I know for me, I used to wake up, have breakfast, and then immediately feel bloated, uncomfortable, and sick. This led me to feel sluggish all day long and my clothes would fit tight. I didn’t understand….. I always followed the standard advice, such as drink lots of water, eat plenty of fiber but the uncomfortable symptoms kept appearing over and over.
It’s only when I began Nutrition School at The Institute of Integrative Nutrition and I had my first Gut Health Class, it all made sense that swallowing food and slamming back ice water interferes with digestion. Worst yet if you are slamming back soft drinks or maybe an ice cold beer.
So what is the healthiest BUT worst liquid to drink with your meals?
COLD WATER
and YES cold juice and soft drinks are just as bad!
After a few studies were published a few years ago demonstrating that consuming cold water increases your metabolism, people thought: “Wow, if I just drink cold water all day, I can lose weight!” True, drinking cold water does speed up your metabolism (about 4 extra calories for every eight ounces of water). It does so by using energy to heat up the cold water to your body temperature.
But here’s the problem: If you drink cold water with your meal, energy required for digestion is diverted. That’s not good. While eating, you want all of your energy directed at breaking down food so your body can easily assimilate the nutrients and eliminate waste and toxins.
I see people all the time at restaurants getting refill after refill of cold liquids while gulping down huge amounts of inadequately chewed foods. These are very bad habits, and your digestion will hate you for this.
So when should you drink fluids?
Here are my 3 recommendations:
Drink water or other liquids 20 minutes before meals – this way, the beverage won’t interfere with digestion.
Drink fluids after a meal – the next best time to drink fluids is after your meal, but you should wait at least 30 minutes and up to an hour. This allows your food to adequately digested without complicating matters for your tummy and intestines.
If you MUST drink with your meals, sip on a warm beverage – warm water, herbal teas, lemon water – the temperature is closer to your body’s normal heat and it will ease digestion rather than disrupt it.
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I have now partnered with Dr. Raquel Sukhbir a UK trained Internal Medicine Physician at Gray’s Medical located at 16 Alcazar Street, St. Claire, POS. To make an appointment call 235-3604 or email graysmedtt@gmail.com