Is Drinking Water Just After Eating Food Bad For Your Health?

Although we have heard a lot about the innumerable benefits regarding drinking gallons of water, many find it contradictory that one should not drink water immediately after eating food.

Why?

Well, one is supposed to drink water only when he or she feels thirsty. One must eat food only when one is hungry. Isn’t it?

As Ayurveda recommends that natural urges of body must be attended only when they arise. No eating when you are already feeling full or are not willing to eat. If one eats for any number of reasons that ought to give troubles to body such as indigestion, vomiting, stomach ache, gastric etc.

Even doctors suggest that one should not have water before or after eating food, though small quantity of water can be taken in between eating, only if it is needed. Many people drink water before eating so that they feel full and tend to eat less. That’s also a trick if you are aiming to lose weight.

The pancreas in your stomach creates certain digestive juices, which flow more after you have eaten your food. The juices are full on active upon digesting the food and your body starts absorbing vitamins, minerals and other healthy components of food.

At that time, when you drink water, it will dilute the digestive juices and impact their digestive power negatively. It will slow down the digestion. Moreover, your body will also find it hard to absorb the nutrients and vitamins from food.

You can check it for yourself these simple facts. Here we have given two exercises for you. Take one for each day, and then see for yourself the result:-

Day 1: Let’s go for lunch. Make sure you have taken half a glass of water nearly one or half an hour before eating --- it’s not necessary either. After eating, do not drink even a drop of water. After you have had your lunch full, then see how soon you digested your food, how soon you felt light, energized and then felt hungry at an appropriate time interval.

Day 2: It’s lunch again. You can do this exercise with dinner also. This time, drink half to one glass of water (as you desire) after you have completed your dinner. Now, you would be feeling heavy, with a bloated stomach. It will seem ages after you food started getting digested. Some would even find it difficult to sleep soundly.   

The risks of drinking water immediately after eating:

Certain foods release not-so-healthy gases in stomach when mixed with water, and this hinders active digestion.

Drinking water immediately after having food also leads to mucous secretion, which can often cause cold and decrease in immunity power.

It is especially more harmful for people who are diabetic or obese, to drink water after eating, since this increases the sugar levels in the body and fluctuates the insulin level.

So, give your tummy at least one hour time to digest and absorb. You will stay healthy as a result and stay in tune with your body’s natural urges.

Go for a light walk after having food, this will speed up the digestion process!

Follow healthy habits - Live a long happy life