Russia: A bucket a day keeps the doctor away in Siberia
Siberian children in the town of Krasnoyarsk in northern Russia have a unique way to stay healthy and active in the winter—pouring buckets of ice cold water over themselves. For the last 15 years, Margarita Filimonova has been putting this programme into practice so the children at kindergarten no. 317 learn to spend some time outdoors, even when the temperatures are below zero.
Children gather in the garden and splash themselves with buckets of ice cold water, only to run into the hot sauna to relax and warm up. After the ritual is finished, they put dry clothes on and drink herbal tea. This all takes place at 7:30 AM, right before breakfast, as the cold improves the children's appetite.
Thanks to this winter training, the teachers claim that children are immune to flu viruses and winter colds. Temperatures are so extreme in Siberia that youngsters are only allowed to go outdoors in the worst weather after three years of training and medical tests.
Western world pharmaceutical companies can't sell flu shots over there.
