Has anyone else ever seen the episode on “Road to Avonlea” where Hetty King tells Gus Pike that he needs to chew each bite of food ten times slowly before swallowing?
Of course, Hetty was trying to teach Gus good manners by showing him how to eat his food without gulping it down, but the principle of eating slowly has important health connections too.
The subject of chewing might seem like an insignificant one in comparison with other things, but it’s really a key part of having good digestion.
As I’ve been skimming through some of my old 19th century books lately, I’ve noticed that quite a few of them mention the importance of chewing food thoroughly and slowly in order to have good digestion. Eating food slowly was probably more common in past centuries when people lived life at a bit slower pace, sitting down at the dinning room table for family-style meals rather than scarfing down a fast-food value meal on the way to work.
The stress of always eating in a hurry can really mess with your digestion and can keep you from getting the full benefit of the foods you eat, even if those foods are healthy and nutrient dense.
Chew Food Thoroughly
The act of chewing allows the saliva in the mouth to start the process of breaking down the food so it can be more easily digested once it hits the stomach and so that the maximum amount of nutrients can be absorbed. Swallowing big pieces of un-chewed food forces the digestive system to have to work harder to break down the food.
A 19th-century medical text titled Anatomy, Physiology, and Hygiene, published in 1853, says the following about the importance of chewing food thoroughly:
“All solid aliments should be reduced to a state of comparative fineness by the teeth, before it is swallowed” (pg. 143).
“The practice of swallowing solid food, slightly masticated, or ‘bolting’ it down, tends to derange the digestive process and impair the nutrition of the system” (pg. 143).
Another book, Our Digestion: Or My Jolly Friend’s Secret, written by Dio Lewis in 1872 says:
“While the food is in his mouth, it is entirely under his control, and he may contribute more than most people imagine to the completeness of the digestive function” (pg 29).
That’s a really good point. The only time you have any control over your food is when it’s still in your mouth. Once you swallow it, you lose control over what happens to it. It makes sense to do as much as you can to help your digestion by chewing your food thoroughly to help start the process of breaking it down.
Chew Food Slowly
It’s equally important to make sure that you’re chewing food slowly as well as thoroughly.
In The Lady’s Almanac for 1854, a section called “Preserve Your Health” includes the advice:
“Do not eat in a hurry, but masticate your food well before it is deposited in the stomach. This bolting down provisions, anaconda-like, is most destructive to the digestive organs” (pg. 100).
A recent article called Secrets of Eating Psychology, written by Marc David, talks about some of the reasons why eating too fast can cause poor digestion. Even though this article focuses mostly on the topic of metabolism, it makes some great points that relate to eating and digestion, especially the second and fourth points.
The article talks about the effects of stress on digestion. Basically, what this article is saying is that when you eat your food really fast or when your’re under stress (or both), your body reacts as if its threatened by going into “fight-or-flight mode” and your digestive system shuts down. That’s why the food sits like a rock in your stomach when you eat too fast or when you eat during a stressful situation. I’ve had that experience before – not pleasant. What’s even worse is that you end up not getting much of any nutritional benefit from the food sitting like a rock in your stomach. On this subject, David says:
“You could be eating the healthiest food in the universe, but if you aren’t eating under the optimum state of digestion and assimilation – which happens to be relaxation – you literally and metabolically are not receiving the full nutritional value of your meal.”
“So when we do eat fast, the body once again enters the physiologic stress response, which results in decreased digestion, decreased nutrient assimilation, increased nutrient excretion, lowered calorie burning rate, and a bigger appetite.”
The last thing you want is to have your digestion slow down and to have “decreased nutrient assimilation,” especially if you’ve just eaten a large meal. Even the healthiest meal won’t do you very much good, if your body isn’t able to digest it well and absorb the nutrients fully.
So, if you’re eating delicious, nutrient dense, healthy foods you want to make sure you’re chewing them slowly and thoroughly enough to get the most benefit out of them that you can – especially if you’re paying more money for these foods! It’s such a waste to buy more expensive, better quality foods if you’re eating them so fast that you aren’t able to absorb all the nutrition you can from them.
Easy to Say, Harder to Do
Sometimes it’s easier said than done to try to eat food slowly, though, especially if you find yourself running late for something.
I’ve never been a super fast eater and I usually take my time and try to eat slowly and enjoy my food…… except when I’m in a hurry. And unfortunately, it seems like I’m always in a hurry to go somewhere. The time when I really end up rushing through my meals is in the morning at breakfast. Even though I’ve been trying to follow the “Early to Bed, Early to Rise” principle, I still struggle with waking up early, so I usually end up running around the house to get ready and grabbing a bite to eat in the last five minutes before I have to rush out the door. That kind of stressful rushing around is definitely not conducive to slow and thorough chewing and heathy digestion.
So, for some people, eating food more slowly might just mean taking a little more time to chew each bite, maybe even putting the fork down in between bites so you don’t have quite the urge to shove another forkful into your mouth right away. For others, like me, eating meals more slowly might mean getting up five or ten minutes earlier in the morning to make time for a relaxing breakfast. I hate waking up any earlier than I have to, but if it means enjoying a more lesiurely breakfast that gives me time to thoroughly savor each bite, I guess it’s worth it. 🙂
Are you a fast eater or a slow eater?
This post is linked to Make A Move Monday at Simply Made Home, Scratch Cookin’ Tuesday at Mrs. Dull’s Nourished Kitchen, Hearth and Soul at Elsa Cooks, and Fight Back Friday at Food Renegade.
This is such an interesting, and well researched post. I loved the quote “This bolting down provisions, anaconda-like, is most destructive to the digestive organs” – it’s very true! I tend to eat more slowly than my husband and son, but then I remember that my Dad and I always seemed to eat faster than my Mom when I was growing up. I would not say I am a slow eater, but I love to linger over a meal. I do believe that we are better nourished and healthier if we eat more slowly and have a real awareness of our food.
Yes, I agree that having an awareness of the food we eat is really important for being nourished and healthy – and the food tastes so much better when eaten slowly with awareness too!
You know my mom always chews her food slowly-is the last one to finish her meal -and at 80 despite some heart troubles -looks and feels great.
Glad I read your article-I’m always trying to improve my health and from maintaining my teeth, diet and exercise I’m doing a pretty good job. BUT I am a fast eater-so I’m going to work on this aspect of my health and digestion. I’m convinced from my experiences and your reading this is an important aspect to good health overall.
Thanks
Good for your Mom! I hope I’ll still be healthy at 80 too 🙂