Ice water facials have been trending on social media recently, but do they work?
The recent ice water trend on social media has led to a number of influencers recommending the benefits of ice water facials, particularly first thing in the morning. The claim is that regularly plunging your face into icy water can make your skin look more radiant and reduce facial puffiness and oiliness, but is there any scientific evidence to back this up?
How does plunging your face into icy water affect the skin?
An ice water facial involves filling a bowl with ice and water, and then submerging your face in the icy water for a short period of time. The cold water causes vasoconstriction, a process that causes blood vessels in the skin to constrict (narrow) to reduce the loss of heat from the skin’s surface. As a result, almost immediately, many people report that they see a reduction in facial puffiness and say that their skin feels tighter and more refreshed. Some people also report that sebum production is reduced, resulting in their skin feeling less oily. These effects are temporary though. As the skin warms back up, the blood vessels re-dilate (widen) and the flow of blood to the skin increases again, giving a healthy flushed look. So while an ice water facial can temporarily improve your complexion and reduce puffiness, the effects don’t last for long.
Are there any other benefits?
In addition to the effects on the skin, brief exposure to cold water can help you feel more alert and some people report that they feel less stressed afterwards. Plunging your face into icy water first thing in the morning is certainly likely to make you feel a little less sleepy! Immersing your face in icy water activates part of the autonomic nervous system (the part of the nervous system that controls functions in our body that happen without us consciously thinking about them, like the heart beating and breathing). This means that holding your breath while your face is submerged in icy water can result in your heart temporarily beating more slowly, which can result in you feeling more relaxed.
Very little research has been conducted into the effects of ice water facials, and few studies have looked at the effects of whole-body cold-water immersion (CWI). To assess the evidence about CWI in healthy adults, a recent study conducted a meta-analysis to combine and analyze the results of studies published on CWI to date in an attempt to draw overall conclusions about its effects. The study reported that CWI resulted in significantly increased inflammation (immediately and 1 hour after CWI) and significantly reduced stress 12 hours after CWI, as well as some benefits regarding immunity and participant-reported quality of sleep and overall quality of life. However, there was not enough evidence for effects on skin health to be assessed and the authors noted that more research on CWI is needed before conclusions can be drawn.
Are ice water facials safe?
Although there is currently no formal scientific evidence that ice water facials are beneficial, a number of qualified dermatologists have been quoted as saying that they can be temporarily beneficial if used once or twice per week. However, they shouldn’t be seen as a replacement for keeping your skin hydrated and following a regular, gentle skin-care routine.
It’s also worth noting that when you submerge your face in icy water you are essentially exposing your skin to stress, and plunging your face into icy water too often has the potential to disrupt the skin’s natural protective barrier (which is formed by sebum and forms a protective layer against bacteria and pollutants, and also helps retain moisture) and increase the risk of irritation, redness and broken capillaries (also known as spider veins, these are small, damaged blood vessels that are visible on the skin’s surface). For these reasons, ice water facials should be avoided by people with rosacea or with very sensitive, thin, or eczema-prone skin. The skin being in contact with something very cold for too long can also cause cold panniculitis, which results in red patches on the skin’s surface, so make sure that you keep your icy water sessions to 5–30 seconds each.
If you’re interested in trying the potential benefits of chilling the skin without plunging your face into ice water first thing in the morning, you could always try using a face mask or facial roller that has been chilled in the fridge overnight, which cause less of a shock to the skin. Just don’t put ice or something that’s been kept in a freezer directly onto your face because of the potential damage to the skin barrier. Another option is to turn the water temperature to cold for the final 2 minutes of a shower, which offers cold-water benefits for the whole body.
Reference: Cain T, Brinsley J, Bennett H, Nelson M, Maher C, Singh B. Effects of cold-water immersion on health and wellbeing: A systematic review and meta-analysis. PLoS One. 2025;20(1):e0317615. Published 2025 Jan 29. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0317615