Cryotherapy, sometimes known as cold therapy, has long been linked to sports recovery.
Now it’s emerging as the new cult trend in anti-ageing, favoured by the likes of Demi Moore and Rita Ora.
But the treatment isn’t for the faint of heart, it involves below zero temperatures in the name of self-preservation.
Just three minutes in a pod-like chamber chilled to a crisp minus 140°C is apparently all it takes to look like the stars.
The frosty treatment is said to be a go-to for The Substance’s Demi Moore, while Tom Cruise has also hailed cryotherapy for its health benefits.
Mark Wahlberg is such a big fan of the three-minute freeze that he has his own cryo-chamber in his home.
And it seems the celeb-endorsed wellness hack is becoming popular Down Under.
In 2024, the cryotherapy market in Australia made $5.6 million, and it’s expected to reach a projected revenue of $10 million by 2030, according to research by Grand View horizon.
Reflecting on the emerging trend among celebrities, and now Australians, Cryo Stay Young Australia’s CEO Joanna Lykouresis described it as the ‘next evolution’.
‘Cold plunges have become a self-care staple, but cryotherapy is the next evolution,’ she says.
Speaking of her Australian-based clinics and their foray into cryotherapy, Joanna emphasised that while the treatment is still fairly new in the anti-ageing sphere, it is clearly on the rise
‘When we opened our first studio the concept was unknown to most people, but in the last year there has been a huge surge in people enquiring and booking for these treatments.’
In 2022, Rita Ora made headlines in Sydney after ‘rejuvenating her whole being’ at a wellness clinic in Rosebery.
The 31-year-old singer plunged her body into freezing temperatures in a cryotherapy chamber, before relaxing with some oxygen therapy shortly afterwards.
Rita, who attended the clinic with her now-husband Taika Waititi, shared videos of her experience as she attempted to warm up her body after exiting the chamber.
‘I had the time of my life really rejuvenating my whole being at this heavenly place, you have to check it out! @bodywrl it’s unbelievable thank you for having me!’ Rita captioned a photo of herself at the clinic.
Cryotherapy is often described as a way of ‘tricking’ the body into thinking it has hypothermia.
This in turn bolsters it into ‘fight or flight mode’, triggering the release of epinephrine, endorphins and anti-inflammatory proteins.
While the body is not actually in hypothermia, the brain thinks that it is – so blood rushes to the core.
This, in turn, leads to an increase in both metabolism and energy.
Fans claim the treatment increases production of the protein collagen, plumping up your skin and diminishing cellulite, as well as boosting metabolism, burning up to 800 calories a session.
According to the New York Post, a study by Dr. Jacopo Fontana of Italy’s Istituto Auxologico Piancavallo, showed having cryotherapy five times a week, over two weeks, resulted in a 5.6 per cent decrease in waist measurement and a 20.2 per cent drop in cholesterol.
By comparison, a control group on the same diet and exercise regime (but no cryo), saw a waist measurement decrease of 1.4 per cent and a cholesterol drop of 9.4 per cent.
Other benefits are said to include reducing the symptoms of migraines, numbing pain, reducing arthritis and helping skin conditions such as dermatitis.
It also claims to help with mood disorders such as anxiety and depression, and aid treatment for dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.
