CLEVELAND — With summer weather here, people are sharing all kinds of so-called extreme heat safety tips on social media.
Today we VERIFY one post in particular shared in a Cedar Point fan group that has more than 85,000 members on Facebook.
THE CLAIM
A user posted claiming that drinking room temperature water is better for you than cold water when it's hot outside.
SOURCES
To VERIFY whether this is true, we checked with:
- Ohio Department of Health (ODH),
- Cleveland Clinic registered dietitian Beth Czerwony
EXPLANATION
The ODH website includes an article for tips on how to "Stay Safe During Extreme Heat."
In the article, they have an entire section telling people to drink "cool fluids." When you expand that section, it speaks generally about staying hydrated with water and fluids, and never mentions anything about room temperature water being a better choice in extreme heat.
The only real distinction references fluids containing alcohol or caffeine, which ODH says to avoid drinking when it's hot outside so you don’t get dehydrated.
Seeing all of this, we next went to the Cleveland Clinic, where registered dietician Beth Czerwony told us, "There’s absolutely no benefit on the temperature of your water. The most important thing is to stay hydrated."
ANSWER
So we can VERIFY that it's not true that room temperature water is better for you than cold water when it's hot outside.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
As long as you’re staying hydrated, Czerwony says the temperature of your drink is all up to your personal preference.
If you come across something that you're unsure about being true or false, you can send it to us to VERIFY by emailing us at verify@wkyc.com, or texting us at (216) 344-3300.