Let’s face it, we’re not brilliant at dealing with heatwaves in Britain. Those are the days when your antiperspirant is next to useless, your car steering wheel is too hot to touch and desk fans sell out from every shop. It’s those occasions when the most caring bosses fund a staff “ice cream run” mid-afternoon!
Yet still, the British workforce sticks firmly to its favourite forms of hydration; meaning coffee and tea are still in high demand during the day.
The value of cooling down with hot drinks
Can drinking something warm, help you to cool down in hot weather?
According to USA research and curating body The Smithsonian, there are times when a hot drink is a great way to stop yourself overheating!
Their research shows consuming warm liquids helps you to release heat stored internally – in case you didn’t guess it exits via your sweat, which evaporates!
That may sound a little unsavoury in an office environment - getting people to sweat more. However, it’s important to note that perspiration is a vital and natural process to help humans regulate their body temperature. It only becomes a problem when it’s not cleaned away daily.
Hot drinks for hydration
Back to a more attractive and fragrant topic, which hot drink helps you to re-hydrate best?
This is an important subject, as thirst can be more than just uncomfortable or inconvenient in a busy office environment.
Of course, when the temperatures go up outside, there’s an even greater chance your team are sweating away water before they even reach the office in a morning, or when they dash around on breaks or errands.
Staff who don’t take time to take on enough liquids – especially in hot weather – are storing up substantial physical side effects. For example, when we are dehydrated the lack of water in our organs can make us more prone to infections, and can lead to dizziness, confusion and fatigue.
If it really becomes an issue – such as in a hot working environment – you could even go into something called low blood volume shock (or hypovolemic shock). This is when decreased water levels cause your blood pressure to slow right down, and oxygen doesn’t get to your brain and other organs.
Yikes! No one needs that sort of thing at work!
The best liquids to hydrate in the workplace
Any liquid helps you to improve your hydration at work – making coffee still an important “go-to” option if that’s your preference. Just a note of caution though, quality coffee products at work should be provided, to avoid staff guzzling bucket loads of instant. That’s when coffee becomes a diuretic and actually dehydrates your hard-working team!
However, many British people believe there is nothing more refreshing in hot weather than a nice cup of tea.
There’s good news for tea drinkers; your leaf-based liquids are as good for hydrating you as water!
It doesn’t matter whether it is hot or cold, herbal, black or green, tea can give your body an important boost during hot weather. Some bring the added bonus of being packed with antioxidants too.
Is hydration important in colder weather?
It’s important to note that staying hydrated during the working day is a priority whatever the thermometer reads. For example, on clear, cold winter days the climate tends to include dry air. This too can leave your staff team with unpleasant thirst, due to moisture loss from respiration.
So, coffee and tea can give you a boost in more ways than one, whatever the weather.
