I was talking to my new boss and he told me that when it's hot out, you should drink a hot drink instead of a cold drink to cool you off. I don't believe this, since I would guess (from Heat Transfer) that if you drank a cold drink your body would have to warm it up, thus making your core temperature cooler overall. I searched the internet and all I could find was that if you drank a hot drink it would make it seem cooler in comparison. Does anyone know the answer to this and could provide a link for documentation?

No idea. I do know that I like my coffee black, and cold.

I do remember seeing on some TV show quite sometime ago that a hot cup of tea was the best beverage to have on a hot day.

No idea. I do know that I like my coffee black, and cold.

So when you order it, is it Pumpy Style?

So when you order it, is it Pumpy Style?

Pumpy style is with a drop of cream on top.

Pumpy Style is taking the coffee, bending you over, and splashing it all over your back.

Pumpy Style is taking the coffee, bending you over, and splashing it all over your back.

Add a hoagie with that and you get HA style....

You guys are killing me!!!

I don't know either but I hate hot beverages. Don't touch them.

Damn, now I'm craving a nice, cold beer. It's not too early to start drinking, is it?

Damn, now I'm craving a nice, cold beer. It's not too early to start drinking, is it?

My sisters boyfriend...like the song...says..."it's always 5 o'clock somewhere"

My dad was a firefighter and one time a guy told him hot coffee is actually the best thing to drink on a hot day to keep cool, so Dad started doing that and it worked for him.

When I heard the story many years later, I did it too and it works for me, too. Cool/cold drinks seem to have a much shorter cooling time than hot drinks.

5 o'clock? My parents use the "it's noon somewhere" saying. 5 o'clock is for weiners.

Maybe it's because a hot drink makes you sweat, therefore cooling you down? All I know is I can't drink coffee when it's hot out...

And this cold Shiner Bock is mighty tasty right now. :)

Way back when I had summer jobs on farms, I learned the hard way that cold drinks while working on a hot day is a quick road to brderline heat strokes. The drink doesn't have to be real hot, just not so cold as to cause a shock reaction when your body is overheated. We would drink water that was just a little cooler than the outside temperature and found it more refrshing that way. That's not to say we didn't keep a couple of beer hidden in old well to stay cold for when thwe sun went down!

Maybe it's because a hot drink makes you sweat, therefore cooling you down? All I know is I can't drink coffee when it's hot out...

And this cold Shiner Bock is mighty tasty right now. :)

Yuengling is going to be my friend tonight.

Maybe it's because a hot drink makes you sweat, therefore cooling you down?

That was my first thought. The cooling down isn't worth the sweat, though.

It's such a mystery.

My mother told me that the Indians drink hot tea in hot weather, and that if there's one people who know what to do in hot weather, it's the Indians. So I drink hot tea.

Whether the Indians actually do drink hot tea in hot weather or not, that's another question for a different day. My mother has never been to India, so may have made it up.

Dude it is Native Americas.

I've always heard this too, though I've never seen anything scientific on it. I've just heard anecdotes that a lot of cultures in hot tropical portions of the world drink hot beverages. Either they're very wise or very stupid, I don't know.

I know that I enjoy slurpees in January more than I do in July.

I don't know about all of this... Despite which is better for you, I definitely prefer a cold drink when it's hot and a hot drink when it's cold.

Dude it is Native Americas.

In India?

I know that I enjoy slurpees in January more than I do in July.

When I worked fast food, it seemed we sold more shakes when it was cold out than when it was hot. At the OG, though, cold weather means Cappuccinos galore...

The science behind it is that you raise your internal body temperature by drinking something hot, thereby making the differential between your body and the outside air less which makes you more comfortable.

It works for some people, I am not one of them. I need cool drinks almost year round.

As stolen from here
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/08/18/the_odd_body_heat_hydration/
On the other hand, some say drinking a hot drink is better as the body has to use more energy to reduce the temperature of the drink to body temperature.

But this is contradicted by those who maintain that this body process only makes you hotter. People choose with their feet on this one (well, their mouths too).

People prefer cool drinks much more often than hot drinks during hot weather for sensory reasons rather than body temperature reasons. The same is true with hot drinks being more preferable during cold weather.

In fact, the temperature of the drink does not really matter unless a massive amount of liquid is being consumed or if the temperature of the liquid is extremely cold or extremely hot. If extremely cold, such an amount would probably make you sick and cause you to vomit and cramp. If extremely hot, it would burn your mouth.

The fact that fluid temperature, cooler or warmer, doesn't much matter is due to the much greater mass of the body compared to the drink. Cold or hot, the temperature of the drink is transformed to body temperature without much of a lowering of body temperature at all. The body's system of temperature regulation (homeostasis) is not so easily fooled.

The US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta stresses that during hot weather more fluids should be consumed. The CDC makes no recommendation as to the temperature of this fluid other than to "avoid very cold drinks" as these can cause stomach cramps.

The CDC says that besides water, salts, and minerals also need to be replaced in order to avoid heatstroke. It recommends avoiding caffeine, alcohol, and drinks with large amounts of sugar as these can "actually cause you to lose more body fluid".

In fact, the temperature of the drink does not really matter unless a massive amount of liquid is being consumed or if the temperature of the liquid is extremely cold or extremely hot. If extremely cold, such an amount would probably make you sick and cause you to vomit and cramp. If extremely hot, it would burn your mouth.


I think we need a scientific study to back this one up.

Well that makes sense. I'll share this with my boss tomorrow.