Drinking water upon arising...

[Queen Bean]

Do you drink water upon arising?

If so, is it cold/room temperature/tepid/warm/hot? How much do you drink?

I've always drunk cold water, but I read that warm water is better for digestion, at least upon arising.

I eat breakfast about half an hour after I drink water, but wonder if I should skip the water, as this could be hampering digestion. Or maybe drinking warm water would be better...

[MysticTree]

No I don't but I have a very water-rich breakfast of various fruits. I have a glass of water on my desk which I drink and top up throughout the day.

[Aleesha Sattva]

When I fast I do. I drink a litre of water and then drink a little more every time I pee.

When I'm eating I seldom do. Not sure why... hmmm...

I drink room temp water. Cold water is hard on your kidneys. If you warm the water... it'll assist with a bm if you need some assistance.

[Raw Angel Mom]

Always, i have been doing this since a child.

I use my filtered water now that is room temperature. I heard also about the cold water in the morning should be avoid but i actually like cold water. If my water is room temperature, it is because it is convenient.

All the best!

[Non]

Not too hot though. There is research that was cited in Gabriel Cousens' book Spiritual Nutrition that water that is hot can damage digestive enzymes and also healthy flora.

AS for cold water.. it's probably more due to a personal condition that a person wants cold water, ie to cool off any "heat", whether that be by environment or internal heat buildup.

Though generally "too much" if at all seems to have a bad rep in ancient practices like Chinese medicine. Esp. not with food I would say. "Room temperature" may be best. Or that is, a temperature that is "natural" in the environmental conditions one lives in. Of course hot or cold water can be beneficial whenever indicated but only when indicated.

[MysticTree]

If you drink water from a mountain stream, a lake or a spring the temp of the water is cold. Often very cold. I prefer cold water. It may be that water that is cold is less likely to have problems with organisms and bacteria in it. I don't like warm water or any hot drinks either.

[fastfreedom]

I drink on average a quart of water upon rising or within a half hour of rising. It's generally room temp water because I keep water next to my bed.

[green goddess]

... Or that is, a temperature that is "natural" in the environmental conditions one lives in. ....

I like how you put this! Basically, for most of this, this would mean 'room temperature', give or take, considering factors like air conditioning and heating.

As to the original question: I do like having a few mouthfuls of water when I get up, but I find that the more water-based foods I eat, the less water I'm inclined to drink. I often start my day with a juice, so I don't feel like over-doing it with the water drinking.

Basically, if I feel thirsty, I drink water, and this thirst is lessened depending on the type of foods I eat. Lots of fruit and I'll likely drink little water.

[robh]

How do you handle your water consumption? Do you drink water upon arising? How much? Do you avoid water around mealtimes? Do you drink a certain amount each day, or just when you're thirsty?

I have a 2 liter water bottle. I fill it in the morning and then in evening. I never finish it in the evening though. I typically get 2.5 liters in a day. I am sure smaller people require less water. I am 250lbs so maybe a liter per every 100 lbs? Again, maybe that's just my body.

I drink when I am thirsty.

I seem to use the water while I sleep (and pee like crazy in the morning). I am very thirsty when I wake up. Filling up my jug and taking a huge drink is the first thing I do.

I drink it at room temperature. It sure is refreshing with some ice, but not required for me.

[green goddess]

Slightly off topic, but I've never understood the penchant for ice in drinks! I've never liked it - too cold! Brr! Slightly cooler than room temperature is my ideal. My boyfriend is an ice fiend, though. He can't stand to have drinks without ice, and one of the selling features in our new fridge was an automatic ice maker (something I've never used...!).

I dunno... it's just not efficient to drink iced beverages... the body has to warm it up, and if I'm thirsty, I can better make use of tepid drinks than ice-cold drinks, which I have to sip at lest I get 'brain freeze' or similar discomfort. Can anyone help explain the attraction to ice in drinks?


I do, however, make some 'frozen' green smoothies sometimes, using frozen bananas and strawberries, and while the taste and texture is great, I wish they could be warmer! :P

[MysticTree]

I like ice in some drinks but not juices. I prefer cold to hot. I have never liked hot drinks such as tea, coffee, hot chocolate, cocoa, horlicks or anything hot. Even traditional soups I liked just above tepid! Horses for courses I think. Some people just prefer a given temp.

[walnutty]

Yes, I do! I usually drink a gallon in the first hour I am awake.


I learned recently that cold water goes through your digestive system faster, so is more hydrating and that warm water goes through slower so is more filling.

[Queen Bean]

Walnutty. Are you serious? That is a huge amount of water...around 3.7 litres. My goodness. How long do you wait after this before eating?

The water I drink is room temperature, but as it's winter, it's pretty cold. I drank warm water this morning. It doesn't feel natural to me as a high raw foodist. I don't even drink tea except once in a full moon. Even though it didn't feel natural, it still felt good on a cold morning. But I will go back to room temperature water, as warm doesn't feel raw to me. :S

[MysticTree]

There was a report it the paper the other day about someone who died from drinking too much and that was followed this week by the shocking story of a young man who died of thirst in one of our hospitals. Interesting what you said about the differences between warm and cold Walnutty. Cold water is definitely more thirst quenching going by my experience.

[MysticTree]

QB, an American gallon is not the same as a British one so your litre calculation might be out if you were using our Pommie gallon. US gallon is about 5 of our pints I think. I'd need to look it up again.

[Living Food]

I drink 2 glasses of cold water right after waking up. Warm water goes right through you so can help with bms, but cold water actually works better for that purpose in the morning because it socks your digestive system awake and causes peristalsis. I feel like it's more natural to drink cold water (unless you're in a tropical climate). I've heard that cold water can shut down your production of digestive enzymes and juices, however, so don't drink it close to a meal time - which you shouldn't do anyway. I don't drink water within an hour of meals because it dilutes the digestive juices + enzymes and hampers digestion, I wait 2 hours after eating before drinking water. I don't follow this rule if my meal is a juice or smoothie, however.

Never heard of cold water damaging the kidneys before, that's interesting. I don't drink ice cold water, though, just cold water.

Water has more "life energy" at cooler temperatures, this inherent energy is lost when the temperature rises. Water seems to have the most energy at 4 degrees Celsius (about 39 degrees Fahrenheit).


I learned recently that cold water goes through your digestive system faster, so is more hydrating and that warm water goes through slower so is more filling.

Other way around. Warm water goes through your digestive system faster, so cold water is more hydrating because warm water just "goes right through you".

[Ms Joeyy]

I have read a few articles that cold water is indeed faster at hydrating you. I find it to be true myself from personal experience of relief feelings and the color of my urine soon after vs warm water. Which is fairly interesting even to me still. I have been consuming about 2 and a half glasses of cold water, first thing after I take my walk with my dog upon rising.

When I first began consuming water first thing upon rising, after extensive research for the benefits of this specifically. I did try room temperature water for a while. I found myself having such a difficult time trying to do so, by the taste alone, it just was very unpleasant, especially as the first thing in the morning. Once I began with cold water, it was so much easier and satisfying and as a result, overall better feeling.

[MysticTree]

I think there is a big difference between water flushing through your kidneys and water hydrating every cell in your body. I don't see why different temps of water would make that much difference to hydration. Existing levels of hydration possible do - think of a very dry plant pot. The water rushes through even though the soil is dry. A better hydrated pot of soil holds the water better! Mad isn't it?