Don’ts After a Meal

Many of us undertake some activities that are not essentially healthy after consumption of a meal, be it a breakfast, lunch or dinner. Our ignorance and false beliefs and myths can lead us to follow some practices that are not healthy, and may interfere with the process of digestion and metabolism.

One should avoid heavy physical activity immediately after eating. It is a myth that heavy physical activity or exercising after eating helps in faster burning of calories and will lead to faster weight loss. Rather putting yourself through strenuous task may not leave any energy for aiding the process of digestion. On the other hand, the strain on the muscles in the stomach may be so much that abdominal pain may occur.

Any kind of exercise or physically demanding work or work that specifically exercises the abdominal muscles must be followed only after a gap of more than one hour.

Do not drink plenty of water after eating food. Water consumption is essential but do push in the food with the help of water or consume too much water after eating. It gives you a feeling of being stuffed fully and you may have a puking sensation too.

Do not lie down immediately or lie on your stomach. Carry on with your routine light work. Wait for an hour or so to pass on before you hit the bed. Also when you sleep, sleep in a position such that your head is placed slightly at a higher level than the body. The head shouldn’t hang below the body.

Don’t eat fruits immediately after lunch or dinner. Fruits that are citric in nature may cause further reactions on combining with the acids and complex compounds present in the food we eat. This may cause stomach upset or problems in digestion.

Rinse your mouth lightly after meal, do not brush or gargle. This may cause a puking sensation or you may feel choked.