Have you heard that drinking during meals will dilute your digestive juices?
Well, like most persistent notions around eating and health, there is a kernel of truth inside.
There has been great emphasis on the importance of drinking 8 glasses of water a day to avoid many health problems, from constipation and gallbladder symptoms to dry skin.
But what if the only time your remember to drink water is at meal times? Is that ok?
The good news is: YES, it’s fine to drink during meals.
With one important caveat:
Make sure there is no food in your mouth at the time. The risk with drinking during meals is that you’re so engaged in conversation that rather than sufficiently chewing your food you use liquid to wash the food down.
If you’re not exactly a fan of plain water, here are a few tips to increase your fluid intake
- Add more fresh fruits and vegetables to your diet
- Reduce coffee and alcohol, which are actually dehydrating, and add herbal teas
- Add more flavor to your drinking water by squeezing a bit of citrus into it, or by adding fresh herbs like mint
- Give up the sodas and try adding flavored stevia to carbonated water instead. One of my favorites is Root Beer flavored stevia.
One of the best ways to understand the underlying nutritional cause of your symptoms is to know which foods and nutrients you have trouble digesting and those you are deficient in.
Click here to take Dr. Rose’s Nutritional Profile Quiz and get an overview of what your nutritional imbalances could be. You’ll get your results immediately.
Image provided by freedigitalphotos.net.
My friend doesn’t drink during eating for this reason. So my question is what is your opinion on this belief?
There is no physiologic reason to avoid drinking during meals. Ice water is not generally a good choice because it can upset the “homeostasis”. As long as you drink when your mouth is not full of food it’s fine.