Which is better: Cold or room temperature water?
There’s a myth out there stating that room temperature water is best for your body. Curious about whether or not that myth had convinced people to “prefer” room temperature water, we decided to take a quick poll at our corporate office to determine which one was more popular.
The result? A whopping 79% of those polled stated that they preferred cold over room temperature water.
So while that myth hasn’t steered people away from cold water, the question remained: Which is better? Well, it depends on the situation.
If we’re just going about our day to day routines, cold water is best. Water between 50 and 72 degrees allows our bodies to rehydrate faster because it is absorbed more quickly.
Many people think that drinking cold water will help them lose weight faster because the body has to work harder to warm it. While cold water does make us burn about 8 calories per cup, that minimal amount doesn’t add up to much of an advantage. When it comes to weight loss, either cold or room temperature water is good.
There have been a few studies that have tested which water temperature was best for the body during exercise. The results tell us that it depends on which type of exercise we’re doing. In general, cold water delays the increase in core body temperature; however, room temperature water proved slightly more beneficial when weight lifting.
In the end though, regardless of the temperature, drinking water is good for our overall health. The important thing is that we stay hydrated. In the case of water temperature, preference wins; whichever temperature encourages us to drink more water is the one we should choose.
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