The Jonas Brothers do it. Kylie Jenner does it. Dermatologists explain what ice bath facials can and cannot do for your skin.
The FaceTub is, as wellness equipment goes, refreshingly literal: a clear plastic basin molded to fit a human face, with a snorkel attached so that the face’s owner can keep breathing while everything above the chin sits in ice water. It sells for about $95, requires nothing but a freezer, and has lately become the rare grooming product endorsed by all three Jonas Brothers. “The FaceTub! It’s an ice bath that’s built for your face, it has a snorkel tube so you can just fully send it,” Kevin Jonas told E! News in January, when the brothers were asked about their latest obsessions. “The FaceTub, I’ve kind of brought that into my brothers’ lives and now it’s like everywhere. It seems like everyone seems to be using it,” Joe added.
The most visibly converted brother is Nick. “There’s a thing called a face tub that Joe put me on to,” he told Popsugar in May, describing his morning routine. “You basically fill it up with some ice and water and dunk your face in it for as long as you can to just take down inflammation. It wakes your whole body up better than coffee.”
The ritual requires no proprietary hardware; a mixing bowl, cold water, and a tray of ice cubes will do. Dermatologists generally recommend 10- to 20-second dunks, repeated for a total of 30 to 60 seconds. The dunk is a celebrity prep staple. Kylie Jenner filmed herself face-down in a bowl of ice water while getting ready for the Golden Globes in January, aided by a breathing ring from her makeup artist, Ariel Tejada. “So, Ariel got me this,” she said in the TikTok; a few rounds later she surfaced and announced, “I feel good. I’m done.”
What ice water does for skin
“Submerging the face in ice water causes rapid constriction of blood vessels, which can temporarily reduce inflammation, puffiness, and redness,” Dr. Anetta Reszko, a board-certified dermatologist in New York, told NBC Select. “This vasoconstriction may also minimize the appearance of pores and decrease surface oiliness, followed by a rebound increase in circulation that can give the skin a firmer, more revitalized appearance.”
The effects are real, but they are rented; most experts put their lifespan at a few hours. “There is no strong evidence that regular facial ice baths create lasting anti-aging changes like boosting collagen,” Dr. Shamsa Kanwal, a board-certified dermatologist with My HS Team, told NBC. “The main value is short-term symptom control, like morning puffiness or post-workout facial flushing. If someone relies on it daily for persistent redness or swelling, it is worth addressing the underlying cause instead.”
The risks
While the hottest summer on record may make submerging yourself in ice appealing, not every dermatologist is convinced of the benefits. “The truth is that there is no benefit into dunking your face in a bowl of ice,” Dr. Tanya Kormeili, a board-certified dermatologist in Santa Monica, told Hola. “However, prolonged exposure of ice on your skin can result in pigmentation discoloration and a burn. Cooling the skin gently can help tighten the pore opening and reduce swelling. Cooling helps reduce inflammation, but ice is not cooling but freezing at a rapid rate. If you have rosacea or eczema this can also flare your skin further.”
Reszko draws similar boundaries, advising people with sensitive skin, rosacea, broken capillaries, eczema, or chronic inflammatory conditions, along with anyone recovering from a cosmetic procedure, to sit the trend out; Kanwal suggests a chilled gel mask or a cool compress as gentler routes to the same de-puffing.
None of this has slowed the tour bus, where the brothers treat product discovery as a competitive event. “We all spend so much time together when we’re on the road and we’re constantly giving each other tips or hacks or things like that,” Nick said. “Joe’s pretty good about finding new products and things like the ice bath, but I gotta say, so am I. When I find a new product that I like …. I definitely let them in on my secrets.”
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