You May Be Drinking Water The Wrong Way And Experts Say Temperature Could Be The Main Reason Why

When looked at from the perspective of a thermal camera, the human body is the marriage between fire and ice. Its functional rhythms and cycles are a delicate dance of heat and cold. The fist-sized stomach is the mother who manages and controls this dance. If this mother extinguishes her flame-producing stove and drifts into a cold, dark sleep, all the other organs of the body will go sulky, turning the body into an icy, cold palace. So, the essential life energy called “Qi” in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) will continue to remain frozen and dormant. Therefore, the temperature of your drinking water matters, doctors revealed in conversation with Bustle.  

Drinking water temperature for exercise and workouts

Medical experts insist that cold water is way better than hot water in the moment you’ve jumped off a treadmill and your body is oozing buckets of sweat. Drinking hot water in this scenario could overheat the body, which is not good. "Cold water is cooling, so it can be helpful during exercise or when you are overheated," Doctor Jill Blakeway, a board-certified doctor of acupuncture and Chinese medicine and clinical herbalist, told Bustle. "Cold water is refreshing and cooling. It’s great on a hot day and a good choice after exercise."

A study published in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition compared how cold and warm drinking water affected the body after workouts. Researchers concluded that drinking cold water while exercising could help keep your core body temperature lower for longer, which in turn would support you working out longer.

For good digestion, hot water is the hero

Proponents of TCM and Ayurvedic medicine experts endorse the idea that, when talking about digestion, drinking room-temperature water is the best thing to do. "In Chinese medicine, we advocate drinking warm water because of its effect on the digestive system," Dr. Blakeway explained. "Drinking cold water can congeal the fats in food, and because of that, it can make the digestive system sluggish." Cold water can also aggravate the formation of mucus and sinuses, in which case you may need to sip a cup of warmed water for relief.

According to Virginia Acupuncture, the Yellow Emperor’s Classic of Medicine emphasized that drinking icy cold beverages like cola or soda can dampen the fire in your stomach. Once the fire dims down in this stove, once the mother becomes lazy, the children your lungs start suffering from problems like asthma, infections, colds, and allergies. When someone eats coldness-inducing foods like greasy burgers or sugary beverages, their stomach, a.k.a. stomach, becomes icy cold, which leads to discomfort. To avoid this, doctors suggest drinking water at room temperature.

Tune into your body

Both cold and hot water have their benefits and downsides. The clue is to tune into your body and become aware of what it needs the most in a given moment. While cold water can be soothing to the body on a scorching hot afternoon or a post-workout session, when guzzled frequently, it can trigger headaches and sinus problems. When it comes to smooth pooping, doctors say that both hot and cold water are just as good as each other, because once they dribble down the oesophagus, their temperatures are equalized in the stomach. So choose wisely. And remember, whether you need to feel a little hot or a tad bit cool, just make sure to drink plenty of water and stay hydrated.