TOPIC 1: THE WATER MYTH

Spend only a few moments talking in a group about singing and almost always someone comes up with a statement about water or things you can drink to improve your voice. It usually sounds like this:

"Drink water before you sing, that way your vocal cords will be moist"
"Hot tea is better for your voice than water"
"Sucking on a lemon will get your voice back"

Much like any old wives' tales, these too are incorrect. So let me take a moment here and talk about how your voice works and why these quick fixes don't help, and can actually hurt you.

Your vocal cords are part of your breathing system. This might sound obvious to you. That's why I'm confused that so many people don't realize that anything you swallow does not touch your vocal cords on its way down to your stomach. If it did touch your voice, you would be choking on it, and I think we can all agree that coughing and choking on water isn't all that good for the voice. Even worse, choke on some lemon juice and you'll really be hurting for quite some time.

Water gets to your voice from the inside out. On average, that process from mouth to vocal cords takes 15-20 minutes under ideal circumstances. What are these ideal circumstances? I'm glad you asked.

1. You are healthy
Part of how fast water will get to your voice depends on how hydrated you already are. That's because no matter how important singing is to you, it's a pretty low priority for your body. It's more concerned with things like keeping your blood pumping and clearing out any infections. So when your body needs water, one of the first places it takes it from is your throat. That's why usually the first sign of illness is a dry throat. If you are dehydrated, your body will take any new water you drink and route it where it's needed most. Ever notice how right after you drink, your mouth is dry again? That's your body taking the water and using it elsewhere.

2. Water temperature
Hot tea and cold water are not always better for your voice for one main reason... your body can't absorb it at those temperatures. Your stomach must first heat or cool the liquid to about room temperature before your body can use it. The fastest way to get your body to absorb the water is to drink it at room temperature.

3. Stomach contents
Most of the water your body absorbs happens in the stomach. Therefore, if the stomach is full, the water may be used instead to aid digestion. In general, eating foods like fruits and salads will leave enough water left over for hydrating your voice.

Things like hot tea may help your throat, which will be covered in a future lesson. But things like lemons, honey and oils do nothing for your vocal cords. If you are a singer, the best way to make sure your voice is properly hydrated is to constantly be drinking water and watch what you eat the day of a performance.

Return to the Free Lesson Page