The Slowest Eater Wins The Race

The topic of chewing and fast eating comes up frequently in my medical practice, so this post is to remind us all about the benefits of slow, mindful eating.

For as long as I can remember, I have been a relatively slow eater, and I was often told this which made me feel like I was eating the wrong way or wasting time. Little did I know that this habit would serve me well and make it easier for me to practice mindful slow eating. But not everyone shares this same story. In fact, many of us in modern society have a story of developing a habit of rushing through meals, not chewing well, and overfilling our stomachs due to social pressures, tight schedules, addictive foods, or scarcity of food. The good news is that we can train ourselves to eat properly.

Mindful eating has many positive effects on our health. Research has shown that eating slower reduces the risk of obesity and other associated diseases such as gastroesophageal reflux disease, diabetes, and high cholesterol, to name a few.

Here are 6 benefits to eating slowly:

1. You will eat less. Eating slowly allows you enough time to feel satisfied earlier which helps prevent overeating. Once you begin eating your meal, appetite and satiety hormones (leptin and ghrelin) begin to shift. It can take approximately 20 minutes for these hormones to effectively tell your brain to feel satisfied. If you eat so fast that you blow past your body’s food requirements in less than 20 minutes, you risk overshooting without even realizing it. It is much easier to accurately assess the amount of food you need if you simply listen to your body and give yourself enough time to do so.

2. You will enjoy your food more. When you take the time to savor each bite of a meal and think about the textures, flavors, colors, smells, and history of the food, you simply will enjoy and remember the meal more.

3. You will be satisfied longer. Slow eating leads to earlier satiety at the meal, but also longer-lasting satiety and satisfaction afterward. You’ll find that you may not need that snack two hours after lunch or overeat at the next meal, for example.

4. You will feel better. Do you ever get that feeling of fullness or feeling stuffed? Low energy, chest or abdominal pressure, heartburn, and/or indigestion can result from eating too fast and too much. You should feel satisfied but without feeling your stomach full when you reach the right amount of eaten food at each meal.

5. You will improve the absorption of nutrients. Digestion begins in the mouth. More complete chewing along with more time mixing your food with saliva and its digestive enzymes starts your digestion process right. Many healthy foods including fruits and vegetables require complete chewing to maximize their associated health benefits as this helps release their healthy nutrients. You don’t want to waste any of those valuable organic veggie nutrients, do you?

6. You will reduce stress. Taking the time to sit, talk to family or friends, enjoy a meal, and take a break from work or other life events will help you to decompress. Meals are a great time to socialize, reflect, and even meditate. Also, it is important that your stress hormones are as low as possible at mealtimes for optimal digestion as you get more blood flow to the digestive organs. Taking the time to slow down eating will help reduce these stress hormones.

Here are 6 tips for slow, mindful eating:

1. Schedule 30 to 60 minutes or more for each meal. Prioritize healthy eating and slow eating by putting meals in your formal schedule with plenty of time to get the job done right.

2. Create a distraction-free environment at mealtime. Remove TV, smartphones, and other devices (not so easy at my house). Do not eat and drive. Start with a few deep breaths to prepare yourself. Be in the present. Slowly enjoy the food without distraction. Focus on the taste of your healthy food, the chewing, and the people around you.

3. Take small bites. Take one small bite at a time. The amount should fit comfortably in your mouth with plenty of extra space while still being able to close your lips while chewing. Do not overfill your mouth.

4. Chew until the food is a liquid in your mouth (about 20-30 times). If that many chews seems like a lot, it is! But that is what it takes for optimal digestion. Counting while chewing each bite may help. Do the best that you can here.

5. Set your utensil down in between bites. This idea may help you by forcing you to take more time with each bite. Be creative and think of other ways to help slow it down.

6. Before going for second helpings of food, take a minute and think about your hunger and satiety. The goal is to stop eating when your stomach is approximately 80% full, you are 100% satiated without hunger present anymore, and when you have eaten a variety of healthy foods and food groups. Take the time to be aware of and recognize the sensations of true hunger and satiety.

Well, that should be enough for you to chew on (I couldn’t help myself). Slow it down, people.

Dr. Benson

References:

1. Ohkuma T, Hirakawa Y, Nakamura U, Kiyohara Y, Kitazono T, Ninomiya T. Association between eating rate and obesity: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Int J Obes (Lond). 2015 Nov;39(11):1589-96. doi: 10.1038/ijo.2015.96. Epub 2015 May 25. PMID: 26100137.