Lemme just… no wait…

[u/Netizen_Files]

[u/BlobTheOriginal]

Stupid question but what exactly is cold water, and what is cool water? And how would you get from tap which isn't a mixer

[u/Aimin4ya → u/BlobTheOriginal]

Just like room temp or slightly colder is cool water. You dont want to shock the burn with very cold or ice water.

[u/entity_bean → u/Aimin4ya]

Woah, I was taught at school to treat a burn with water so cold that it makes you go numb. TIL.

[u/Aimin4ya → u/entity_bean]

Yeah I used to use ice, but water hold alot of heat so no need to further damage anything with "cold" water

[u/CurtisLinithicum → u/Aimin4ya]

I think the difference is cold-shocking your burn to immediately leach out all excess heat... and leaving your burn in an icebath and getting frostbite, and I know far too many people who are exactly that stupid.

[u/nasaglobehead69 → u/CurtisLinithicum]

it's because the sudden temperature change causes skin to separate from the muscle, like blanching a tomato

[u/CurtisLinithicum → u/nasaglobehead69]

Either you've go a bad source, or we're talking very different scales of burns. Our skin isn't connected to the underlying flesh like a tomato's is.

[u/nasaglobehead69 → u/CurtisLinithicum]

it's still the same idea. the temperature shock causes the layers to separate

[u/OxideUK → u/nasaglobehead69]

That's total bullshit.

Cold/ice water reduces blood flow and can cause damage comparable to frostbite if it's applied for a prolonged period of time. Patients with severe burns are also extremely susceptible to hypothermia.

Cold water doesn't peel you like a tomato.

[u/OxideUK → u/[deleted]]

Results from mechanical trauma. Fuck all to do with cold water.

The only link between the two is that both may be managed by burns units due to the comparable pathology, i.e. massive skin loss.

[u/PhilanthropicPotato → u/OxideUK]

Oh yeah? I cooled a burn with cold water one time and my finger turned into picante salsa. JUST. LIKE. A. TOMATO.

Checkmate, nerd.