Drinking water on an empty stomach offers huge benefits for your overall health. Your body needs water to sustain life. The organs need to function properly. Many people say that drinking water the first thing after waking can manage several issues in the body. Hydration is important for the body. The human body is made majorly of water. Your body maintains a water balance for normal functioning. Loss of water in the body can affect the smooth functioning of the different organs in the body. Read ahead to know more about the benefits of consuming water the first thing in the morning.
Why Do You Need To Drink Water?
Your body is comprised of water. Around 60-70% of your body constitutes water. Water in your body is essential for completing major functions. Water is the essential nutrient needed for the body. It means your body cannot produce water through the chemical reactions in the body to meet the daily needs. So, you need to get it from the foods and fluids you consume. Drinking water facilitates proper body function. Your organs and tissues depend on water for completing their functions. Water has a significant role in your body. The benefits of drinking water on an empty stomach include:
Nutrient Transportation
Water is essential in blood circulation. It ensures all the vital nutrients reach the different cells in the body. Water aids in moving glucose, minerals, and water-soluble vitamins throughout the body. Water is also essential to move the medication you take for managing any ailment throughout the body.
Removes Waste
Water is essential to remove waste from the body. Urine aids in removing excess fluids, salts, and nitrogen from the body. The cells in the body can also accumulate waste. Therefore, water is needed to flush out the waste building up due to cell activity. It is also needed to eliminate waste from digestion. When you fail to remove the waste from the body, the cells can stop working. It will make you feel sick.
Thermoregulation
Water is essential to keep a normal body temperature irrespective of the outside temperature. Water can regulate the internal temperature according to the external temperature. Your body uses sweat as the medium by which it prevents overheating of the body. Water is converted as sweat to prevent your body from overheating as a response to high outside body temperature. Sweat evaporation can also result in the loss of calories. This large heat capacity can control the changes in your body temperature in both cold and warm temperatures.
Body Lubrication
Water helps in keeping your joints lubricated and flexible. Your joints feel flexible due to the presence of Synovial fluid as it offers lubrication. It reduces the friction between the joints. So, you maintain healthy joints and tissue due to the presence of Synovial fluid. The synovial fluid consists mainly of water. Water also plays an important part in the lubricating fluids in your body like
- Urine mucous
- Saliva
- Intestinal mucous
- Gastric mucous
- Respiratory mucous
Shock Absorption
Water acts as a lubricant as well as a shock absorber. Due to the presence of water around and inside the body tissue, it protects them. Water defends the body against shock. So, it helps maintain their cellular shape. The presence of water boosts the function of your nerve cells.
Your body loses water through various functions in the body. They are referred to as water outputs. It is to flush out the toxins from the body. Water outputs include:
- Breath
- Sweat
- Bowel movement
- Urine
Your body needs to maintain a proper water balance. So, you have to take in enough water throughout the day to replenish the water outputs. Not making up for water loss can result in dehydration. It is a condition causing several problems in the body. You have to ensure the water inputs and water output remains equal to avoid getting dehydrated.
Benefits Of Drinking Water On An Empty Stomach
What are the benefits of drinking water on an empty stomach? Here are some of them that will make you understand the importance of consuming water early in the morning:
It Speeds Up Metabolism
People who like to shed pounds follow a specific diet. In such cases, drinking water the first thing in the morning can boost up your metabolism. It will raise the metabolic rate by a whopping 25%. When you have increased metabolism, it aids in faster digestion of food. It will lead to losing weight as time progresses. You need to drink at least four liters of water each day to get the desired results.
Drinking Water On An Empty Stomach Boosts Your Immunity
We all know the importance of good hydration for the body. It is essential for your overall health and wellness. Water is an important component in maintaining fluid balance in the body. But, how does drinking water on an empty stomach help? Consuming water early in the morning helps flush out toxins from the body. It also prevents any infection from spreading. This will help strengthen your immune system. So, water is beneficial for your immune system. You can ward off any illness due to a strong immune system.
Clears Your Bowels
Drinking water early in the morning can aid in regulating the digestive tract. When you consume more water, it urges you to flush out your bowels. Drinking water on an empty stomach daily will help with regular bowel movements. Also, you get rid of excess waste from the body regularly. It is helpful for people suffering from constipation or who have trouble passing motion. Drinking water will alleviate constipation by making it easier to clear waste from the bowels.
One Of The Benefits Of Drinking Water On An Empty Stomach: Flush Out Toxins
Your body can accumulate toxins. It is cleared by the kidney and you flush them out in the form of urine. Drinking water early in the morning and throughout the day can make you visit the bathroom frequently. It helps flush out toxins and cleanse the body. It is a form of detoxification. You can prevent bloating when you urinate more.
Prevents Different Types Of Headaches
Lack of water in your body or dehydration can trigger headaches. Some people can suffer from constant headaches while others can experience migraine attacks. When your body is deprived of water, it causes headaches. Drinking water the first thing in the morning can help you get rid of headaches without medications. The natural remedy is better can it trigger no side effects.
Eliminates Risk Of Dental Problems
Drinking water is good for oral health. When you drink it on an empty stomach it prevents problems like dry mouth. Dry mouth is a condition developing due to a lack of saliva. It develops due to dehydration. Saliva is important for your oral health. The minerals in saliva like phosphate and calcium can keep the oral problem at bay.
Boosts Weight Loss
Weight loss is one of the benefits of drinking water on an empty stomach. If you are following a diet, then you lose weight faster by drinking more water. Water has no calories. So, drinking water at frequent intervals will make you feel full without adding calories. Water also causes no severe complications. It also increases your metabolism, which means you burn more calories.
Urges You To Eat Breakfast Early
Drinking water the first thing in the morning will clear your bowel. When your bowels are emptied, you feel hungry in the morning. So, you can eat breakfast on time. It will help boost your metabolism. If you are following a diet, then taking breakfast on time will lead to weight loss.
Clears Your Complexion
If you want to have clear skin, drinking water will help you achieve the goal. Drinking water the first thing in the morning and throughout the day will make you look youthful with glowing skin. You develop dark spots and blemishes on your skin when toxins start accumulating in your body. To flush out the toxins from your body, you need to drink water. Water helps remove the unwanted and harmful toxins from the body. Regular bowel movements also remove the unwanted toxins from the body. So, you can achieve a clear and clean skin. When you drink water early in the morning, it speeds up the process.
It Aids In Boosting Energy
When you get up early in the morning, you feel sluggish. Drinking water immediately after getting up can overcome your sleepiness. It makes you feel active instantly. Drinking water will stimulate your blood cell growth. When the RBC grows faster, it aids in more oxygen to reach your cells. It provides you instant energy.
It Cleanses The Colon
When you drink water first thing in the morning, it can help eliminate the accumulated sludge. Water also moistens stool and makes it bulk. So, it facilitated the easy passage of stool from the colon. When waste is flushed out, it becomes easier to absorb nutrients. Faster absorption of nutrients is beneficial for the body. You also get a healthier colon. Water is the easiest and safest option to cleanse your colon.
More About Drinking Water On An Empty Stomach
We have discussed the benefits associated with drinking water on an empty stomach. But, you need to know how you can follow it in your routine. Drinking water in excess after getting up may only result in excess urination. Your body signals the need for water in the form of thirst. So, whenever you feel thirsty make sure to drink water and avoid other fluids like juices or carbonated drinks. Make a ritual to drink water early in the morning after you wake up. If you are not used to drinking water when you get up, start with smaller quantities. After brushing your teeth, you need to avoid eating and drinking for the next forty-five minutes.
You can eat breakfast after that. After eating breakfast, you must avoid drinking water for the next two hours. Following this will keep several diseases at bay. It will also make you feel energized and fresh. It is a form of therapy offering great benefits like:
- Manages gastritis
- Eases constipation
- Controls blood sugar levels
What is interesting about the therapy is that you can follow it at home. It requires no medical consultation. Water cannot cause any side effects. So, the therapy is safe and costs nothing.
Popular Claims About Drinking Water On An Empty Stomach And Its Truth
There are several claims regarding drinking water on an empty stomach. Are all of them true? Is there any scientific evidence indicating the effectiveness of the claims? Let’s see some of the popular arguments associated with it and the scientific evidence linked to them.
Claim 1: Drinking Water On An Empty Stomach Aids Rehydrating The Body
The urine color indicates the water levels in your body. Dark urine you pass early in the morning may make you feel that you are dehydrated. Since you cannot drink water while sleeping, it is common to think you suffer from dehydration. But, urine color is not a clear indicator of hydration levels. In some cases, you can pass dark urine with correct water levels in the body. According to studies, the urine samples from the morning are more concentrated compared to samples collected at other times during the day. So, it has a darker color. It does not indicate dehydration and the morning samples may fail to detect the dehydration status.
Evidence Indicating Fluctuations
According to a study conducted on 164 healthy individuals to detect the fluctuations in hydration and intake of water, the intake of water is high. For the first six hours after waking up, you drink more water. But, the hydration does not reflect the high levels of water intake. The light-colored urine does not indicate good hydration. Drinking water early in the morning can dilute urine. So, it causes the urine to have a light or transparent color.
In some people, it results in pale urine color even when they suffer from dehydration. Similarly, you may see dark color urine due to not consuming any liquid overnight. When your body suffers from dehydration, it triggers certain signs. Feeling thirsty is the main sign indicating you suffer from dehydration. Some people may experience the feeling throughout the day. So, you need to drink water to overcome the feeling.
 Claim 2: Drinking Water On An Empty Stomach Restricts Calorie Intake Throughout The Day
Can you reduce your total calorie intake when you drink water early in the morning and throughout the day? According to studies, high water consumption makes you feel full. So, you consume less food. Drinking water before any meals makes you feel full. For example, according to a study, consuming water before breakfast reduced the calorie intake at the next meal (breakfast) by 13%.
Similarly, people showed reduced intake of food when they consumed water thirty minutes before eating lunch. These studies also indicated the effectiveness of water in reducing calorie intake at the subsequent meal works only in older adults. It means the concept does not work in young people. But, sufficient intake of water helps young people remain hydrated and get other benefits of drinking water.
Claim 3: Drinking Water In The Morning Promotes Weight Loss
Water promotes weight loss partly due to the thermogenic effect. Thermogenic refers to the energy needed to warm the cold water you drink when it reaches the digestive tract. According to studies, water induces thermogenesis. It boosts the metabolic rate by 24% to 30% in adults. The effect can last up to an hour. Â For example, when you drink 500 ml of water, it can raise the metabolic rate by around 30%. The increase occurs within ten minutes of drinking water and can reach a maximum after thirty to forty minutes. So, the total thermogenic response can go up to 100 KJ. About 40% of the thermogenic effect occur due to warming water from 22 degrees Celsius to 37 degrees Celsius.
According to a study, increasing the daily water intake by at least 1.5 liters (50 ounces) results in burning additional 48 calories. When you continue it for a year, it comes around 17,000 calories (roughly). It is the total calories you will burn in a year, which comes about 2.5 kg of fat (5 pounds). Drinking water will help reduce your weight. It is a claim backed by scientific research.
Claim 4: Drinking Water On An Empty Stomach Improves Mental Performance
Decreased mental performance in otherwise healthy people occurs due to dehydration. So, when your body is deprived of water, you find it difficult to learn new things or memorize. Such simple tasks seem difficult and it can frustrate you. According to research, mild dehydration equivalent to 1% to 2% body weight can harm your mental awareness. It can trigger the following problems
- Issues with alertness
- Trouble concentrating
- Short-term memory
- Reduced physical performance
 Drinking water thing in the morning will help you stay hydrated. Making it a routine will help you stay on top of the game. While mild dehydration is easy to reverse by drinking more fluids at any time of the day, you never forget when you follow it as a routine in the morning. So, unlike other times of the day when you forget or choose to ignore, you will never forget drinking water in the morning when it becomes a habit.
Claim 5: Drinking Water The First Thing In The Morning Flushed Toxins
Flushing out accumulated toxins in the body is one of the benefits of drinking water on an empty stomach. Your kidneys are responsible for regulating the fluid balance in your body. The main function of the kidneys includes filtering the waste in your body and flush it out as urine. For eliminating the waste from the bloodstream, kidneys require water. Drinking water alone may not flush out the toxins as you need healthy kidneys to complete the function. So, increasing water intake alone may not eliminate the toxic waste from the body. The presence of a high amount of toxic waste can lead to reduced toxin elimination. It is because the amount of waste is more than your kidneys can process. It can result in large volume urine. The condition is referred to as osmotic diuresis. It is different from the condition known as water diuresis that occurs due to drinking too much water.
Claim 6: Drinking Water On An Empty Stomach Boosts Skin Health
We have discussed before how drinking water can make your skin look healthy. But, is it true? Is there any scientific evidence to it? Your skin contains 30% water. So, when you drink water. It maintains the water balance. Severe dehydration can trigger several issues as it reduces skin turgor. While conclusive studies are not available to establish the effectiveness of drinking water in minimizing skin acne, it does help you have beautiful skin.
Claim 6: Drinking Hot Water Early In The Morning Offers More Benefits
It is a widespread opinion that opting for hot water instead of cold water right after you wake up can soothe the body. Drinking warm water can benefit people with digestion problems. It helps overcome the trouble of food and liquid passing through the esophagus to the stomach. Apart from that, warm water offers no other benefits compared to cold water. An old study indicates drinking warm water can interfere with hydration.
According to a study conducted in a simulated desert environment, people who drank hot water (40 degree Celsius) drank less amount of it compared to people who drank cold water (15 degree Celsius). Due to the desert-like conditions, people drinking hot water had reduced water consumption. It resulted in dehydration. On the contrary, people who drank cold water maintained their water balance and faced a reduced risk of dehydration.
Claim 7: A Glass Of Cold Water Kick Starts The Metabolism
In some blogs, or other web portals, you can see people claiming that cold water on an empty stomach burns more calories and helps you lose weight. They associate it with the thermogenic effects of water. But, there is a bit of controversy surrounding the claim. According to a study, drinking cold water (below three degrees Celsius) results in a 5% increase in the total number of calories burned. It is considered a small increase compared to the expectation of the number of calories you think cold water will burn. Therefore, scientists are skeptical regarding the ability of cold water to aid in weight loss.
Another study analyzed if the human body can burn additional calories by warming the cold ingested water. The study concluded that most of the thermogenic effect attributes to warming water from 22 degrees Celsius to 37 degrees Celsius. It only burns nine calories. So, drinking hot water or cold water may not have a significant effect on the calories burned. Independent of the temperature of water you consume, it affects your metabolism. Evidence is not sufficient enough to confirm or reject the belief that cold water burns more calories. So, you can choose to stick to the water of normal temperature. Some people find drinking cold water uncomfortable.
Conclusion
Drinking water on an empty stomach ensures you get the necessary hydration for your body. Water is significant in several body functions. It carries the necessary nutrients and oxygen to the cells in the body. It keeps your organ protected, regulates the body temperature, offers lubrication to the joints, and so much more. Drinking water as soon as you wake is beneficial for people who can forget to drink water throughout the day. Making it a habit can prevent dehydration. But, you need to drink water whenever you feel thirsty. It is the signal provided by the body to indicate dehydration. Staying hydrated can ensure overall well-being.
References
https://food.ndtv.com/health/4-amazing-benefits-of-drinking-water-and-why-you-should-skip-cold-water-1628089
https://www.bebeautiful.in/lifestyle/health-and-wellness/beauty-benefits-of-drinking-water-on-empty-stomach#:~:text=Drinking%20water%20on%20an%20empty%20stomach%20can%20give%20your%20diet,for%20reducing%20your%20body%20fat.
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/drinking-water-in-the-morning