Mindful Eating

Did you know that chewing our food helps us digest better? The more we chew our food, the more digestive enzymes we secrete to help break down the food that we are eating. In fact, there are many different kinds of digestive enzymes that target different types of foods like carbohydrates and protein. As we chew more and more, we actually secrete the right type of enzymes to break down the food that we are eating. The longer we chew, the more time our body has to prepare for digestion and absorbing the most nutrients from our food.

Digesting our food well is very important. Many of our symptoms and chronic ailments come from our body not being able to break down our food well enough to extract and absorb nutrients (vitamins and minerals) and also from being able to get rid of contaminants in our food such as pesticides, chemicals, dyes, etc. that don’t belong in our body.

For many of us, taking the time to slow down to eat is not common. Life can feel busy and finding time to eat slowly can fall low on our priority list. By slowing down our eating and chewing for longer, we can support digestion and promote greater health in our body. So the next time you eat, take the time to sit and chew and enjoy your food as the nourishment that it is!