Who shouldn't drink cold water to cool down?

People with a cold constitution (prone to colds and flu) or those who are physically weak; and people with diabetes or kidney failure should be cautious when consuming cooling drinks.

"Cooling drinks" is a general term for refreshing beverages made from traditional Vietnamese medicinal herbs such as corn silk, chrysanthemum flowers, goji berries, and plantain. In the summer, many families buy these ingredients to make cooling drinks to quench their thirst and cool down. Dr. Huynh Tan Vu, from the Traditional Medicine Department of the University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Ho Chi Minh City, said that the ingredients for making cooling drinks are diverse, easy to find, and have many uses besides cooling, such as:

Seaweed

Seaweed is highly nutritious, containing many minerals, especially calcium and iodine, and has a low cholesterol content. In addition, seaweed contains fertile clement, which is beneficial for pregnant women and children.

According to traditional medicine, black or green seaweed has a salty, slightly sweet taste, a cooling nature, and nourishes the kidneys. Seaweed water is suitable for nourishing those who are thin and weak, have poor digestion, internal heat, and acne.

Imperata cylindrica roots

According to Traditional Chinese Medicine, the roots of Imperata cylindrica are white or light yellow, sweet in taste, and cooling in nature. They help to clear heat, promote urination, and clear lung heat (cooling the chest area, beneficial for people with coughs accompanied by chest heat). However, thin and debilitated individuals should limit their consumption because it is a diuretic, and drinking too much can easily lead to dehydration.

Sugarcane

The sugarcane plant has a smaller, thinner stem compared to other types of sugarcane. It is sweet, neutral in nature, and has the effects of clearing heat, supporting the spleen, strengthening the stomach (improving appetite), benefiting the large and small intestines (facilitating bowel movements), cooling the body, reducing coughs, relieving fever, detoxifying alcohol, and counteracting the heat effects of medicine.

In particular, sugarcane has a cooling effect (it cools the body by producing more body fluids), so it does not cause dehydration despite its diuretic properties, and can be used long-term.

Corn silk (maize silk)

According to traditional medicine, corn silk has a sweet taste, is neutral in nature, and has diuretic, anti-edema, bile-promoting, blood-clearing (reducing irritability, restlessness, and boils), and hemostatic properties. For obese people, corn silk increases uric acid and blood cholesterol levels, so drinking it daily is very good for health.

Chrysanthemum

Chrysanthemum (known in traditional Chinese medicine as "cúc hoa") has a sweet and bitter taste, a slightly cooling nature, and is effective in relieving colds, reducing fever, reducing inflammation, detoxifying (reducing swelling and inflammation of boils), and improving eyesight. Therefore, chrysanthemum is especially necessary for people with blurred vision, dry or irritated eyes, red eyes, or eyes that feel hot when closed; people with high blood pressure, eye pain, temple pain, headaches, difficulty sleeping, or waking up in the middle of the night.

However, it should not be used by people with digestive problems, those prone to stomach chills, those who easily get food poisoning or diarrhea, or those with weak and shaky hands and feet.

Exam code

Plantain (Plantago major) is cool in nature, sweet in taste, and has diuretic and heat-clearing effects. It is used as a diuretic, to treat chronic cough, tonsillitis, cystitis, and conjunctivitis. It has diuretic and detoxifying effects. Plantain is an added ingredient to cooling drinks and should not be used by thin, weak individuals or those prone to indigestion and cold stomachs.

Squash

Winter melon has cooling properties and helps prevent heatstroke, dry mouth, boils, and measles. Additionally, it aids in weight loss and is beneficial for people with atherosclerosis, coronary heart disease, high blood pressure, and edema due to kidney inflammation. However, people should absolutely avoid consuming raw winter melon or its juice as it can cause digestive problems.

Bitter gourd (bitter melon)

This fruit has cooling, detoxifying, anti-inflammatory, and anti-sunstroke effects, and is good for eyesight, especially for dysentery caused by heat. Additionally, in hot weather, for those prone to sweating or developing rashes and itching, bathing once a day with bitter gourd water significantly reduces itching.

Corn silk tea is good for your health. Photo: Boldsky — Corn silk tea is good for your health. Photo: *Boldsky*

Dr. Vu stated that herbal drinks are generally quite safe because they are made from plants. These drinks help to cool the body and detoxify, and are used when the body is overheated, feeling restless, thirsty, with dry throat and mouth, infrequent urination, skin boils and sores, and mouth and tongue ulcers. However, people should not drink too many herbal drinks after evening, as this beverage can cause frequent urination during the night.

Furthermore, people with a cold constitution (prone to colds and flu) or those who are physically weak should be cautious when consuming cooling drinks. Cooling drinks have a diuretic effect, and prolonged use as a substitute for drinking water can lead to electrolyte imbalance and poor absorption of certain micronutrients such as calcium and potassium. When the body is suffering from acute or chronic diseases, patients need to be prescribed and guided on the appropriate amount of cooling drinks to consume.

People with diabetes cannot use formulas containing sugarcane. People with chronic kidney disease need to carefully calculate their fluid intake, including regular drinking water. When using cooling drinks made from medicinal herbs containing ions and micronutrients in uncontrolled amounts, kidney disease may worsen.

Even healthy people shouldn't drink cold water continuously every day and frequently; instead, they should only use it for short periods and change the ingredients regularly.

When choosing ingredients for making herbal tea, select fresh ingredients that are not bruised or damaged, and ensure they are dry, not moldy, or have been stored for too long, which would lead to spoilage.

Thuy Quynh

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