Adopt these 3 easy, everyday tricks to avoid acidity and indigestion
It’s the season of festivity, get-togethers and celebration! That also means eating and drinking a whole lot! But you’ve got to think about your poor stomach. Bloating, gas and acidity issues become rampant with the amount of food and kinds of food we eat during the festive season. Excess gastric acid production leads to acidity in our stomach, which can further lead to burning sensations in our chest or tummy. Moderate amounts of acid released in our stomach help to speed up the digestion of consumed food, but as we know, excess of anything is bad. That’s why excessive acid in our stomach can lead to a lot of unwanted symptoms and discomfort. Let us know how to prevent acidity.
Before we find out the solutions, understand what acidity feels like.
Symptoms of acidity:
* A burning sensation in the chest that typically occurs after eating and may get worse at night.
* Increasing pain when bending over or resting down.
* A bitter or acidic sensation brought on by vomiting food or sour liquid
* Throat issues
* Having trouble while swallowing food.
All of these symptoms may interfere with your everyday routine, may cause you pain, and keep you from finishing your tasks.
Ayurveda expert Dr Dimple Jangda, who is a gut health specialist, shared some easy ways to prevent acidity and indigestion, via an Instagram post.
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PERSONALISE NOW3 easy steps to prevent acidity
1. Eat healthy and 80% of your appetite
According to Dr. Jangda, everyone should follow the principle of ‘hara hachi bu’, a Japanese term meaning “eat until you’re 80 percent full”. It originated in the city of Okinawa, where people use this advice as a way to control their eating habits. Interestingly, they have the lowest rates of illness from heart disease, cancer and stroke and a fairly long life expectancy. The expert says, “Visualise a blender. If you fill it up to the top, will the blender work? No! You have to leave room for the blender to do its job.
The same rule is for your stomach. Leave 20 percent of the space for air, for the digestive juices, saliva, and bile to do the job of digesting the food.
The next time you have an appetite for three pieces of bread eat two pieces, and wait for a few minutes for the message to go from the stomach to the brain if it’s full or not. If you still feel like eating more, have another half a piece of bread. This habit allows you to leave some room for the stomach to digest the foods.
2. Chew your food 32 times
Chewing food properly creates much digestive saliva in your mouth, and that aids digestion in the stomach. Chewing is intended to break down food so that it loses texture. For most bites of food, an average of 32 chews is recommended. Of course, compared to a slice of bread, you need to chew less when eating soft water-filled food like watermelon.
3. Don’t drink water, juices or soda while eating food
When you drink fluids while eating, it washes away the digestive juices from your stomach. It can dilute your digestive fluids. Water is a coolant and regularly indulging in consuming it during or right after meals can interfere in the digestion process. Therefore, this practice is not encouraged by Ayurveda. Wait for at least half-an-hour before having water once you are done with your meal.
A bonus tip to prevent acidity
To stimulate your senses, use your fingers to eat solid foods when appropriate. According to Ayurveda, the nerve endings in the fingertips are said to improve digestion. In fact, when you eat with your hands and your fingertips engaged, you become more conscious of the flavours, textures, and aromas.
Eating with your hands sends message to the brain on the kind of texture, temperature of the food, the stomach could expect. This, therefore, helps in quick and proper digestion.