Healthy eating guide: 5 tips that improve digestion
How to improve your digestion
You may eat a healthy and well-balanced diet, yet it is possible to not absorb all the essential nutrients from your meal. Just eating right does not mean that you are getting all the nutrients required by the body to function. Absorption of food by the digestive system plays an equally essential role in it. Only when the food you eat is digested properly, your colon can absorb nutrients from it and circulate them to different parts of the body to be used by the organs. Moreover, poor digestion may also lead to occasional digestive symptoms like stomach upset, gas, heartburn, nausea, constipation or diarrhoea. Here are 5 tested ways to improve your digestion process.
Eat warm meal
Make
sure that the meal is warm no matter at what time you are having it.
Warm and freshly cooked food is digested easily by the body. Having cold
food or something straight out of the refrigerator can slow down your
digestive power also known as Agni. It can slow down the rate at which
food is digested in the body, making you prone to digestive disorders.
Eat when you are hungry
Never force yourself to have a meal or snacks if you are not feeling hungry. It is indeed essential to have three square meals and two snacks in a week, but forced eating does not help much. Try to follow a schedule, so you will automatically feel hungry at the same time every day. Also, do not fill your plate with all kinds of food. Serve according to your hunger level. This would prevent the episodes of overeating and your body will get time to digest the food properly.
Chew your food
The
process of digestion begins in the mouth. Our teeth break down the food
into smaller pieces making it easier for the digestive enzyme to break
it down further. Poor chewing is linked with low absorption of
nutrients. Chewing also helps to reduce stress levels and improve
digestion. So slow down while having your meal and chew your food
properly.
Do not eat incompatible food items
Along
with eating right you also need to be careful about pairing the right
groups of food with each other. Having incompatible foods like milk with
fruits or vegetables, beans with eggs or fruits can also disrupt your
digestive health. Having incorrectly paired food can increase the risk
of indigestion. On the other hand, pairing foods correctly can also
speed up the digestion process.
Stay hydrated
Water
plays several functions in our body and the most common one is
digesting food. Low fluid intake can lead to constipation and other
health issues like headaches and kidney stones. Dehydration can also
make you feel famished and can make you overeat. So, make sure you drink
enough fluid in a day. That includes water, freshly squeezed juices and
herbal teas.