Summer is coming, @People who love to drink ice water, do you also have these doubts →

The weather is hot

A glass of ice water cools you down

More than just a cool word

But there is always someone around to remind you:

"Drinking ice water is bad for your stomach, drink less"

"Hot water warms the stomach and is good for the body, so drink more."

Does ice water really hurt your stomach?

Is hot water really a good medicine? Gastrointestinal diseases are prevalent in my country

What factors are related to it?

Does ice water really hurt your stomach?

Many people think that drinking ice water will cause diarrhea, abdominal pain and other problems, so they regard ice water as a "disaster". In fact, stomach discomfort cannot be blamed solely on ice water.

When cold things pass through the mouth and esophagus and reach the stomach, they are no longer as cold. Especially when you hold them in your mouth and eat them slowly or eat very small amounts, they generally do not harm your stomach and intestines.

Humans are warm-blooded animals with a strict temperature regulation mechanism. The temperature changes in the stomach are controlled within 0.3℃. When you drink ice water, your body shivers. This is the body's temperature center sending a signal to the body to generate more heat through muscle tremors to restore the stomach temperature to normal.

The main reason why drinking ice water makes you feel uncomfortable

Sensitive to cold things: Different people have different reactions and tolerance to cold. If you feel uncomfortable after drinking ice water, it may be because the smooth muscles of the digestive tract are relatively more sensitive to temperature, and the cold food you eat causes spasms in the gastrointestinal tract.

Unclean water: Discomfort caused by drinking ice water may be related to unclean water. If there are some bacteria, viruses, parasites, etc. in the water, it may cause abdominal pain and diarrhea.

Not suitable for people who drink ice water

Although there is not much difference between cold water and hot water in essence, the following groups of people should still pay more attention:

People with poor gastrointestinal tract

For example, people with irritable bowel syndrome, poor gastrointestinal digestion, or gastrointestinal diseases.

Ice water can stimulate temporary contraction of stomach blood vessels and intestinal spasm, leading to stomach pain, diarrhea, etc.

People with a history of migraine

When these people eat some cold food, the oral mucosa will be irritated, which will cause the blood vessels in the head and face to constrict, affecting the nerve center and causing headaches. Although the duration is not long, it is very uncomfortable.

People who just finished exercising

After exercise, the gastrointestinal blood vessels dilate and blood circulation speeds up. Drinking ice water at this time will stimulate the gastrointestinal blood vessels and mucosa, causing them to contract sharply, leading to gastrointestinal spasm, and resulting in symptoms such as abdominal pain, bloating, and diarrhea.

Tips

The higher the temperature of hot water, the better it is. On the contrary, too hot water will damage the esophageal mucosa and digestive tract mucosa, increasing the possibility of esophageal cancer. Therefore, it is advisable to drink mild water and eat food in daily life, not exceeding 65℃.

There are 6 main causes of high incidence of gastrointestinal diseases among Chinese people

Why do Chinese people have a high incidence of gastrointestinal diseases? There are 6 main causes:

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Helicobacter pylori infection

Helicobacter pylori is a bacterium that lives in the stomach and duodenum. It can cause mild chronic inflammation of the gastric mucosa and even cause gastric ulcers and gastric cancer.

The infection rate of Helicobacter pylori in my country is as high as 59%, which is mainly related to some daily habits, such as inadequate cleaning of tableware, using chopsticks for multiple purposes, passing food by mouth when feeding children, and grabbing food directly with hands.

Therefore, we need to strictly pay attention to personal hygiene in our lives. Washing hands frequently before and after meals, using public chopsticks, and eating less raw food can reduce the risk of infection to a certain extent.

drink wine

The main chemical component of alcohol is ethanol. After drinking, ethanol will be stored in the stomach, which can make the gastric mucosa thinner and cause the mucosal epithelial cells to necrotize and fall off, thus causing symptoms of chronic superficial gastritis such as stomach pain and acid reflux. It is better not to drink alcohol if you can!

High-salt diet

Pickles, bacon, salted fish, fermented bean curd, etc. are all very popular traditional foods, but the common feature of these foods is that they contain too much salt. Long-term high-salt diet will inhibit the secretion of gastric acid, reduce the resistance of gastric mucosa, and even lead to a series of gastrointestinal diseases such as gastritis, gastric ulcer, and gastric perforation.

In addition, some high-salt foods also contain large amounts of nitrates. After being reduced in the stomach, they can combine with amines in the food to form N-nitroso compounds such as ammonium nitrite, which are carcinogenic, thereby inducing cell malignancy.

Therefore, the daily salt intake should be less than 5 grams, and pickled and processed foods should be eaten less. In addition, when purchasing packaged foods, it is best to look at the ingredient list and it is recommended to choose low-salt ones.

Irregular meals

Many people today are hungry for one meal and full for the next. If the three meals are irregular and gastric acid secretion is not at a fixed time, it is easy to break the normal balance, causing excessive or insufficient gastric acid secretion, thus inducing indigestion, acid reflux, gastric erosion, gastric ulcer and other symptoms.

Therefore, you should develop a habit of eating three meals at regular times and in regular amounts, and only eat until you are 70% to 80% full at each meal. This will help to regularize the gastric motor pacemaker cells and gastric acid secretion, making the gastric function more coordinated.

Emotional instability

The stomach is called the "second brain of the human body" and is one of the organs most easily affected by emotions. Data show that 57% to 70% of patients with functional dyspepsia have abnormal emotions.

Depressive emotions such as anxiety, depression, and fear often lead to low gastrointestinal motility, which can easily cause discomfort such as loss of appetite, belching, hiccups, early satiety, and bloating;

However, more excited emotions such as anger and irritation can lead to gastrointestinal hypermotility reaction, causing gastric acid secretion and increased gastrointestinal motility, inducing gastritis, gastric ulcers, gastroesophageal reflux, etc.

In daily life, we must learn to control our emotions. When we feel angry or furious, take some deep breaths, listen to music, or go for a run to calm ourselves down. When we are in a bad mood, don’t keep it to ourselves. Go shopping or travel with friends to relax!

stay up

According to a study conducted by a medical research institute in Los Angeles, the incidence of stomach problems among people who often stay up late and lack sleep is 3 to 4 times higher than that of the general population! The reason for this is that these people lack TFF protein in their stomachs.

TFF protein can form a mucus film on the gastric mucosa, which can, on the one hand, reduce the damage of hard substances to the gastric mucosa; on the other hand, it is weakly alkaline and can effectively prevent the corrosive effect of gastric acid on the gastric mucosa.

Experimental data show that the secretion of TFF protein during deep sleep at night is equivalent to 20 to 30 times the secretion during the day. If you stay up late for a long time, the secretion of TFF protein will decrease, the protection and repair ability of the stomach will be weakened, and stomach problems will naturally come to you.

How to protect gastrointestinal health

Balanced diet Good eating habits are the way to maintain health, which is essential for intestinal health. Proper eating habits can provide our body with the nutrients and energy it needs, alleviate the adverse reactions caused by insufficient or excessive nutrition, and also help us maintain a healthy weight and immune system.

To achieve a balanced diet, we should fully consider the composition of the diet, the types of food and the amount of food intake. We should try to choose fresh and healthy foods, such as whole grains, vegetables, fruits, beans and nuts. These foods are rich in dietary fiber, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, which help promote intestinal health. Dietary fiber is one of the essential nutrients in our diet. It can promote intestinal peristalsis, increase stool volume, facilitate smooth stool discharge, and help us prevent digestive system diseases such as constipation. In addition, dietary fiber can also provide nutrients for our intestinal flora and help the reproduction of probiotics, thereby increasing the diversity of intestinal flora, improving immunity and preventing intestinal diseases.

Drink enough water

Water is not only an important guarantee for intestinal health, but also the basic source of life. In fact, most tissues and organs in the human body need water to maintain normal functions and activities. For the intestines, the role of water is irreplaceable.

Water can promote intestinal peristalsis. Peristalsis is an essential part of the intestinal digestion process. It can pass food to the next section of the intestine, making the digestion process smooth. When there is a lack of water, the excrement and waste in the intestine tend to become dry and stick together, making it more difficult to clear and easily causing constipation.

Secondly, water can keep the stool moist. The moistness of stool is very important for defecation. It can reduce friction and effectively reduce the occurrence of diseases such as hemorrhoids and anal fissures. If the body lacks water, the stool will become dry and hard, which can easily cause anal damage.

Stay away from tobacco and alcohol

Tobacco and alcohol have extremely negative effects on intestinal health. Tobacco contains a variety of harmful substances that can damage intestinal epithelial cells, destroy the intestinal mucosal barrier, and increase the risk of intestinal infection. Alcohol stimulates the gastric mucosa to secrete gastric acid, damages the intestinal mucosal barrier, and causes intestinal inflammation and ulcers. Therefore, we should try to stay away from tobacco and alcohol to protect intestinal health.

sports

Proper exercise can promote intestinal peristalsis, accelerate the discharge of waste and toxins, and relieve constipation symptoms. In addition, exercise can increase intestinal blood circulation, promote the metabolism and repair of intestinal mucosal cells, and improve intestinal immunity. It is recommended to do moderate aerobic exercise every day, such as walking, running, cycling, etc.

Intestinal health is an important part of human health and requires our daily attention and protection. By eating a balanced diet, drinking enough water, staying away from tobacco and alcohol, exercising properly, maintaining good living habits and using drugs rationally, we can protect intestinal health and reduce the occurrence of intestinal diseases. In addition, timely stool examination, colonoscopy and intestinal flora testing can also better understand your intestinal health status and prevent and treat intestinal diseases in a timely manner.