Hot, not cold

Where does this preference for hot drinks come from? For that, we have to turn to history, to see what caused the Chinese to develop a preference for warm drinks.

This leads back to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM).Zhang Guowei, https://www.sixthtone.com/news/1000919/the-history-behind-chinas-obsession-with-hot-water In TCM, hot water is seen as a way to warm up the body and thus to remain in balance.https://www.latimes.com/world/la-fg-china-hot-water-20160313-story.html#:~:text=Under%20the%20precepts%20of%20Chinese,blood%20circulation%20and%20toxin%20release. This foundation where hot water is seen to be beneficial to one’s health is one of the first reasons why Chinese prefer to drink hot beverages.

More importantly, there is the topic of hygiene. During the Republican era (1812-1949), the Chinese leader Chiang Kai-shek and his wife Soong Mei-ling promoted the drinking of hot water in the New Life Movement, a governmental movement in the 1930s to promote reform in society. The idea was to drink hot water as a ways to prevent people from getting sick.Zhang Guowei, https://www.sixthtone.com/news/1000919/the-history-behind-chinas-obsession-with-hot-water

The Communist party continued with this policy after its takeover in 1949. In so doing, hot water became even more widespread and most people started to drink hot water as much as possible.Zhang Guowei, https://www.sixthtone.com/news/1000919/the-history-behind-chinas-obsession-with-hot-water

Even now, tap water is not always drinkable in China. Thus, boiling water before consumption is a good idea to be able to drink water that does not cause adverse health effects.

Do you like your water hot or cold?