Samaira Bangatufts university, Tufts University · startups and sidequests

4 Mistakes You Make While Drinking Water

30 May 2025 · 1 min

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1:16

In this short informational video, the speaker outlines four prevalent mistakes people make when drinking water and explains why each can be detrimental to health. First, gulping water too quickly creates a brief “mini‑shock” to the body because the water is not held in the mouth for the recommended two‑to‑three seconds before swallowing. Second, consuming water that is excessively hot or cold forces the body to expend extra energy to bring the liquid to a comfortable temperature, so the speaker advises drinking water at room temperature. Third, drinking large amounts of water during a meal is said to extinguish the digestive fire (Jatharagni) described in ancient texts, making digestion harder; the recommendation is to wait about two hours after a meal or, if water must be taken, sip it in small amounts. Finally, regularly drinking from plastic bottles—especially those stored in hot environments—can release micro‑plastics into the water, posing a health risk. The overall message is to drink water slowly, at a moderate temperature, separate from meals, and preferably from non‑plastic containers.

Chapters

We make mistakes when it comes to drinking water. We can share the four top ones that we have observed. Number one, we drink water too fast. What that does is body gets a mini shock when we put a sip of water in our mouth. We're supposed to squish it in our mouths just two three seconds before we swallow it inside. The second mistake when drinking water is we drink water which is too hot or too cold. When we drink water straight from the fridge or the freezer, or when it's extremely hot, body has to put double effort first to bring that water into room temperature and then to process it. So we must always drink water at room temperature. The third mistake. The next mistake that we commit when drinking water is we drink water along with our meals. And it is said in our ancient texts that we have a Jatharagni inside which is always burning. If we're having a meal and in between the meal we gulp down an entire glass of water, what happens to that Jatharagni? It basically gets extinguished. It's much harder for the body to break down that meal. So it is recommended to have water at least 2 hours after your meal, or if you have to have it with your meal, then not gulp it down but have small, small sips. The last mistake we commit is all the time having water out of plastic bottles. The plastic bottles that we drink water from have often been kept in hot environments before they come to us, which makes the microplastics in that bottle release into our water.