In the summer, when we are crossed under the hottest hours, the refreshing feeling to drink a glass of icy water It is priceless: we feel better immediately. On the contrary, a glass of warm water does not produce the same effect; At high temperatures more than water seems like a broth, I almost disturb us. Two different sensations: it is always water, but the temperature affects a lot on “pleasantness”. It is precisely only sensations: in reality, science teaches that at the level of real hydration The differences between a glass of hot water and one of cold water are unrisper also because once you arrive in the stomach, cold water also quickly reaches body temperature.
If when we drink cold water we feel almost immediately quenched on it is for a “deception” of the brain: the cold warns of the arrival of the water making us pass the urgency of drinking. However, this pleasant and thirst -quenching feeling can be a double -edged sword: it can bring us to drink more water and to hydrate better – which would probably not happen with warm water – but at the same time also to drink less if we already feel quenched after two sips. On the contrary, drinking hot water can be more convenient for those suffering from some inconveniencelike some types of esophageal disorders: in this case, drink warm water And not cold not only is it convenient, but it is closely recommended.
Cold water deceives the brain
When we drink cold water, the thirst falls Before Still that the water is absorbed: it is a “pre-absorbing” effect led by the sensors of mouth and throat. Here the feeling of cold Play a key role: according to some studies, cold water (or even the chemical illusion of the cold with menthol) and bubbles increase the feeling of pleasantness e enhance the “thirst -quenching” effect of the same amount of liquid, making us perceive complete hydration.
In a nutshell, the cold warns the body and the brain that water is coming: if the brain is happy, the sensation of thirst falls first. This is not just a fact of pleasantness: even tests with cold water against lukewarm show that, with the same volumein the first minutes the cold reduces more Sette and dryness of the mouth, an effect that occurs even before intestinal absorption and that helps to interrupt the drink. It is the reason why the first sip from the fridge seems miraculous.
In most cases, the well -being perceived brings to the complex a drink more water fresh, precisely because we like it and makes us feel good, but It is not always like that. The fact that in our head “let’s quench our thirst” – even if it is not really true – can also Bring us to drink less watertherefore to hydrate less. It depends a lot on our person and hydration habits! There are those who at the first sips of cold water are already there that they fill the glass again and there are also those who after the first sip feel already quenched and no longer drinks. Also, drinking cold water can also lead to inconvenience to those suffering from ailments gastrointestinal or esophageal, such as acalasia.
Because the water temperature counts little on total hydration
Therefore, there are those who prefer it cold for a certain reason or those who drink it warm for another, but why does the temperature affect our thirst and on the level of hydration? Once you arrive in the stomach, cold water He warms up early: The gastric temperature returns to body values in 20–30 minutes, and the differences in gastric emptying between cold and warm attenuate after the first 10–12 minutes. In practice, the water temperature changes the most initial phase absorption, not overall hydration on the medium term. What really determines How much and how quickly The water enters the body “tank” are ingested volume And composition (for example, carbohydrates and electrolytes can slow down or hold the fluids depending on the context), while the temperature, once in the belly, has little global influence.
In practice, the important thing is to hydrate: the water always quenching thirst and in any case, lukewarm or cold. In some cases or according to habits, the first is preferable, while the second we like more because it makes us believe we are quenched almost immediately. The real hydration makes it the full glass, not the thermometer.
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