The Omius cooling headband, sported by many high athletes at this summer season’s Olympics (together with Dutch marathon champion Sifan Hassan) claims to chill athletes down, decreasing athletes’ notion of warmth and doubtlessly enhancing efficiency. A brand new examine investigated how nicely they ship on that promise, and the outcomes are combined.
The examine, performed by researchers out of Sherbrooke, Que., revealed within the Journal of Thermal Biology, explored how nicely the know-how in these cooling headbands impression efficiency.
The science behind the headscarf
The Omius headbands, initially utilized by triathletes, function 20 squares of graphite that present cooling by absorbing sweat; their irregular surfaces vastly enhance the quantity of floor space topic to sweat evaporation, which speeds cooling. The graphite items contact the pores and skin instantly and are held in place by a silicon grid. The headbands are mentioned to offer cooling so long as wanted, so long as they keep moist and are topic to airflow (both outdoor, or from a fan, if getting used indoors).
Olympic marathon headbands create buzz in Paris
The examine
Researchers had 10 male athletes carry out two trials—one whereas sporting the Omius headband and one other with a sham headband (i.e., placebo)—beneath sweltering circumstances (35 C, 56 per cent humidity). The protocol included a 70-minute sub-maximal run (at lower than 80 per cent of max coronary heart price), adopted by a 5K time trial (max effort). Researchers tracked a number of measures, together with coronary heart price, physique temperature and the way scorching the athletes reported feeling.
Right here’s the kicker: the Omius headband did decrease athletes’ brow temperature and made the runners really feel extra snug, however sporting it didn’t result in vital enhancements in key efficiency metrics like coronary heart price, core physique temperature and 5K time.
i get this advert on a regular basis, apparently this can be a cooling headband (??) however i need it to be a set of vitamin blocks that you just put on round and eat when you must they usually present all of your vitamins for the week. that is the long run i need pic.twitter.com/Fk4HHYllVh
— Lindsay B (@theonlylindsayb) August 25, 2024
The actual takeaway
Whereas the Omius headband improved brow thermal consolation, it didn’t decrease the extra crucial rectal temperature, which is a stable measure of core physique warmth. Rectal temperature was truly barely increased with the Omius headband at the beginning of the sub-maximal run. This implies that whereas cooling your brow could make you really feel higher, it doesn’t essentially translate into physiological enhancements that enhance endurance or efficiency.
Perceived exertion and coronary heart price didn’t differ considerably between the Omius headband and the placebo headband. So, whilst you may really feel barely cooler and extra snug with the Omius headband, don’t anticipate it can allow you to shave minutes off your race time.
Price it?
In the event you’re searching for one thing that helps you are feeling cooler whereas operating within the warmth, a cooling headband can do the trick. (We tried it on, and it does really feel cool in opposition to the pores and skin; for athletes who battle within the warmth, it may very well be price it for the decreased discomfort.) However when you’re hoping it’ll enhance your operating efficiency or make a significant distinction in your total warmth regulation, the science doesn’t appear to again that up. Researchers recommend broader cooling methods, like cooling vests, as a greater guess for athletes trying to keep cool and enhance efficiency in scorching circumstances.
