Arctic Flex Ice Pack for Back - Hot & Cold Gel Wrap for Injury Pain Relief

My wife and I love it.

This is a hot/cold pack for the back. The material is smooth and soft against my skin. It does have some weight to it though, so it can get heavy, and it can be used on other parts of the body such as the shoulder, arm and knee (as shown in the ad pictures), in addition to the back. My complaint is that the gel pack is built into the belt itself, which I’m not a fan of because I have to freeze the entire belt. It takes up much more space in my already-crowded freezer versus a detachable gel pack! But the price is quite reasonable ($19.99 at the time of this review).

It helps with muscle spasmes

I ordered this to help with some back pain I've been experiencing. I expected it to be basically a sleeve with a removable hot/cold pack that could either be frozen or heated in the microwave, then strapped around your stomach to hold it in place. Instead, the entire device itself is the hot/cold pack. You put the whole thing, including the strap, in the freezer (or microwave) to cool or heat it, and then strap it around for comfort. The belt buckles are plastic, so it's not a problem to microwave them. While this works great for my back, you could also easily use this for other body parts - shoulder, arm, stomach, knee - even sit on it if you have a tailbone issue! It was not what I was expecting but it works great.

This product didn't come with any directions. However, the box clearly says that it contains BPA. I don't know why things are still being manufactured with BPA since it is thought to be carcinogenic. Additionally, I have read information saying that BPA should not be heated because it breaks it down, so I wonder why this can, ostensibly, be used in a microwave. I know that this product is not used for storing food but since it is to be placed in the freezer for use as a pain reliever, it is going to be in an area where there is food and could, therefore, leach BPA into food that may not be tightly sealed or into ice cubes.

This is very easy to chill or heat, either by leaving it in the freezer overnight or microwaving in 5-second intervals. The gel inside keeps hold of temperature for a pretty long time, about an hour for me when I really had it going. It isn't an intense temperature, but a long lasting one that sort of seeps in, and is very soothing. I love the very long and stretchy strap that loops into a ring and closes with Velcro, it is very easy to adjust this for a gentle or firm grip. It can be applied almost anywhere, the lower back obviously, but also over the shoulder, back blade... wherever you need some temperature relaxation. The soft, kind of "wiggly" gel and smooth fabric are pretty comfortable, and I had no issues at all sitting in a chair working with this on my lower back, nor lying in bed with it wrapped around my knee. This does exactly what it is supposed to, and does it well. No complaints at all- 5-stars!

So, gave this to my uncle, and he likes it. Granted he may have a higher heat tolerance to things given all the stuff he's ended up doing to himself over the years, but he said it took 5-10 min to heat it up in a 1700W Microwave, which is a lot longer than the directions say (20 sec each side until desired temp). It did stay hot for 15-20 min afterwards though, which means it holds heat well. Works well otherwise aside from that heating bit.

I really love the pack. It functions equally well whether it is cold or hot and the size and shape means it is just as easy to apply to my shoulder (dislocated) as it is my neck (stenosis). The material is soft and feels nice against skin. I will say that because of the sheer mass of gel, when 'frozen', this thing get downright cold and stays cold for quite a while. I have other gel packs and they get cold, but not to this level and they don't last nearly as long. The only annoyance for me is the strap. It is quite bulky as the pack is large and fairly heavy, but when used on smaller areas, the added bulk from the strap can be annoying to deal with. Though I'd rather deal with an overly large strap that gets in the way on occasion as opposed to a undersized strap that doesn't hold the pack in place. I'm super happy with this cold/hot pack.