Why Mindful Eating is Important? A Guide to Improving Your Eating Habits

Most of us nowadays prefer to eat while on the go or while watching something on our devices. We cannot spare enough time to sit and mindfully eat while paying attention to the sensory experiences of eating. This is not just true of adults but kids as well – most children cannot eat without having something playing on a phone or a laptop, and thus, they have never learnt how to focus on their food.

Digestion starts in the mouth with the production of saliva. This saliva contains enzymes that help our body to break down the food in our mouth. Did you know that the amylase produced in the saliva is one of the first enzymes to help us digest carbohydrates? To be more specific, Ptyalin, a type of amylase present in saliva, is important in the breaking down of carbohydrates.

Being distracted while eating interrupts the production of Ptyalin and reduces the amount produced in saliva. This kind of abnormality right at the beginning of the digestive process carries long-lasting effects. It can cause indigestion, reduced appetite, gastric diseases, and even gastric ulcer and liver problems in adults.

If this is what not focusing on your food does to adults, can you imagine the effect this has on children?

What Effects does Distracted Eating Have on Our Health? 

Physical health has major effects on mental and emotional health – similarly, good physical health will ensure mental growth in children. As we have mentioned before, distracted eating can lead to devastating health problems for your digestive system. In children, an unhealthy digestive system can cause stunted mental growth, which makes it almost impossible for them to work towards achieving their dreams in a world as competitive as ours.

The basis of homeopathic medicine is holistic healing, which involves paying attention to all the facets of your life and making sure that you are physically, emotionally and mentally healthy. Dr. Alam, the top homeopathy doctor in West Bengal, has tips on how to improve your eating habits in this fast-paced and distracting world.

How Can I Improve My Eating Habits?

If you’re feeling hesitant about how to start eating mindfully and improve your health, the following tips from Dr. Alam should help you:

1. Pay full attention to your food 

In the contemporary world, life is fast and rarely gives you time to sit down and center your attention on one activity. Make sure to take time out of your day so that you can truly enjoy your meals to the fullest. You do not have to spare a large chunk of time; even setting aside 15 or 20 minutes to eat without distractions can be very beneficial to your health.

This is even more important if you have children. Try to ensure that you spend time talking to them and interacting while they’re eating so that they can focus on their food and start off their digestive process on the right foot.

2. Start your day right.

Waking up late is a jolt to the body, and puts all its processes out of order. Improving your sleep schedule so that you can wake up early can have several health benefits. It also improves your mental health by giving you more time to unwind and more time to sit down with just your food and nothing else.

Work steadily towards waking up earlier and incorporating exercise into your morning routine. Exercise helps to warm up the body and get the metabolism running, which makes your body digest food more efficiently and extract the most nutrients.

3. Stay Hydrated

The human body is made up of 70% water. Proper hydration is key to making sure all of your bodily functions are running at their best capacity, including digestion. The recommended amount of water that you should be drinking daily is about 2 liters.

For children and active adults, water is absolutely necessary to remain in full health, so make sure that you and your kids are appropriately hydrated. Carry around a water bottle wherever you go so you don’t forget to take small sips throughout the day.