5 groups of people should not eat and drink at the same time

Ha Vu April 25, 2023 12:22

The habit of eating and drinking at the same time not only affects digestion but also tends to cause weight gain, especially harmful for people with certain health problems.

According to Dr. Giang Quan - Head of the Department of Gastroenterology, Beijing Changgung Tsinghua Hospital (China), a recent study published in the journalAppetiteAmerican, said drinking water while eating will make you eat more without knowing it, silently causing weight gain.

In the study, 44 adults ate lunch once a week in the lab for a total of four weeks. For each meal, they ate only pasta, in four weights: 400g, 500g, 600g and 700g, with an additional 700ml of water.

According toGGThe authors recorded how much each person ate each time and videotaped the participants' meals to count the number of times they switched between eating noodles and drinking water.

Eating and drinking a lot of water at the same time can be harmful to the body. Illustration: Aox

The results showed that regardless of the amount of water, participants who ate and drank at the same time increased their food intake. On average, food intake increased by 5.7g for each additional drink of water during a meal.

Researchers suggest that frequent switching between food and drink weakens the feeling of satiety, leading to increased consumption. Satiety is the feeling of satisfaction with a given amount of food that decreases when people eat a given amount of food, leading to a feeling of fullness.

Not only does it reduce the feeling of fullness, drinking too much water during meals can also affect your digestive system:

- The stomach contains high concentrations of gastric acid to digest food. Drinking a lot of water will dilute the gastric acid, affecting digestion.

- When eating, with a large amount of food taken in, the stomach will take on the function of temporary storage. However, the stomach volume is limited, after drinking a lot of water, the space in the stomach will shrink, stretch, the stomach wall will enlarge, easily causing nausea, bloating and other uncomfortable feelings.

The stomach wall in a state of high tension for a long time will cause diseases such as reduced gastric motility and gastritis.

Water is essential for the body but needs to be drunk properly. Photo: Wholelifechallenge

Five types of people should not eat and drink at the same time

1. Patients with gastroesophageal reflux

Patients with gastroesophageal reflux have lower esophageal sphincter insufficiency. Drinking a lot of water while eating can easily increase pressure in the stomach, causing stomach contents to reflux into the esophagus, aggravating symptoms of acid reflux and heartburn.

2. Elderly people

The elderly have weak digestive function, reduced gastric motility, and drinking too much water when eating can easily cause stomach discomfort, which is not good for digestion.

3. Children

A child's stomach cavity is very small, if they drink water at the same time, it can lead to insufficient food intake, causing malnutrition. Therefore, when eating, children should not drink more than 300ml of water and soup.

4. Patients with diabetic gastroparesis

Diabetic gastroparesis, also known as delayed gastric emptying, is a condition in which the movement of food from the stomach to the small intestine is slowed or stopped even though nothing is obstructing the stomach or small intestine.

In this condition, the vagus nerve that controls the muscles of the stomach and small intestine is damaged, causing food movement to slow or stop. Other cells in the stomach may also be damaged, causing the stomach to stop emptying its contents.

Patients are prone to nausea and upper abdominal discomfort after eating, these patients should drink as little water as possible while eating.

5. People with dental diseases

People with dental disease cannot chew food thoroughly due to problems such as pain when chewing, tooth loss. If you drink a lot of water while eating, the food will not be chewed thoroughly, after swallowing it will increase the burden on the digestive tract, increasing the risk of chronic gastritis.

So what is the right way to drink water when eating rice?

According to expert advice, you should drink water before eating, ideally half an hour and drink 1 hour after eating. This allows hydrochloric acid enough time to properly digest food and prevent the formation of gas, acid and bloating.

Additionally, you can drink a few sips of water while eating, preferably warm water, to help swallow food easier.

Ha Vu