Health experts are warning that many people get their morning routine backwards. Drinking water right after waking up, before brushing your teeth, can allow germs that built up overnight to enter the body along with the water.

The habit itself is widely considered healthy. Plenty of people reach for a glass of water as soon as they get out of bed. The concern is the order. Those who drink first and brush later are, according to experts, putting the mouth’s overnight bacteria straight into their system.

What Builds Up in Your Mouth Overnight

During sleep, bacteria settle in the mouth. Microscopic germs collect on the teeth and on the tongue, and by the time you wake up, the mouth is full of them.

That is the core of the warning. If you swallow water without cleaning your mouth first, the germs on your teeth and tongue travel down with it. Experts say this can lead to a range of illnesses. It can also damage your teeth.

Put simply, the glass of water that feels refreshing could be delivering the night’s bacteria to your body.

Drinking water without cleaning your mouth can allow germs to enter the body along with the water, and that can cause many diseases.

The quote reflects the central message of the advice, translated from the original Telugu-language report.

The Fix Is Simple: Brush First, Then Drink

The solution does not require giving up the habit. Experts say you can brush your teeth first and then drink water on an empty stomach. They recommend one or two glasses.

Doing it in that order, they say, keeps the body healthy and helps prevent illness. The routine is easy to build into a morning, since it only changes the sequence of two things most people already do.

Brushing before the first sip clears away the bacteria that accumulated overnight. The water then goes down a cleaner path.

What Experts Say the Water Does for You

According to the experts cited in the report, drinking water in the morning on an empty stomach offers several benefits. The first is internal cleansing. Water helps flush toxins and waste out of the body.

The report also says the habit can help with bowel movements. Regular morning water, it says, can prevent constipation and other digestive problems.

Immunity is another claimed benefit. Experts say the routine can strengthen the body’s natural defenses.

The report also points to skin. It says that drinking water on an empty stomach can clear up skin problems and leave the skin looking naturally bright.

Warm water gets a specific mention. Experts say that drinking lukewarm water can help clean the stomach.

These are the reported benefits of the habit when it is done correctly, after brushing. The report presents them as the reason the order matters: the health gains come from water that is consumed on a clean mouth.

Why the Order Matters More Than the Glass

It is easy to assume that any water is good water. This advice makes a narrower point. The same glass of water can do very different things depending on whether the mouth has been cleaned.

Hydration is not the issue here. The issue is what the water carries with it. A morning drink that washes down overnight bacteria undermines the very health goals the habit is supposed to serve.

That is why the message from experts is not to stop drinking water in the morning. It is to move the brushing step to the front of the line.

Who Should Pay Attention

The advice applies to anyone who makes water the first thing they consume after getting up. For many people, that is a reflex, performed before they are fully awake and long before they reach the bathroom sink.

The guidance is practical because it asks for no new equipment and no new supplement. It asks for a change in sequence. Brush, then drink.

For households building morning routines, especially those with children, the simplest step is to keep a toothbrush within reach of the bedside water glass and make brushing the first move out of bed.

The Bottom Line

The message is clear and easy to act on. Drinking water right after waking up, before brushing, can introduce overnight bacteria into the body. Experts say the safer approach is to brush your teeth first, then drink one or two glasses of water on an empty stomach.

Doing so, according to the report, can support digestion, immunity and skin health, and it avoids the germ risk that comes from drinking with a dirty mouth. The water is the same. The order is what changes.

Next time the glass goes to your lips the moment your feet hit the floor, the question worth asking is simple: have you brushed yet?