Before reading all the benefits everyone mentioned in here, I didn't really know that hot water had that many great effects and uses. When I was a child, we visited my aunt's house in the morning and I saw their whole family drink hot water right after waking up. I asked them what for, and they were quite shocked that I don't drink hot water in the morning--as if that's a common thing. Thank you for this post and everyone who contributed; you guys made me grab a glass of water just now