Most people in North America would consider a cold glass of water more refreshing than a warm one, although some cultures in the world believe that drinking warm water has a variety of health benefits while drinking cold water, especially with food, can cause problems. The idea that drinking cold water can "shock" your system has some biochemical and physiological merit.
Body Temperature and Homeostasis
Your body temperature averages very close to 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit throughout the day for very good reasons. Mainly, the billions of biochemical reactions going on in your body depend on substances called enzymes, which only work within a very narrow temperature range. Other species have different body temperatures that support their enzymes and biochemical reactions, but human body temperature must be between 98 and 99 degrees to function efficiently regardless of what environment they live in. As such, a good percentage of the energy derived from the food you eat goes to maintaining homeostasis, which includes a constant temperature. Drinking cold water causes the body to increase metabolism to create heat, which requires calories. Drinking warm water doesn't force the body to do additional work, which conserves energy that can be used for other purposes, such as strengthening immunity or tissue repair.
Digestive Benefits
Drinking cold water with food can change its composition in your stomach and make it harder to digest, potentially leading to indigestion, heart burn and bloating, according to "Biochemical, Physiological and Molecular Aspects of Human Nutrition." Normally, when you eat food, the temperature in your stomach is high enough to keep the undigested bolus in a semi-liquid state long enough for stomach acid and bile to start properly breaking it down before it's released into the small intestine. However, drinking cold water can cause oily foods to congeal or re-solidify in your stomach, making it more difficult to digest. Drinking warm water keeps fatty foods from clumping together, which promotes better digestion and adsorption. However, drinking too much warm water with meals is not recommended either, because you will dilute the acidic digestive juices, according to "Basic Nutrition and Diet Therapy."
Stimulating Bowel Movements
According to "Prescription for Nutritional Healing," drinking warm water first thing in the morning is a good idea if you want to stimulate a bowel movement. Why this works is difficult to say, although it may be related to relaxing your blood vessels and intestinal tract, which triggers peristalsis and movement within the bowel.
Sweating and Detoxification
Drinking warm water on a hot day promotes perspiration, which not only helps cool you down but it also helps flush toxins from your body and purify your bloodstream, according to "Fluids and Electrolytes with Clinical Application." This is why tea is consumed by many cultures during the heat of summer.
References
- "Textbook of Medical Physiology -- Tenth Edition"; Arthur C. Guyton, et al.; 2000
- "Biochemical, Physiological and Molecular Aspects of Human Nutrition"; Martha Stipanuk; 2006
- "Basic Nutrition and Diet Therapy"; Staci Nix; 2005
- "Prescription for Nutritional Healing"; Phyllis Balch; 2010
- "Fluids and Electrolytes with Clinical Application"; Joyce LeFever Kee; 2010
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