When it comes to morning routines, most of us reach for coffee or tea without a second thought. But according to an health expert, there’s a simple habit that could offer surprising benefits: drinking a glass of warm water.
Doctor Kunal Sood is recommending this practice as a gentle yet effective way to kickstart digestion, hydrate the body, and set a balanced tone for the day.
Speaking on the social media app TikTok, he listed three advantages of consuming warm water first.
@doctorsood Do you drink warm water?
♬ original sound - DoctorSood, M.D.
He said: “There are three reasons you should start drinking more water on an empty stomach. It will help you digest food better.
“Number one, it will improve your digestion,” he said. “The theory is warm water will help you dissolve foods that you normally have a hard time digesting.
“There's also research that warm water can help constipation.”
He also makes reference to a 2016 scientific study that was published in the journal Gastroenterology Nursing.
According to this study, drinking water that was 37C had a “favourable impact on intestinal movements.”
“Warm water can temporarily boost your body's metabolism,” he said.
“This is because your body will work to bring the warm water in your body temperature, this slight increase in metabolic rate in aid when you're trying to burn calories.”
He added: “And lastly, it will improve circulation and blood flow. This is because drinking warm water will dilate your blood vessels.” However, he does mention to “make sure the water is not too hot to avoid a potential burn.”
Other benefits of warm water
In addition to digestion and detox support, warm water has a range of other benefits—some less commonly talked about but still worth knowing.
One study from 2021 found that warm water can help relax abdominal muscles and improve blood flow, which may reduce the severity of menstrual cramps.
Drinking warm water signals to your body that it's safe to calm down. It's similar to how warm baths relax tense muscles—it soothes from the inside out.
Unlike cold water, which may shock the digestive tract, warm water can be gentler on the stomach lining and may help reduce acid reflux symptoms in some individuals.
