Why do we gulp when drinking, and don't sip

How we quench thirst

We feel thirsty we drink water that's simple. But what happens in the biology of our body? Let's have a look

Why we feel thirsty?

There have receptors in our blood vessels to measure the salt content in the blood. When water level in our body gets low the salt density gets high and the receptors send signal to the brain that we need to drink water, this feeling is what we call Thirst.

But interesting thing is when we are very thirsty if we sip water slowly or have a piece of watermelon ( which is 90% water ) we don't feel satisfied. The Thirst is quenched only when we gulp water, even if we consume the same amount of water if sipped.

So why we gulp?

According to a researchers group from California Institute of Technology, this works in a cycle called Thirst Circuit. There is a part in brain MnPO (Median preoptic nucleus) which, with the help of other parts of the Brain named SFO & OVLT does the work.

It takes almost 15-20 mins for water to be absorbed into the blood and lower the level of salt, but when we drink water for 5-7 secs we feel satisfied, or our brain gives the feeling not to drink more water.

Though the feeling of thirst starts by measuring the salt level in the blood but the feeling of quenching of thirst is measured by gulping action according to the research. Even if we gulp something else instead of water, we feel satisfied, at least for some time. The receptors that measure the gulping action simply work as fluid flow meter. When enough fluid is passed they signal the brain to stop drinking. When we sip slowly or chew in the gel form of water (like the example of watermelon) they don't signal brain and we dont feel satisfied.

This new research may work for diseases related to improper regulation of thirst like Diabetes.