How to flatten your belly FAST: The 60-second shower trick that can shred fat from your stomach
No, it's not a superfood smoothie or a $500 gadget. It's sitting right there in your bathroom.
It's your shower.
More specifically, the cold tap.
This simple yet powerful biohack - known as cold water therapy - is one of my absolute favourites. It's free, accessible, and surprisingly effective. I talk about it in my new book Biohack Me, where I break down how we can reset our nervous system, upgrade our biology, and reverse chronic symptoms with small, intentional changes.
And trust me, I've lived it.
After years battling burnout, postnatal depression, and eventually a full-blown health crisis caused by toxic mould exposure, I discovered the power of cold exposure for my mental and physical health.
Cold showers became a cornerstone of my recovery - and now a daily ritual I wouldn't skip for the world.
Why it works (and what the science says)
Cold exposure has been used for centuries to promote healing and resilience, and modern research is finally catching up. It's been shown to:
- Activate brown fat, which helps burn calories and regulate body temperature
- Reduce inflammation (a major contributor to ageing and chronic disease)
- Trigger a 250 per cent spike in dopamine - the feel-good, focus-enhancing brain chemical
- Lower cortisol, your stress hormone, and promote a calm, steady mood
- Boost immunity by stimulating your lymphatic system
In short, cold water gives your system a jolt in the best possible way. It wakes you up, both mentally and metabolically. It also trains your nervous system to tolerate stress better.
That's why it's so powerful for people dealing with anxiety or burnout. It teaches your body how to recover fast and stay regulated.
Take the cold shower challenge
Now, before you panic and start picturing ice baths à la Wim Hof, let me make this clear: you don't have to go full polar bear to reap the benefits.
I recommend starting with what I call the cold shower challenge - a gentle, no-BS intro for everyday people who want to feel better, fast.
Here's how to do it:
Start slow – At the end of your regular warm shower, switch the water to cold for just 30 seconds. Focus on deep breathing. You'll gasp and maybe scream a bit. Totally normal.
Level up – After three to five days, extend to 60 seconds. You'll be surprised how quickly your body adapts.
Go fully in (if you're game) – Eventually, try a full cold shower from start to finish. Morning is ideal, it'll leave you buzzing with energy.
Bonus tip: Pair it with early sunlight exposure for a natural cortisol rhythm boost and enhanced mood throughout the day. That's the kind of biohacking stack I love - simple, powerful, and totally free.
A biohack for your body and your mind
Beyond the waistline wins and dopamine rush, there's something deeper at play with cold exposure. It's about choosing discomfort in a world obsessed with convenience.
When you step into cold water on purpose, you're signalling to your body and brain 'I'm in control'.
That mindset shift - of facing discomfort head-on - spills into other areas of your life. You show up differently. Stronger. Calmer. More grounded.
So, if you're looking for a no-fuss, high-impact way to boost your health, start here.
One cold minute. Every day. That's it.
You don't need to overhaul your life overnight. You don't need a six-week plan or a pantry full of powders.
You need a bit of grit. A willingness to get uncomfortable. And a commitment to show up for yourself - even just for 60 seconds.
I dare you to take the cold shower challenge this week. You'll thank me later (once your goosebumps settle).
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
23 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Map reveals where Americans are at highest risk of number one killer... and the shocking reason why
Americans in about three dozen counties are being exposed to dangerous air pollution that puts them at a heightened risk of cardiovascular disease. A research team from the University of Michigan constructed a map of the more than 15,000 cattle and hog feeding operations in the US and found a quarter are located in just 30 US counties out of more than 3,000. Based on the analysis, the factory farms occupy an area of about 500,000 football fields, with cattle operations representing almost 80 percent of that total. For comparison, there are about 16,000 high school football fields in the country. Researchers found that these factory farms are putting millions of Americans at risk of heart disease, the leading cause of death in the US, and respiratory issues by pumping out high amounts of pollutants called PM2.5. PM2.5 levels in the air near the animal feeding operations, or AFOs (large-scale facilities where animals are confined for concentrated feeding), were higher than in similar counties without such operations. PM2.5 levels were 28 percent higher than average in tracts of land with cattle operations and 11 percent higher in areas with hog farms. Both short-term and long-term exposure to PM2.5 has been found to trigger heart attacks, stroke, and other cardiovascular events. Some states with the highest density of factory farms (more than 300 per county) include Idaho, California, Utah, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico and Arizona. In the study, the researchers focused on PM2.5 levels. PM2.5 denotes particulate matter that is 2.5 micrometers or less. They are about one millionth of an inch, meaning these particles are easily inhaled by anyone exposed to them. The pollution is linked to a number of heart, lung and airway health effects. 'It lingers in the air and can get really deep into your lungs and create scar tissue. It's nasty stuff. There are really no safe levels of it,' said Benjamin Goldstein, a senior author of the new study. The researchers note that the American Medical Association has estimated that for every 10 micrograms per cubic meter (10μg/m3) increase in PM2.5, there is a corresponding four percent increase in overall mortality, with a six percent increase in cardiopulmonary mortality and an eight percent increase in lung cancer mortality. These health impacts have been observed at communities up to 11 miles from AFOs. In the study, an analysis revealed that tracts of land with cattle AFOs exhibit an average PM2.5 concentration of 7.7μg/m3. This is 1.7μg/m3 higher than identical tracts without these facilities. Similarly, the areas with hog farms show an average PM2.5 concentration of 9.2μg/m3, which is 0.9μg/m3 higher than spots without such facilities. The researchers said of these findings: 'These confirm that AFOs are associated with elevated local PM2.5 levels. Given the absence of a safe PM2.5 exposure limits, even slight increases in particulate pollution from AFOs pose health risks to nearby populations.' AFOs release a variety of air pollutants including ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, methane, particulate matter (PM), and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The researchers said: 'Because of high stocking densities at AFOs, vegetation is scarce, and animal hooves often kick up dust. 'The sheer number of animals also produce immense volumes of manure and urine. 'These activities generate airborne particulate matter, both directly as dust and indirectly through precursors volatilized at manure lagoons.' The researchers found cattle farms are primarily concentrated in select counties within California, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Idaho, Iowa, and Texas, while hog farms are mostly clustered in Iowa, North Carolina, Minnesota, Oklahoma, and Missouri. Several of these states have the highest rates of heart disease mortality in the US. Cardiovascular diseases, including heart disease and stroke, claim more lives than all forms of cancer and accidental deaths combined, according to the American Heart Association. It has been the leading cause of death in the US since 1950. In 2023, it was responsible for about one in three deaths, killing 919,000 people. According to 2022 CDC data, the latest statewide available, Oklahoma had the highest heart disease mortality at 257 deaths per 100,000 people. And the leading cause of death in all the other states, aside from Minnesota, is heart disease. Previous studies have found that people who live within a few miles of an animal feeding operation are more likely to die from a cardiovascular problem than people who do not live near an animal facility. The pollutants have also been found to increase the risk of contracting respiratory illnesses like asthma and bronchitis. The researchers said they were concerned to find that communities near AFOs are 'often lower income, less educated, and composed of higher proportions of racial minorities compared to more distant neighborhoods'. Specifically, these communities were more likely to have lower levels of health insurance coverage 'One of the things that this study reveals is that we could focus on a limited number of counties to really address health impacts in these communities,' said Joshua Newell, a senior author of the report published in Communications Earth & Environment. He added that creating the map is important for policymakers, governments, and community groups to 'develop very targeted policies or measures' moving forward. Although entities like the EPA and the Department of Agriculture do collect some data on AFOs, there's variability and inconsistency in how that data is reported across the country. As a result, the existent body of data was messy and limited in its scope and accuracy, lead author Sanaz Chamanara said. For example, she combined government data to start with an original list of more than 10,000 AFO locations. But as Chamanara started verifying those locations with satellite imagery, she found thousands of sites without active AFOs. 'I can't remember the exact numbers, but, at the end, the data contained just about 5,000 locations,' Chamanara said, a number that was far too low to be accurate. 'I saw that and said, "This doesn't make sense." And that's when I started developing the whole data set.' A community science project called Counterglow provided information on where to start looking for the missing AFOs, but Chamanara still had to comb through satellite imagery of every continental US county to locate the operations. Because nationwide data is available on air quality and the socioeconomic makeup of communities, the team could use its new data and systematically examine correlations with the presence of AFOs on an 'unprecedented scale'. Researchers have examined such connections before, but previous studies were constrained to much smaller, local extents. The researchers used census data to analyze the sociodemographic makeup of the communities near feeding operations. 'The meat you eat comes from somewhere. It takes up a lot of space and produces a lot of pollution,' Goldstein said. 'And somebody else and place has to bear that pollution.'
Medical News Today
25 minutes ago
- Medical News Today
GLP-1 microdosing for weight loss: Experts weigh the pros and cons
Over the last few years, the popularity of taking GLP-1 medications for weight loss has greatly increased. More than half of Americans taking GLP-1s say it was difficult to afford. Online health platform Noom recently launched its Noom Microdose GLP-1Rx Program to reportedly address barriers to GLP-1s, including medication cost. Over the last few years, the popularity of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1) used for weight loss has greatly increased. Type 2 diabetes medications like Ozempic and Mounjaro are sometimes prescribed off label for weight loss, while Wegovy and Zepbound are approved for the treatment of obesity. Industry researchers estimate that while about 12% of United States citizens have used a GLP-1 medication for weight loss, 54% of adults who have taken GLP-1s say it was difficult to afford, and 53% say it was still too expensive even if they received insurance coverage for the medication. Medication cost is just one of the reasons why online health platform Noom recently launched its Noom Microdose GLP-1Rx Program, which, according to the company, also helps lower potential side effects and helps with creating sustainable behavior changes. Medical News Today spoke with five GLP-1 medical experts to find out what exactly is microdosing and how it is different from taking normal amounts of GLP-1 medications, as well as its safety and efficacy. What is microdosing? According to Maria Cecilia C. Asnis, MD, FACE, DABOM, director of The Center for Weight Management at Stamford Health and assistant clinical professor of medicine at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, GLP-1 microdosing is the new 'buzzy' term circulating in the conversation regarding these tools for weight management.'However, the concept of flexibility in dosing and personalization of medication management is not new in the clinical space,' Asnis explained to MNT. 'Every individual person has unique needs and goals — and the 'dose' they need to achieve and maintain those goals is also unique. In that same vein, the dose people respond to and tolerate without side effects is also individual.' Babak Orandi, MD, PhD, obesity medicine specialist and transplant surgeon at the NYU Langone Weight Management Program, and associate professor in the Departments of Surgery and Medicine at NYU Grossman School of Medicine, said that for many doctors who prescribe this class of medications frequently, microdosing is something they have already been trying. 'When I counsel my patients, I tell them that the study sponsors have to escalate the dose monthly in clinical trials but that doesn't mean I have to practice medicine that way,' Orandi explained to MNT. 'Some patients are more responsive to lower doses than others and pushing them to a dose faster or higher than is necessary just leads to side effects.' Similarly, Kayley George, MS, RD, LD, a registered dietitian, and founder of the Ditch the Diet coaching program,told MNT that microdosing through Noom or any other platform is not necessarily different from what doctors prescribe with, for example, Ozempic — the active ingredient, semaglutide, is still the same. 'What Noom is offering, however, is a lower dose than the traditional FDA-approved dosing regimen,' George explained. 'The traditional Ozempic dosing starts at 0.25 mg [milligrams] once weekly and is escalated typically every four weeks. In contrast, Noom states that their dosing starts at 25% or less of the standard 0.25 mg dose and escalates at a personalized rate.'Is microdosing GLP-1s safe? While microdosing GLP-1 medications may provide a more personalized experience, there are still questions regarding the safety of this practice as there are currently no published studies on the process, and the microdoses may come from a compounding pharmacy. Jennifer Cheng, DO, chief of endocrinology at Hackensack Meridian Jersey Shore University Medical Center in New Jersey, told MNT that, right now, GLP-1 microdosing is an experimental means that is not well studied currently, there is no reliable information on the safety and side effects of microdosing GLP-1, and there are no guidelines on how microdosing should occur.'Safety is unknown; [it remains] unknown if [this approach] is good or bad,' Cheng continued. 'It still may trigger the side effects of GLP-1. Giving a smaller dose of Ozempic or any other GLP-1 can still produce these side effects such as nausea, vomiting, muscle loss, upset stomach, headaches, and slowing of bowel movements potentially leading to ileus or obstruction.' George said that microdoses of the drug are only as safe as the pharmacy producing it:'To access these custom doses, Noom must use a specialized compounding pharmacy. 'Their website claims to work with a 'leading 503B FDA-inspected pharmacy to dispense compounded semaglutide medication.' They also highlight that the compounding pharmacies are U.S. Pharmacopeia (USP)-compliant.' 'Although they've taken extensive measures to ensure safety, it's still important to understand that compounded medications are not FDA-approved,' she continued. 'This means the final product is not reviewed for safety or efficacy the way commercial drugs are. In addition, compounded medications are typically not covered by insurance.' How effective is GLP-1 microdosing? Mir Ali, MD, a board-certified general surgeon, bariatric surgeon and medical director of MemorialCare Surgical Weight Loss Center at Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley, CA, told MNT that while it is usually not harmful to microdose GLP-1 medications, they may be less effective.'Though some patients may feel the effect of these medications at lower doses, most patients require a higher dose to see significant results,' Ali explained. 'It may be useful in patients who have achieved their goal weight and are using lower doses to maintain their weight.' However, 'early data and clinical experience suggest that it is an effective strategy,' Orandi commented. 'People with diabetes, particularly severe diabetes, tend to lose less weight with GLP-1s than people without diabetes, so microdosing is less likely to be as effective, though their dose should only be increased as they tolerate it.' George said that in her professional opinion, microdosing is a potential option for patients with smaller amounts of weight to lose or as a bridge to start, or wean off, regular GLP-1 medications.'It may also be used as a maintenance dose after significant weight loss has already been achieved,' she added. 'I would not recommend microdosing GLP-1s for individuals with significant amounts of weight to lose or known metabolic dysregulation.' Is GLP-1 microdosing right for me? The bottom line is that there are still questions regarding the effectiveness and safety of microdosing GLP-1 medications, and this type of regimen is not for everyone. 'I would like people to know that microdosing is not the normal way these medications are used, though it may be feasible in those who have achieved the desired results or have much less weight to lose,' Ali to George:'Microdosing is a big trend in the weight management space but still not FDA-approved. Noom hit the nail on the head — patients need access to more affordable versions of GLP-1 medications with more tolerable side effects. As more generic, low-cost versions of Ozempic become available and medication innovations improve, I believe we'll see more solutions rolled out in the near future. Compounded microdosing is a good interim solution, but patients considering this option need to be very cautious on where the medication is sourced.'Experts also stressed the importance of having medical oversight while using GLP-1 medications. 'It is essential that people be medically evaluated and followed on these medications in the long term — not just when they are paying to subscribe to a program,' Asnis said. 'In the end, if we can increase access to these tools while maintaining oversight, and put patient outcomes over profits, that is what will ultimately move the needle on the proverbial scale in the pandemic of excess weight.' And Cheng noted that: 'It is better to use FDA approved treatments rather than experimental and unproven treatments.'Moreover, 'it is important to speak with your healthcare professional regarding the use of GLP-1 or microdosing,' he emphasized. 'There are risks, benefits and possible side effects to medications and, if discussed, they can help you navigate through the possible effects.' Finally, Orandi offered strategies to help minimize side effects that people should follow when taking GLP-1 medications in general. 'Eat slowly,' he advised. 'Avoid heavy, fatty foods, particularly in the first 24–48 hours of the injection. [And] don't force yourself to eat when you're not hungry.'
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Urgent recall for popular soap over fears of DEADLY sickness that can cause organ damage
A skincare brand that markets antiseptic soaps to immunocompromised Americans and healthcare workers issued an urgent recall over risks of sepsis and organ failure from its products. DermaRite Industries, LLC, based in New Jersey, found that several of its antiseptic cleansers were contaminated with the bacteria Burkholderia cepacia, a dangerous bacteria that preys on people with weakened immune systems, particularly those with cystic fibrosis (CF). CF is a genetic disorder that causes severe lung damage and makes patients vulnerable to lasting infections. Around 40,000 Americans have the disease, with about 1,000 new cases diagnosed each year, mostly in children under two. 'In healthy individuals with minor skin lesions the use of the product will more likely result in local infections, whereas in immunocompromised individuals the infection is more likely to spread into [the] blood stream leading to life-threatening sepsis,' the FDA said. B. cepacia resists most antibiotics, spreads easily through respiratory droplets from coughing or sneezing and can trigger a fast-moving, often fatal pneumonia called 'cepacia syndrome.' Even CF patients with mild symptoms can develop this aggressive infection. About one in five people with CF who carry the bacteria will progress to severe illness, sometimes with life-threatening bloodstream infections. In addition to people with cystic fibrosis, immunocompromised people who have sickle cell anemia, are being treated for cancer, and being treated for burns, are most at risk of severe infection caused by B. cepacia. The products being recalled are sold under the brands DermaRite, DermaKleen, Dermasarra, Kleenfoam and Perigiene. They were were distributed both to consumers via Amazon and their website and to healthcare facilities, including hospitals and clinics To date, DermaRite has not received any reports of infections linked to their products and it has not been revealed how the products became contaminated. The FDA recommends that people and stores that received shipments of the products 'examine available inventory and destroy all affected products.' DermaKleen is an antiseptic hand soap with Vitamin E that reduces skin bacteria. DermaSarra relieves itching from minor skin irritations like dryness, insect bites, or sunburn. KleenFoam is an antimicrobial foam soap with aloe vera for handwashing after diaper changes, caring for the sick, or before medical contact. PeriGiene is an antiseptic cleanser designed for perineal hygiene. 'Burkholderia Cepacia Complex in these products may result in serious and life-threatening infections,' the FDA said. Scientists call B. cepacia the 'chronic colonizer,' because once it infects the lungs of someone with CF, it persists for life, resisting antibiotics and the body's immune system. It can evade treatment with most common antibiotics, but some, including Bactrim, meropenem, or ceftazidime, have been shown to be effective. But there is no established, universal treatment for the infection. Doctors typically combine oral antibiotics to those administered through an IV. Even then, success is not guaranteed. The bacteria sickens around 20 percent of CF patients. It can spread throughout the body and cause Cepacia syndrome (CS), a severe form of pneumonia that kills lung tissue with a mortality rate approaching 75 percent. In some cases, it can spread beyond the lungs, resulting in multi-system organ failure and death. The bacteria can spread from person to person through droplets emitted when a person coughs or sneezes. It can contaminate medical equipment in hospitals, while also appearing in moist areas in the home, including sinks and humidifiers. From 2004 through 2021, there have been four recalls of nasal sprays that infected patients in the ICU, and a recall mouthwash that caused a cluster of pneumonia. It was also found in a liquid stool softener and an ultrasound gel that affected multiple batches and was recalled. Most healthy individuals will never know that they were infected with this bacteria. But case studies of B. cepacia infections in immunocompromised patients describe severe respiratory distress causing shallow breathing and low oxygen saturation. Patients have also exhibited cracking sounds in their lungs, indicating aggressive infection there, potentially leading to respiratory failure. Early signs of sepsis include fever, a rapid heart rate, fast or shallow breathing, and confusion. As sepsis advances, it causes severe chills and sweating, extreme weakness, low blood pressure, pale skin, and high white blood cell counts.
