Six drinking water taboos to avoid in midsummer

We sweat a lot in summer, so we must drink water to replenish the lost water in the body. Drinking water is a very normal thing, but many people don’t know how to drink water. Let’s take a look at the six taboos to avoid when drinking water in midsummer.

1. Avoid drinking too much

That is, drinking too much water at one time. This situation often occurs after intense exercise or when you do not drink water for a long time. This way of drinking water causes the stomach capacity to expand dramatically, far exceeding the gastrointestinal tract's transmission and absorption capacity, which increases the organ burden in vain and affects the digestive function. Especially for those who drink a lot and then engage in physical activities, the harm is even greater. Therefore, it is better to drink slowly, in small amounts, and frequently.

2. Avoid light drinks

That means drinking only plain water. In midsummer, sweating causes a large loss of various electrolytes (mainly sodium chloride). Although the kidneys can regulate this through reabsorption, there is often a limit and it takes a certain amount of time. If you only drink boiled water, you may develop hyponatremia because the more water you drink, the more you sweat, and the more salt you lose. The whole body will feel weak, fatigued, and listless. Therefore, a small amount of salt should be added to drinking water, especially during work and after exercise. Of course, various beverages on the market currently pay attention to adding various electrolytes. If you use this as a drink, you don't need to add any more.

3. Avoid drinking cold drinks immediately

Everyone likes cold drinks, but if you drink them in the wrong way, it can cause problems. For example, when you are sweating profusely, blood vessels throughout your body dilate and glands on the surface of your body open. If you suddenly drink cold drinks, which causes a sudden change in temperature in a certain part of your body (throat), the blood vessels, gland ducts and smooth muscles of the esophagus will reflexively contract sharply, which can easily induce pharyngitis, tracheitis and even wheezing. Therefore, it is appropriate to first sip a small amount of cold beverage to allow the mouth and throat to adapt, and then increase the amount of drinking.

4. Avoid drinking before meals

According to the author's observation, this phenomenon is most common among adolescent students. When I got home from school, the food was already prepared, but I was so thirsty that I gulped down a large glass of boiled water before I started eating. Little do people know that the hot weather has affected the secretion of the digestive glands. A large glass of boiled water will further dilute the already insufficient digestive juices, thus affecting the digestive function. The best advice is to drink soup instead of tea. The salty taste in the soup can stimulate the secretion of the digestive glands, increase the activity of digestive juices, and replenish water. Or you can eat half a bowl of white porridge first.

5. Avoid restricting drinking water

This may occur in female comrades who work continuously due to various needs. For example, female textile workers take more time to urinate than men while guarding the loom, which often affects their work. In order to reduce urination, they would rather limit themselves to drinking less water, and they are used to it and have no discomfort. However, urine is used to excrete various metabolic wastes from the body. Drinking less water and sweating a lot in the summer will cause the urine to be highly concentrated, and the urine flow in the renal pelvis and ureter will be slow. If this continues for a long time, urinary tract infection and urinary stones are very likely to occur. Therefore, they should arrange to drink 200-300 ml (about one cup) of water one hour before the break according to their work characteristics and break patterns, so that they can urinate during the break and will not affect their work.

6. Avoid excessive carbonated beverages

Most beverages are filled with carbon dioxide and take pride in being "carbonated". Indeed, after drinking this beverage, the carbon dioxide will quickly vaporize in the stomach and absorb a large amount of heat energy, thus it can indeed eliminate summer heat. But drinking too much can be harmful. Carbon dioxide can stimulate gastric acid secretion in the stomach. Although this may be beneficial for people with low acidity, it may be an unfavorable factor for people with high gastric acid secretion, especially those with gastric and duodenal ulcers or chronic gastritis. In addition, some beverages are made with sodium dihydrogen carbonate as a steam generator, which has a high sodium concentration. The body is often in a state of high sodium load, which is not harmless. Therefore, it should be taken in moderation. What is the right amount? It depends on the individual, but it seems reasonable to prefer less rather than more.

The above introduces several taboos about drinking water in midsummer. After reading the above article, you should change these bad habits of drinking water.