A cold snap is biting, which may leave you reaching for a hot chocolate to warm up. Winter is perfect for warming drinks but are they the best option?

When the chill sets in there are a number of ways to stay warm. One of the first options being to make a hot drink. The truth is that sufficient hydration is key to maintaining good health whatever the weather. Lack of water results in headaches, tiredness, and exhaustion.

Warm drinks raise your internal body temperature, as this rises it causes you to sweat in an attempt to cool the body down which could lead you to feel even colder on a chilly winter day.

The warming impact of a hot drink on your body temperature will be short-lasting and minimal, but it offers relief for freezing hands to keep warm wrapped around the cup.

Don’t think that alcohol can warm you up on a chilly night either. Alcohol acts as a vasodilator. Put simply this means the more you drink, the more blood vessels in the skin dilate, moving blood away from our core to the surface of our skin.

The temperature of your body is not changing, it is just being redistributed and can give a false feeling of warmth.

Despite this there are benefits to hot drinks in winter. Hydration. No matter the drink, staying hydrated is important for helping the body naturally regulate its temperature.

When we are cold it is easier to become dehydrated with the body instead prioritising staying warm. Therefore, having a drink of any kind to sip on through the day helps combat this before it becomes an issue.

Temperatures are expected to plummet in many spots throughout the week. Keep an eye on the mercury in your area on the TemperatureRadar.