Among the most widespread diet myths in society is the belief that water makes you fat. And, even more, that water during meals is harmful to health, or that there are exact times a day to drink a specific amount of water. What is true about that?
We know that it can be difficult to understand since not everyone agrees with the fact of drinking water: before, during or after meals? You will ask yourself on more than one occasion. Well, your doubts will be cleared up because we are going to answer each and every one of your questions. Look look!
The best time of day to drink water
- The day has 24 hours and in all of them you can drink water, that is so, since it helps to keep the body properly hydrated. Also, not everyone needs to drink 2 liters of water a day as this amount varies depending on gender, height or weight. What is clear is that you have to drink at least one liter a day to maintain optimal health.
- However, many people consider that there are certain occasions in which we should not ingest liquid because it can be harmful to the body, especially during meals, before or after eating them. Let’s see it carefully.
Water before eating
- There are those who strongly affirm that drinking water before meals can help to lose weight. And the truth is that they are not wrong, since fluid intake helps control those calories that we ingest later. The reason? Water has the capacity to quench, so once we sit down to eat we will be less hungry than we used to be.
- Although it sounds very good to lose weight just by drinking water, you must be very careful with this. Drinking a large amount of water just before meals (more than three glasses) can work against you since it could modify the pH of the stomach, greatly impairing digestion.
- The key is to drink small amounts of water before meals, only if you feel like it. If you’re thirsty just before eating, why can’t you drink a glass of water? You can also take advantage of the benefits of hydration in your body. But if you want to lose weight, you better try to eat a healthy and balanced diet and stop drinking excess water.
Water while you eat
- Surely more than once you have heard someone claim that drinking water during meals will help you lose weight. How is this possible? As we told you before, water during meals can make you feel full sooner and, therefore, feel less hungry.
- For its part, there is another current that ensures that water during meals makes you fat. But they are wrong! Water has 0 calories, and does not contribute anything to the energy balance. Therefore, water does not make you fat before, after or during meals.
- It is not advisable, however, to drink excessively during meals. And much less it is drinking while you have food in your mouth, since not only could you drown, it is also harmful to digestion. Saliva is generating Ptyalin, an enzyme that helps digest all foods. When you drink too much water, this enzyme may not be mixing properly with everything you’ve ingested, and digestion will be much more difficult.
- But we emphasize again: it is only harmful when you drink excessive water. It is not about eating without drinking, far from it. It is about eating and drinking as you usually do, between bites, chewing well and not ingesting too much water in this process.
Water after eating
- A widespread myth among the population is that drinking water after eating is not advisable at all. And they are not wrong, but we must point out that in these cases it is a question of an intake of water in amounts that are too exorbitant, and what you have to do is drink without going overboard.
- There are many specialists in the field who recommend drinking water a few hours after eating. The reason is that the digestive juices must be kept undiluted so that the food is diluted in the best possible way and the digestion is the most correct.
- In short, the recommendation is to wait at least half an hour after you finish eating to drink water. But, as always happens, if you are very thirsty, nothing will happen to drink a small glass. The important thing is to be clear that large amounts of water just before, after or during the meal are not good at all. It should be drunk in a relaxed manner and in small amounts throughout the day to keep the body properly hydrated.
Cold, warm or hot water?
- Once the issue of correct water intake has been clarified, it is time to resolve many other questions that may arise regarding water. One of the most heard in recent times is the correct temperature at which the water has to be, especially when we finish eating.
- As a general rule, everyone prefers to drink cold water than hot water. Cold water helps us especially in summer, when the high temperatures are pressing and we want the heat from our body to disappear, right? In these cases, you should know that too cold water is somewhat harmful to health.
- The ideal is to drink water that is warm or seasonal (or if you dare with hot, go ahead) once you have finished your meal. But why would drinking water that is too cold be harmful to the body? The reason is found, of course, in the digestion process.
- When the body digests after eating all the meals, it gathers as much heat as possible from the organs that participate in it. It is for this reason that many people feel a bit cold after eating and notice that their body temperature drops considerably.
- If you drink water that is too cold at the right time after eating, you could interfere with digestion and lower the temperature of the organs. In this way, the development of the process would be interrupted and could take a little longer than usual. Ideally, wait a little while to drink the cold water until the food has been processed correctly.