In Chinese culture, water is essential in metabolism and is necessary to replenish the body daily. So is hot or cold water good for health and mental relaxation?
This article will help you answer this question. In addition, you will understand more about the living habits of Chinese people.
Hot Water or Cold Water
You may not know that the Chinese drink hot or warm water every day. They claim that hot water offers more benefits than cold water.
Let’s find out why they appreciate the role of hot water so much!
1. Water quality
The Chinese consider hot water more hygienic than cold water. Boiling water at 100 degrees Celsius is the most effective way to remove bacteria, viruses, bacterial spores, and disease-causing single spores.
In Chinese culture, hot water is one of the measures to limit digestive diseases such as diarrhea, digestive disorders, and cholera.
Meanwhile, some measures, such as filtering water with filters of different sizes, cannot kill bacteria and viruses as thoroughly as boiling water. Therefore, the Chinese prefer to drink hot or warm water over cold water.
2. Eating habits
In China, it is customary to drink warm water with meals. Drinking hot water will help your bowels contract. When that happens, old waste trapped in your intestines can exit your body, reducing bloating.
For people who often suffer from constipation, using hot water with meals will help limit this condition and stimulate better digestion.
In addition, there is a taboo in Chinese eating habits that is mixing hot water with cold water. They believe that changing the temperature too quickly will cause bacteria to multiply and cause digestive diseases.
3. Digestion
Your digestive system will work better if you start your day with warm water. Meanwhile, the Chinese believe drinking cold water after waking up will cause diarrhea.
Studies have shown that drinking cold water during or after a meal can solidify the oils in the food consumed. This method leads to fat accumulation in the intestinal tract and can eventually lead to bowel cancer.
On the other hand, hot water will help you avoid this problem. It can also dissolve things you have eaten. In addition, warm water helps your digestive system work correctly, so your intestines will be healthy and less painful.
Dehydration can cause chronic constipation, as stool accumulates in your intestines, making it work more slowly.
Besides, hot water helps the organs involved in the digestive process work more rhythmically to eliminate waste.
4. Medical basis
While hot water makes no sense to Westerners, the Chinese see it as a way to prevent gastrointestinal diseases.
As mentioned above, hot water has many digestive and immune systems benefits, so the Chinese always drink it daily.
On the contrary, according to the Chinese concept, when you drink cold water, the sudden drop in body temperature will make the body cells work too hard to raise the temperature to a normal state. This action can easily lead to diseases of the immune system.
5. Weight loss
When losing fat, you need to be careful about fat intake. Both warm and cold water is good for weight loss, but hot water helps burn calories, stimulates metabolism, and provides better weight loss results.
Hot water helps the body burn fat better by breaking down fat molecules faster after meals. The high temperature of hot water will cause these molecules to expand and weaken. As a result, the body will use better energy.
Besides, warm water helps curb appetite. Warm water 30 minutes before eating can help you control your calorie intake.
Many people believe that drinking warm water in the early morning will help with weight loss. It is because warm water increases your metabolic rate.
Then, your body will burn more calories and your kidney function will improve. Adding a slice of lemon will help melt the fatty tissues.
In addition, hot water contributes a lot to the process of eliminating waste products that cause bloating, helping to lose weight.
6. Traditional Chinese medicine
Hot water is a good remedy for the treatment of the following diseases:
Esophageal spasm
Esophageal spasm is a condition in which your esophagus has difficulty moving food down to your stomach. The Chinese believe that warm water helps people digest more comfortably.
Poor immune system
The Chinese believe that hot water stimulates the body to sweat and strengthens the immune system. Sweating is a sign of a well-functioning immune system.
Stress
According to research, hot water will help you relieve stress, lower your heart rate, and make you calmer. It will help regulate your breathing. Your anxiety will decrease significantly after drinking hot water.
Nasopharyngeal diseases
Warm water is a Chinese folk medicine for coughs, colds, and sore throats.
Warm water dissolves phlegm and helps you to remove phlegm from the respiratory tract. So, warm water also relieves sore throat and nasal congestion.
Benefits of Hot Water over Cold Water
From our analysis above, you can see the Chinese concept of drinking hot and cold water. The Chinese claim that hot or warm water has more health benefits than cold water.
Specifically, hot water is more hygienic, aids in better digestion and weight loss, and can cure several common ailments.
However, the Chinese do not eliminate cold water from their daily routine. They flexibly combine hot and cold water in eating and drinking.
Conclusion
In China, hot water and cold water each have their benefits. For the Chinese, hot water is one of the keys to health promotion and the immune system. But they always incorporate cold water into their diet in a reasonable way.
Let’s read our other articles for more Chinese habits in their culture!