Yesterday my doorbell rang. Snehal, our neighbour, was standing in the doorway with a worried face. She requested me to quickly accompany her to her home. After dinner, Snehal’s father was feeling nauseous as the food was refluxing back into his throat. ‘Nowadays he is facing this problem frequently. Today it was so much that we had to call you,’ her mother said. Although the medication stopped the problem for the time being, he wanted to have a permanent solution to this issue. Hence, the next day, the entire family sat in front of me.
After checking him, I found that there wasn’t any problem in his body. But upon proper investigation, I found that the problem was in his eating method. Like him, many of us have habits like eating very fast, chatting while eating, or continuously doing movements like standing and sitting in between meals. This frequently leads to issues such as choking while eating, tight stomach, hiccups, feeling that the food refluxing back into the throat immediately after a meal, and sometimes vomiting. We will talk about healthy eating practices in relation to this scenario.
There is no doubt that our lives have now become very fast paced. We can see one of it’s effects in the form of the ‘speedy meal!’ Just like any other task, we feel that it needs to be completed quickly. Thus, the food is literally pushed into our stomachs without chewing properly. Without proper chewing, the food is not broken down into fine particles. Also, the saliva does not act on the food properly. Therefore, good digestion cannot take place. While eating quickly, a small particle of food can choke us sometimes. Also, quick eating habits can sometimes lead to troubles like food reflux back into the throat. Hence, we must always eat slowly. That’s why it is said that we should chew a bite of food 32 times. This may sound exaggerated, but we must understand the essence of this statement. Many times, people give the reasons behind eating quickly, such as lack of time or getting late. These can be easily avoided as it is very important for the sake of our health.
When we say eat slowly, it does not mean that we linger and eat at a very slow pace. If we do so, the food becomes cold and heavy to digest. We have discussed this in our previous article. Also, if we eat very slowly, the food does not get digested properly. As a result, we ought to refrain from eating either very slowly or in a rush. In order to eat the meal at the proper pace, we need at least fifteen to twenty minutes.
Many people are accustomed to chatting while eating their meal. Some are seen constantly moving between the kitchen and the TV (in the living room). In fact, while eating, it is really necessary to avoid these kind of movements. There is a scientific reason behind this. Whenever we do any movement, the blood supply in our bodies increases. During digestion, the stomach organs are already moving. And therefore, when we eat, the blood supply starts towards these organs. At this time, if we talk, walk, laugh, or do any movement, then naturally the blood starts flowing to those organs. By avoiding such movements, there is proper blood supply to the stomach organs.
Naturally, these organs function very well, which leads to good food digestion. Therefore, while eating, it is very important that we remain seated in one place and avoid things like chatting or talking. It is also improper to stand and eat, such as a buffet. Therefore, various practices came into existence to achieve all the benefits. One such behavior is eating while sitting with your legs crossed or folded. It naturally adds stability to the body. A few asanas like Veerasan and Vajrasan are excellent for digestion. The “cross leg” posture also provides such advantages.
Another habit is Vamkukshi or napping after meals. The reason behind this is to avoid unnecessary movements after the meal and give sufficient time for digestion. In fact, it is not possible to take a nap due to our busy schedule. However, we should keep in mind the real purpose of this is to avoid any physical activities or busy movements for at least half an hour to one hour. All these tips may seem simple and easy. But they contain a deep meaning that leads to our health and well-being.
Dr Mayuresh Aagte
Note : Please use all of the foods/medicines mentioned in this article after consulting with your doctor and taking into account your age and health.