环球时报的冬泳专访，里面人物大家都认识。。。
来源：http://shanghai.globaltimes.cn/community/2011-01/614240.htmlShanghai's subzero swimmers [*]Source: Global Times[*][*]Commentsattachment/110119/bca25bf406.jpg
Swimmers compete in the annual Winter Swimming Competition in Tongxiang, Zhejiang Province. Photo: CFP
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Swimmers brave the winter cold and icy water at East China Normal University. Photos: Courtesy of Yan Hao
By Thomas McKinley
On a frigid January morning in Shanghai, graduate student Yan Hao steps outside a changing room in a pair of swimming trunks and dives into an outdoor pool. He is not pledging to be in a fraternity nor did he lose a bet - Yan is a "winter swimmer."
While most people's visions of winter sports involve being on a ski slope or skating rink and bundled up with coats, scarves and hats, there are a small and brave few for whom a healthy winter pastime consists of stripping down to a swimsuit and jumping into a pool of nearly freezing water. Despite the extraordinary nature of their hobby, these individuals stand by their choice.
However, given the strain of winters in Shanghai, it seems ironic to see people willingly and devotedly plunging themselves into pools of water with temperatures as low as 2 C.
Yan, a graduate student at East China Normal University in Shanghai, walked past his university's winter swimming society one day back in 2006 and thought what he saw looked interesting. "I was curious, and then found out that winter swimming had certain health benefits," he said. Yan certainly is a picture of health and attributes his physical vigor to his avocation.
While there is a rationale behind this apparent masochism, how much medical evidence is there to support this theory?
Health benefits
Yan's former coach, Wang Wei, is now the deputy director of the Shanghai Winter Swimming Committee. Wang firmly believes in the health benefits of swimming in winter. "It helps the swimmers become healthier both physically and mentally. Winter swimmers seldom catch colds," said Wang. Yan supports Wang's testimonial and attested to never seeing anyone get sick from the activity.
Dr David Jones, chairman of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Shanghai United Family Hospital, offered his insights and suggestions. "There are no conclusive studies to validate winter swimming as a way to 'cure' any medical condition; however, research has shown that winter swimmers report having an improved mood, less aches and pains and fewer colds. For certain conditions such as acute pain or inflammatory arthritis, cold therapy - such as a cold pack - is a common treatment used to reduce pain. Research shows that winter swimming can also reduce pain in those conditions in a similar manner."
As far as specific areas of the body are concerned, Dr Jones stated that "some evidence shows that winter swimming may increase lung function in asthmatics. It also has been shown to increase levels of important blood markers such as white blood cells and hormones that can help in relieving pain."
When asked whether he would ever prescribe a patient to take up winter swimming, Dr Jones said, "There are probably more orthodox treatments that a Western doctor would prescribe before suggesting winter swimming." However, Dr Jones added that sports medicine doctors often prescribe "ice baths" for athletes after heavy exercise in order to reduce pain and swelling.
Dr Wang Ruihua, a practitioner of traditional Chinese medicine at his firm Moxalife in Shanghai, agrees with Dr Jones and even goes several steps further regarding winter swimming's corporeal benefits. "Winter swimming is very good for increasing someone's yang qi," said Dr Wang. Yang, in traditional Eastern medicine and philosophy, represents an aggregate of heat and solidity. "Places in the body that benefit from winter swimming include the chest, specifically the thymus. Another place that benefits greatly is the back, especially the spine and bladder meridian. Winter swimming also has great vascular advantages - when one's blood vessels get used to the cold water, it benefits the blood flow and muscles, much like doing yoga," Dr Wang added.
Yan has seen these benefits first-hand. "It helped strengthen my immune system. I once suffered from a slight respiratory disease, and gradually recovered when I began winter swimming," Yan said. Wang Wei asserted that it has helped him "to always be energetic in daily life."
Nevertheless, winter swimming is not for everyone, and can even bring more harm than help. "For those who are not accustomed to the sport, winter swimming can place the body's circulatory system under a significant amount of stress. Therefore, winter swimming may actually harm people who suffer from heart or lung conditions. But for regular winter swimmers, some research suggests that the sport can be helpful and can increase levels of white blood cells, antioxidants, and also levels of pain-relieving hormones," Dr Jones said.
Dr Wang also cautions that people with heart problems or hypertension should not participate in the pastime. "They should know their family history and heart rate, as well as their blood pressure," he stated. Yan also cited hypertension and heart disease as the top two conditions to disqualify someone from entering icy water.
The question remains then, as to under which parameters winter swimming should be undertaken. Dr Jones prescribes the following: "In a safe and supervised environment, winter swimming can be safe at temperatures of 2 C. The danger in winter swimming lies in extreme changes of temperature. Rapid changes in temperature can place stress on the body, and therefore it is important not to go from extreme cold into extreme heat and vice versa. A warm spa after winter swimming may sound inviting, but should definitely be avoided!" Yan's procedure accords with that suggested by Dr Jones. "After swimming, I always have a cold shower, then gradually turn it to hot," Yan said.
"If people want to do winter swimming, they must start slow. I recommend taking cold showers for at least four months before winter, in order to be prepared. This will also increase their yang qi," Dr Wang said. As uncomfortable as this may seem, it may be a relief from the intense heat of a Shanghai summer.
As far as other foods that are helpful to the winter swimmer, Yan cited "beef, cheese and chocolate" as the top three. Interestingly, all three belong to the yang category of foods. Other yang foods include eggs, smoked fish, peppers and potatoes. The organic heat from these foods helps to maintain the proper balance with cold water. 来源：Shanghai's subzero swimmers Source: Global Times
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铁伐 发表于 2011-1-28 23:54 http://bbs.china-ws.org/images/common/back.gif
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