Although water is known to be the only nutrient without or with minimum known adverse effect when taken in excess, however, this is only when taken in appropriate condition.
Over time, warm to lukewarm condition has been proven to be the best temperature of water can be taken even though many people unsurprisingly prefer to take chilled water - as it is craved for to quench thirst resulting from working under hot condition.
In Nigeria, just like many other African countries, especially among hedonists, cold water is hardly absence when taking meal.
Is cold water really good for digestion?
Although, the overall optimum body temperature is 98.6°F (37°C), digestion of food may require temperature of 104°F (40°C). Higher temperature may be required for the digestion of protein.
Researches have shown that most chemical reactions proceed at a faster rate as temperature increases; food digestion reactions follow this general principle, but there is an upper temperature limit of about 40°C.
According to ScienceLearn, digestion of starch to sugar increase with temperature of 10°C to 40°C, at 40°C the rate of reaction reaches its optimum level for enzymes. However, at above 40°C, the rate of starch digestion reduces.
For fatty-acid, taking cold water immediately after a meal affects the breakdown of fat. This is because cold temperature in the body causes fats to harden and congeal, making them more difficult for the body to digest. Even if you drink normal water, ensure that you wait for 30 minutes after a meal before drinking water to get the maximum benefits.
As regards protein, digestion occurs as a result of the hydrolysis of the peptide bonds that bind the individual amino acids in the polypeptide chain. These reactions are catalyzed by enzymes called protease. Pretease is seriously affected by the temperature of it environment; it works best at 45 °C but becomes ineffective as the temperature drops.
Also, pepsin, a stomach enzyme that serves to digest proteins found in ingested food, is greatly affected by temperature which consequently affect protein digestion. When testing the effect of temperature on pepsin enzyme activity, the results showed that pepsin worked best at the temperature 30 °C. When the temperature decreased to 22°C, the enzyme activity decreased sharply.
A research by Roland A CoulsonThomas DCoulson on the "Effect of temperature on the rates of digestion, amino acid absorption and assimilation in the alligator" shows that digestion was extremely slow at 25°C.
According to the test which based the rates of digestion, amino acid absorption, and assimilation at 25°, 28° and 31°C: digestion was slow and incomplete at 25°C; at 28°C, digestion proceeded about half as fast as at 31°C.
Generally, cold water is not friendly with the body especially during meal as it burdens the body of over working as body tries to warm the cold water in the body while trying to digest the ingested food.
Most enzyme functions are performed at 37∘C in humans because the enzymes are able to retain its structure at that temperature, allowing it to break down complex molecules efficiently.
Raising temperature generally speeds up a reaction, and lowering temperature (cold) slows down a reaction. However, extreme high temperatures can cause an enzyme to lose its shape (denature) and stop working.
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