Does consuming water before or after a meal impact digestion? Here are the opinions of a dietician.
There is a widespread belief that drinking water while or right after eating may have an impact on your digestion. Many Ayurveda gurus also advise delaying drinking water for at least half an hour following meals. However, there are occasions when you are able to withstand the need to drink water at mealtime but utterly forget to do so for hours, losing two to three hours of your day in the process. The result could be dehydration. So, should you actually refrain from drinking water prior to, during, and after eating? According to a recent Instagram post by nutritionist Bhuvan Rastogi, there is no scientific proof against drinking water before meals.
“Many people think that drinking water around or along with food can dilute the digestive enzymes and hinder digestion. Take this as inconclusive because there is currently no scientific evidence to support it “Bhuvan Rastogi writes.
“We already consume a lot of fluid in our diets, and that is a valid point in the water and food debate. Soups already exist. Salads basically amount to chewing water. Green vegetables are highly high in water in a traditional diet, and gravy for veggies is obviously water. We consume buttermilk with meals, which is made out of 7/8 water and 1/8 curd “Rastogi says.
According to the dietician, skipping water after meals may actually have the opposite effect by lowering our daily water intake.
“However, because so many of us practice this, going without water for two hours before and after each meal, a lot of people are dehydrated. They are unable to drink the recommended 3 to 4 liters of water each day. Dehydration has already been shown to have serious side effects, including persistent constipation, acidity, increased risk of kidney stones, UTIs, etc “He claims.
According to Rastogi, getting adequate water should be our top goal, and keeping water away from food should be considerably lower. If someone can accomplish both, he continues, that is good, but one should concentrate on getting enough water in their system.
