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This shocking footage shows around a dozen tiny children running out into the snow wearing just their pants before they throw ice cold water all over themselves.

The nursery children, aged between three and six, are taking part in a daily ritual which teachers and doctors claim will keep them healthy.

A paediatrician checks the children are suitable, and permission from parents is needed as the ice showers are not compulsory.

But as the footage shows, most of the children taking part seem enthusiastic and appeared to enjoy their drenching, despite the cold.

The youngsters get to warm up in a sauna first, before running out, many barefoot into the snow.

One little boy in the footage said: "It's not cold, I feel warm."

While a girl called Alina adds: "It's exciting."

These extraordinary scenes are taking place at Sibiryachok - or Little Siberian - state kindergarten number 317 in Krasnoyarsk, where ice bucket showers are part of the curriculum.

These pictures were taken during a week when temperatures were mild for the time of year, between minus 6 celsius and minus 18 celsius.

Pre-school teacher and swimming coach Oksana Kabotko, 41, told the Siberian Times : "Children have the ice cold shower if it's no colder than minus 25C.

"Those children who have ice cold shower daily, not once every two weeks, come regularly to the kindergarten.

"Of course, they can go down with some illness during the winter but it passes more quickly, after a few days at home.

"Those who don't take an ice shower may spend up to two weeks at home recovering."

She added: "The children who do have the ice showers are also are more sensible, balanced - and optimistic.

"They are better organised.

"But just imagine, you need to do it every morning, you require the willpower to do that.

"We don't force anyone.

"There are also some children who don't go to our kindergarten but join us just for the shower."

Supporters of the ice buckets for children cite a 1997 study in Sochi by Dr V Kharitonov when blood samples of students was tested before and after they took such treatment.

This found statistically significant changes in a majority of indicators regarding the cellular immune system, according to the report in the Siberian Times .

Another Siberian kindergarten director, Olesya Osintseva claimed there were many cases of her young pupils going down with flu before she ordered ice showers.

She said: "There were moments when half of the children attending the kindergarten were unwell.

"It was obvious that something needed to be done to make them grow stronger and be more resilient against viruses.

"This is how we came to the idea of boosting their immunity up by doing this exercise with buckets of chilly water outside in the cold.

"We tested it on ourselves and our own children first, when both adults and children were first going out and splashing their feet with water, and in some months pouring cold water bucket over our heads.

"What six months of these water exercises showed was an immediately stronger resistance to illnesses.

"Our kids were now able to go to the kindergarten and even if someone had infection, they were no longer catching it."