Year-round snow in Las Vegas?

Dr. Reinhard Fricke, a retired professor at the University of Muenster in Germany, said his studies showed that people who suffer from rheumatoid arthritis got temporary relief when they were put in chambers as cold as minus 110 C for about three minutes because the cold temperature stunted the activity of tissue-destroying enzymes and cells.

Fricke said all one can hope for in a room at 55 F (13 C) was a physical wake-up call as blood from the skin rushes back to the inner organs and the brain.

"It is not a treatment of a disease, but a treatment of a sleepy body," he said. "It's just trying to activate, stimulate some people."

It's not so much the temperature that revives the body, but the contrast of going from hot to cold, Qua director Jennifer Lynn said.

After baking in the 200 F dry sauna, and cooking in a 112 F steam room, the 55 F ice room will feel plenty cold, she said.

"So 55 degrees may not sound as cold as 32 degrees sounds. However that contrast is what provides that physical relaxing benefit," she said. It also allows overheated patrons a chance to dip back in. "Frequently I have guests that'll tell me, 'I went through that full circuit three times!'"

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And the snow? Like so much of Las Vegas, it's fake.

It's made from 98 percent water and 2 percent chemical solution that is harmless. The concoction, similar to that used in movie sets, isn't at all cold. It dissolves within a couple minutes after being churned out by a machine manufactured by an Anderson, Ala.-based company called SnowMasters.

Like other fads in Las Vegas, success stories are often repeated.

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Genders says his company already is building two more ice rooms, which will operate at about 45 F, and two snow rooms - this time with real snow - which will be run at 32 F, at another, as yet unannounced, location on the Strip.

Chris McQuade, a 24-year-old researcher from Clearwater, Fla., said the not-so-cold cold room at Qua was "refreshing, but it wasn't invigorating." He also partook of an herbal steam, drank green tea, read newspapers and watched ESPN.

"The (fake) snow was kitschy," he said. "But overall, it was a lot of fun."

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