clients burn calories, reduce pain, strengthen immune systems and halt aging by embedding them in freezing tanks for a few minutes at a time."
In her off hours, she engaged in the practice... But last week, Ms. Ake-Salvacion, 24, was found dead in one of the tank... Ms. Ake-Salvacion’s uncle said the coroner had told him his niece’s body was found “rock-hard solid.”...
The death raised questions about safety in the growing industry of cryotherapy, which is practiced by star athletes and celebrities but is rarely studied and not regulated by any one body. Today, there are cryotherapy centers in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and elsewhere, though doctors do not agree on its benefits....
The top rated-comment (at the NYT) quotes "though doctors do not agree on its benefits" and says: "This suggests that some doctors agree, some do not. How about New York Times, you be more forthright and clarify that no doctors, no peer reviewed research, no science, supports the benefits of this? And how dare these snake oil sellers argue 'its definitely safe' but do not do it alone"
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59 comments:
The grave is the tiniest house of all.
"Doctors do not agree" means the author found one who was probably selling the units.
Ann, you forgot to add "Not the Onion" to the title.
Which by the way is humorous enough...............
I heard of this for the first time just a couple weeks ago. People freezing solid is pretty much what I'd expect to see happen.
"I have no comment at this time," said Hillary's tit.
Wow, this place is less than a block from my house - if it weren't for a large gym building blocking the view, I could see it out my window right now.
We didn't hear anything about this on the local news.
The business is pretty new, and seems very odd to me. I still don't understand how this process is supposed to work, nor who their customer base really is. We never see anyone going in or out of there.
We'll need a new federal agency to regulate this and produce some studies and guidance.
More likely we'll get two than none, if we can seize this crisis that has been presented to us. For the children.
"though doctors do not agree on its benefits"
It doesn't matter since most new stuff that doctors agree on is wrong.
That said -
Conclusion
WBC [Whole-body cryotherapy] induces tissue-temperature reductions that are comparable to or less significant than traditional forms of cryotherapy. Controlled studies suggest that WBC could have a positive influence on inflammatory mediators, antioxidant capacity, and autonomic function during sporting recovery; however, these findings are preliminary. Although there is some evidence that WBC improves the perception of recovery and soreness after various sports and exercise, this does not seem to translate into enhanced functional recovery. Only one study has focused on recovery after significant musculoskeletal injury, and long-term implications are unclear. Until further research is available, athletes should remain cognizant that less expensive modes of cryotherapy, such as local ice-pack application or CWI, offer comparable physiological and clinical effects to WBC."
Another
Slowing the metabolism down past zero. Sounds like a suicide to me.
Don't tell anyone, but Hell must be too cold, not too hot.
And now the Wisconsin Winter this way cometh.
Atlanta is too hot for some, but it is seldom too cold. The Delta Mechanics base here in ATL got a 20 year contract to maintain and refurbish the Rolls-Royce Jet Engines on Airbuses that is worth 200 million. That was because we are winter accessible.
Poor girl got stiffed
Journalist can always find a contra-voice, it is up to educated people to decide if that contra-voice represents ).001% of correct thinking only. Unfortunately a smaller and smaller % of the population is reasonably educated now.
p.s. Journalist even make up the contra-voice often.
Not near the health benefits to be derived from broad jumping over a pit of flaming gasoline. Those cryotherapy claims are just B.S.
It could be worse, she could be working at StemExpress, or their supplier, Planned Parenthood. Cannibalism is a dirty business.
That said, have they demonstrated a viable application of fetal and embryonic stem cells?
The consumers of pro-choice babies are desperate to live forever.
One reason people do not try it solo, Ms. Cap said, is that the nitrous gas used to chill the air can be debilitating.
Most likely she probably got stoned by the gas and passed out.
""Doctors do not agree" means the author found one who was probably selling the units."
Probably the Dr. Oz endorsed unit.
Darwin would be please to personally hand her the Award.
Seems to not be big in "flyover country".
I guess we're just rubes...
So they should be able to sell her body parts since they were so well preserved, right?
Why not? We let religion ruin young minds day in, day out, with no regulation.
There are lots of well-researched studies on the benefits of exposure to and training in the cold, even extreme cold (i.e. -40 fahrenheit). There's research on how a very cold shower can speed recovery better than a warm shower. Etc. etc.
The idea of cryotherapy as an offshoot of that is to me like an oxygen bar describing it's benefits.
Also, the idea that "girl, alone, puts herself in dangerous situation and dies as result of poor judgement" = "this environment needs to be better understood and regulated" as a standard mindset shows how far our thinking as a country has gone away from freedom as one of the 3 key pursuits of life.
"Don't tell anyone, but Hell must be too cold, not too hot."
Hey, traditionalguy, Dante agreed with you. Lucifer is stuck in Hell by ice in Dante's Inferno.
I'm surprised the machines at the "Spa" don't have auto-shutdowns that engage after a minimum time -- say, 5 minutes.
That would be a prudent safety feature.
" ... not regulated by any one body ... " To the NYT, every bad thing in the world is merely the failure of regulation.
Doctors don't agree on the benefits because some want proof of a direct benefit and others are willing to include the placebo effect.
When I was 20 I lived in Las Vegas and there was a health club with an ice plunge along with the usual hot tub. That did feel great to soak in the hot tub then jump in the ice plunge.
But sheesh, the water wasn't all that cold..just 50 degrees or something, enough to wake you up. I thought that was fabulous but when I moved I never found a club with a setup like that again. There is something to the "health" benefits but it's just momentary invigoration, nothing else.
Are coroners typically this cavalier about the feelings of surviving family members? Why do you need to get any more graphic than "died of exposure" or some such?
TreeJoe said ...shows how far our thinking as a country has gone away from freedom as one of the 3 key pursuits of life.
Tres Oui!
What people fantasize Government will deliver: "You cover my losses; I'll keep the wins."
How Government actually operates (IRS code): "We'll take a cut of your winnings; losses are your problem."
" ... not regulated by any one body ... " To the NYT, every bad thing in the world is merely the failure of regulation.
Should we ask what body regulates newspapers?
Or are newspapers the one thing that don't need that kind of regulation...lucky for them.
in tanks that can reach temperatures of minus 240 degrees Fahrenheit
Can you imagine the shrinkage?
I'm sure my scrotum would have shot my testicles out the top of my head.
What is the "nitrous gas" that they use? The article doesn't say but I had thought it was pure nitrogen from other articles. You will die very quickly breathing pure nitrogen.
I am racking my brain trying to think of a nitrous gas that would be readily available. Perhaps air? Air is about 78% pure, unadulterated nitrogen. With about 0.04% carbon dioxide for flavor. (It's the 10,000PPM of Argon that give air its zing, though.)
Perhaps they need to up the CO2 in the "nitrous gas" to make it warmer.
Yeah, that's the ticket!
John Henry
My first reaction was to think the girl was pretty stupid for doing something like this alone.
Then I thought about some of the things I did around that age and marvel that I am still alive. Riding my Sportster at 120MPH down a 2 lane while so drunk I had to be helped to get on (Thanks friends!)wasn't even the stupidest on the list.
It was still a pretty dumb thing the girl did, climbing in the tank alone, but I'll not criticize. I've done that too.
John Henry
The heart attacks were once said to be triggered in older Men by jumping into an indoor pool in the AM. That must have been an old wives tale. The old men were not around for comment.
Stupid framing--someone died from doing something in a wrong way, so the thing is dangerous and should be regulated. The Red Cross recommends you never swim alone, but swimming is great for most people's health. When someone dies in their pool after swimming alone one night dos the NYTimes get the vapors? A glass or two of red wine is probably good for you, but if you chug a couple of boxes alone in your house one night and die that doesn't mean wine itself is too dangerous for people to use responsibly. Stupid framing.
This idea is nothing new. The Finns had a better idea (not that I'm big on it myself.) First, you cut a hole in the ice of a frozen lake. Next, throw some precut pulp wood on a fire in a cast iron stove inside the sauna. Wait until it gets blistering hot in the sauna. Get a pail of water. Take your clothes off. Get in the sauna with the pail of water. Throw a small amount of the water on the stove to make some steam. Stay in there until you are good and sweaty. When you can't stand it anymore, run out and jump in the lake, er, I mean jump in the hole in the ice you cut. Of course, the Finns had an excuse: freezing cold weather is free and plentiful in places like Finland and Northern Minnesota at certain times of the year.
Sad, she was a pretty young lady and looked like she was in excellent health. Why she and others like her would mess with that...I don't know.
nitrous gas
I thought the same thing: what is this mysterious gas, and why do journalists think they are better-informed than everyone else when they are this ignorant of basic science?
jimbino: "We let.."
LOL
"We"
QUESTIONS:
1. Does it work?
2. How much would it threaten traditional medical economics?
I apply frozen gel packs to my hip, which hurts because of arthritis and bursitis. After a few minutes the pain subsides and then goes away. Essentially I'm freezing the area that hurts. This works better than any and all pain medications I've tried. Also I recall that following pre-season August football practices my teammates and I would go the nearest Lake Michigan beach and immerse ourselves in the cold cold cold water at the shoreline. We'd go into the water unbelievably sore and bruised and beat up but when we emerged we felt much better.
So there must be something to the idea that cold water alleviates some kinds of pain. It sure works for me.
So there must be something to the idea that cold water alleviates some kinds of pain.
Yes, and this has been well known for ages, as far back as Hippocrates. It is also well-known that cold retards and even arrests healing.
"And how dare these snake oil sellers argue..."
Well some argue well and others poorly, and at times vice versa ceteris paribus, but in America the process by which they arrived at their argumentation was probably do in some part to the hundreds-of-years-old concept by the Founding Fathers of America ensconced in the Bill of Rights and undermined every single step of the way by 4 of 9 Black Robed Ones Who Rule. Sometimes a fifth too.
Many might argue The Beatles sold snake oil and should be banned (although I must say I have always liked Ringo's "What Goes On In Your Heart, What Goes On In Your Mind, You're Tearing Me Apart, Tell Me Why, Tell Me Why" because of the earnestness).
The worst thing is to have anyone associated with any American legal system have any say in the matter. Keep it above ground and out of bounds like G.G. Allin, before death, if the worst becomes the new reality.
Blogger EDH said...
"I have no comment at this time," said Hillary's tit.
10/27/15, 1:33 PM
That is my Blog Quote of the Day or Blog Quote of The Day as you like.
in tanks that can reach temperatures of minus 240 degrees Fahrenheit
For comparison, the surface of Uranus is minus 224 Centigrade.
"We let religion..."
You do nothing, or less, often, well.
"I'm surprised the machines at the "Spa" don't have auto-shutdowns that engage after a minimum time -- say, 5 minutes.
That would be a prudent safety feature."
It would be prudent for the State to take the children, high on gas from their dentist, filmed for profits then, no?
Let's start with Youtube.
Ohhhhhhh.
Is that Google?
Here?
Ummm.
Well, let's go after those who profited somehow by finding money and reverse engineering.
I had a girl that liked me to sink my erection into ice-water before we fucked.
She didn't want that before blow-jobs, though, because her teeth were sensitive to cold.
Don't ask me about anal.
I am Laslo.
It is also well-known that cold retards and even arrests healing.
It can also retard/arrest dying.
In other words, it slows bodily processes, for good or ill.
most new stuff that doctors agree on is wrong.
What bothers me about this article by John P. A. Ioannidis is that he's assuming that if alater study, or even afew of them, contradict the first study, the first stidy was wrong.
It is my feeling that sometimes the first study was right, or close to right, and the other studies are fiunded by special interests and very carefully set up, so as to "refute" it. And after that nobpdy studies it at all,.
An example might be a study showing that carbohydrates are bad for you, or that certain vitamins are good for you. Studies will be, or were, produced falsely rebutting that. IT can take thirty years or more to gte back on track.
Liquid nitrogen is not amazingly hazardous, but it does have to be handled safely. When it evaporates, it makes regular old nitrogen gas, which is already 80% of the atmosphere. In an enclosed space, it can displace the oxygen and you can pass out without any warning signs that you might get with a noxious gas. In my lab, there's a sign in the elevator that tells you not to get in when liquid nitrogen is being transported.
Freezing solid is a lesser concern for anything short of a Terminator 2 scenario. You will feel a cold burn and naturally recoil. My guess, knowing nothing about the story, is that she passed out or suffocated from oxygen deprivation and froze after death.
My guess, knowing nothing about the story, is that she passed out or suffocated from oxygen deprivation and froze after death.
Well, the Germans don't call nitrogen Stickstoff for nothing.
Laslo Spatula said...
"I had a girl that liked me to sink my erection into ice-water before we fucked."
Seems inefficient. If she is still around suggest a turkey baster.
""Chelsea Ake-Salvacion felt she was on health care’s cutting edge, working at a cryotherapy center in this Las Vegas suburb...""
She died doing what she loved.
Yeah, well, someone needed to point that out.
"Doctors do not agree"
There are always Doctors of Chiropracty who will agree to the benefit of anything.
Gabriel said...I thought the same thing: what is this mysterious gas, and why do journalists think they are better-informed than everyone else when they are this ignorant of basic science?
You are restating Knolls' Law Of Media Accuracy:
Everything you read in the newspapers is absolutely true except for the rare story of which you happen to have firsthand knowledge
In other words, if you catch a journalist making a glaring error about something that you know, why should you trust them about what you don't know?
Thanks, Jack.
I am a member of a local running club and while I am a hobbyist, there are some really serious runners in the group--serious like, they run a few marathons per year serious. These folks are big fans of the ice bath after a marathon. They swear that soaking in a bathtub full of ice and water right after a race really helps with their recovery. I believe them but could never bring myself to do it after any of the (few) marathons I've run. Being a cheapskate, I would never pay for cryotherapy, but it seems like getting into cold air would be less jarring than getting into ice water.
I don't think I'd be willing to step into a life-threatening machine inside what is basically a salon.
Take tanning beds, for example. Say they could zap you and give you a tan in 5 seconds but if you didn't get out of the machine, it would quickly cook you. I assume most people commenting here don't go tanning, but pretend you like to go tanning. Would you get into such a machine? I would not.
I live in the frozen north and I am pretty sure being in cold weather has not stopped anyone here from aging.
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