Doctor explains why you should never have ice in your drink at a restaurant

With the sun finally shining again, you might already be dreaming about those post-work pints outside. Maybe you’re thinking of an icy cider or a cold Diet Coke.

Either way, there’s something so satisfying about a nice crisp drink with that perfect amount of ice.

But a doctor claims there’s a reason why you should never have ice in your drink at a restaurant.

And no, it’s not because they’re ‘scamming’ you by filling your glass with the cubes rather than the actual drink.

Dr Pedi Mirdamadi is a ‘Naturopathic Doctor and Holistic Nutritionist’ in the US and shares his advice and tips regarding health and wellness on TikTok.

He says in one clip that he ‘always’ makes sure to ask for ‘no drink’ when he’s at a restaurant, suggesting others may ‘want to do the same’.

“I'm about to give you the dirty truth on ice cubes at restaurants, because most restaurants use ice machines, which are breeding grounds for germs and bacteria,” he claims.

“These machines are not cleaned as often as they should, and this results in bacteria growing in them, and when the ice melts in your drink, these germs and bacteria end up in your body.”

It is of course worth pointing out that the whole ice thing is a little different in the US to the UK, with Americans often criticising British places for the lack of ice in drinks or even the size and shape. And that’s down to using ice machines or not in most cases.

But importantly, Dr Mirdamadi does suggest you should ask servers if the place uses ‘filtered water to make their ice cubes’. And I mean, if you’re paying extra for bottled water with your meal only to be putting cubes of tap water in there, it doesn’t exactly make the most sense.

“Plus ice cold drinks are not very good for your digestion at meal time anyways,” he adds.

It is said that drinking ice cold fluids can slow down your digestion and potentially increase the chance of acid reflux.

Users were divided in the comments as one wrote: “been having ice in my drinks for 60 years. I’m still alive but thank you for this info.”

Others said they ‘never use ice’ as some won’t even have ‘fountain drinks’ because they fear the machines aren’t kept clean enough either.

But another pulled up his added tip: “I was a waitress for years. A sure way to get horrible service is to ask the waitress ‘are the ice cubes made with filtered water?’”