KNOW YOUR DIGESTION

It needs dietary fuel to keep the body functioning smoothly. Diet is important for the physical, mental and intellectual development of man. The body and mind of a person are nourished according to the type of food we consume.

The food we eat is digested and absorbed by the body, through which a person gets the energy required for daily work. The digestion of the food consumed starts from the mouth. Basically, the realization of hunger comes only after the saliva is released. Saliva in the mouth is a sign of hunger. Hunger is felt only after the food consumed is fully digested.

But we often consume another food before digesting the previous one. According to research, a person opens his mouth to eat something 8 times a day. Pure belching (without any smell/not sour/not bitter), feeling light-headed, feeling energized, defecation at the right time are the symptoms of pre-digested food. It is wrong to eat anything again unless the mouth is watering and there are no signs of earlier digestion.

Re-consume food only after showing signs of earlier digestion. It is said that you should bite each grass 32 times. The longer the grass is chewed, the more saliva is added to the food. This smooth grass is easily swallowed. If you bite properly, there is no need to drink water while eating. People who have less teeth need to bite more often.

Ptyalin in saliva is an enzyme that converts food starch into sugar. If food is not properly chewed 32 times, there is a risk of diabetes in the future. Also it is observed that problem of constipation happens if food is not chewed properly. Even if you just quietly bite the grass 32 times, the problem is often reduced

It is also observed that while eating, when you heard any bad news that grass does not goes down your throat. We also use the phrase ‘dry throat with fear’. This is because the salivary glands in the mouth contract and the amount of saliva decreases in mental disorders like stress, fear, anger, sadness, anxiety. So saliva is not mixed in the food.

Therefore, the part of the food that is digested through saliva does not get properly digested and as a result the symptoms of indigestion appears later. Therefore, it is very important to have proper mental health while eating. While eating, full attention should be paid to the food. It is very wrong to watch TV, use mobile, reading newspaper or book during eating.

When under stress, these secretions are secreted in small quantities and of low quality, leading to various digestive complaints.

Once the meal is over, the food, which has been smoothed out by bite, reaches the stomach through the esophagus. The next process of churning is carried out by the longitudinal and circular muscles in the stomach. The digestive secretions secreted from various stomach cells are mixed in it and further digestion takes place.

It is important to keep the mouth of the stomach closed so that this bowel movement can take place properly. This means that once the food reaches the stomach, the action continues there for 3 to 4 hours. So don’t put anything in from above again during this time.

We know that if we add extra rice in first half cooked rice, the entire rice remains half cooked. In the same way, if you eat something again soon after a meal, both the previous and re-eaten food remains undigested. Therefore, it is inappropriate to eat anything again for 5 to 6 hours after a meal.

During the process of digestion of food in the stomach, various secretions from the stomach are mixed in it. Digestive secretions of hydrochloric acid, mucus and pepsin are secreted from various cells in the stomach. Pepsin converts proteins into simpler amino acids. During all these actions, the lining of the stomach is protected by mucus.

The hydrochloric acid of pH 1.5 to 3 is secreted in the stomach. This acid works to digest proteins. At the same time, if there are any micro-organisms in the food, they are also destroyed by these acids. The right amount and quality of acid is very important for proper digestion of food.

Many disorders like hyperacidity, indigestion, gases, constipation occurs if quantity or quality of this acid is hampered. The process of secretion of this acid at night is complicated. This leads to changes in the quality and quantity of this acid. Similarly, fear, anger, depression etc. also have an effect on the secretion of the acid.

The food digested in the stomach then enters the small intestine. In the early part of the small intestine, secretions from the liver and pancreas are mixed. Pancreatic flavors include amylase (for digestion of carbohydrates), lipase (for digestion of fat) and trypsin (for digestion of proteins). The secretions in the liver are mainly alkaline and they help in the digestion of fats.

After that, the digestive process is completed by mixing some digestive secretions secreted in the small intestine. The process of absorption of nutrients in the blood takes place in the small intestine.

Just as the leaves on the banks of a stream are bent into the water, so the water appears to be absorbed. Similarly, the cells of the small intestine act to absorb the digestive juices in the liquid form from the digested food.

Due to the absorption of this juice in liquid form, the food later becomes solid and this food enters the large intestine. It is important to have some amount of fiber in the diet you consume to avoid constipation. The job of this final prepared material in the large intestine is to stay in the gut for a while and hold the body.

If the stool is watery, it do not retained in the intestine for some time. That’s why the body feels tired due to frequent diarrhea.

The proper functioning of the digestive system and the proper digestion of the food consumed depends on the diet you are consuming and the method of eating. Proper digestion depends on when, how, and how much food you eat. 

Stop the meal, when you get belching. Then no matter how much someone insists, don’t eat again.

Modern science says ‘You are what you eat’. But according to Ayurveda ‘You are what you digest’. Because no matter how much nutritious food you eat but it is not consumed in the right amount, at the right time, in the right way, it makes the body see less use and more harm.

Eating too fast, eating too slowly, and paying attention to other things while eating can cause digestive secretions to deteriorate proportionately and qualitatively, resulting in many health problems. Impaired digestion is found to be the main cause of many ailments ranging from hemorrhoids, constipation, hyper acidity to diabetes and from blood pressure to cancer.

And this is mainly due to our poor eating habits. So it is important to eat in the right amount and in the right way for a healthy life.